Deming in 1980 LO5069

Myrna Casebolt (CASEBMJ@DHSS.STATE.WI.US)
Tue, 23 Jan 1996 08:15:10 -0600

Replying to LO5028 --

[This is] Myrna Casebolt replying to LO5028 - Deming in 1980 reply to LO 5018

Jan Lelie wrote:

You hit a whole in one: from Deming i learned exactly the relationship you
described. Deming says to me: the essence of quality is cooperation and
nothing else. SPC (statistical process control), as i interpret it, can
start out as a way to fight symptoms, to reduce the errors by correcting
them. When this is done in a situation in which management tries to
control the learning (=improvement) process, nothing is learned, in the
end. Single loop learning, at the most. Workers and managers become
divided by a common tool. Deming, again as i feel it, highlights the
responsibility of management to create an environment in which everybody
can learn. So SPC has to become TQM (total quality management, also a
misnomer, does somebody know a better three letter abbreviation?), a way
to continuously develop skills and organizations. Double loop learning.
The worst blokkade in this venture, this path, is, in my experience, the
sense of loss of control managers feel, notably functional, classical,
middle-managers. This sense is easely translated into fear. Which can
trigger feelings of insecurity and fear with workers, who respond in ways
that re-inforce control driven standard procedures etc etc. You probably
can draw your causal map now. It takes leadership and vision (Seeing
quality before it appears!) to implement teamlearning and mental model
busting. So there you are.

Yes, indeed, there I am!! Nicely said. TQM has evolved (!) to CQI or
continuous quality improvement or OPI - organizational performance
improvement...and there are other incarnations. The essance appears to be
(and you've heard me say this before...so indulgence is begged...thank
you) the perception/allusion/illusion of control. We really manage
nothing unless we see management as the regulation or steering or
influencing of systems and processes. The very best we can all do with
one another is to together enhance and facilitate an environment in which
learning can occur for all of us. Leadership qualities (no pun intended!)
that result in understanding of connections and relationships among
everything and matters is what we can, perhaps isolate somewhat and look
for in ourselves and each other.

There are, indeed, certain bioligical and genetic realities with which we
operate. The whole idea of the management hierarchy appears to be losing
its weight....the same way Newtonian and Cartesian thinking has helped us
evolve to chaos and complexity thinking. Deming provided another
iteration of systems thinking at a time when we could hear it. Morphic
resonance took over, don't you think, because much of what was touted
included the word "competitive"...an edge....an allusion of an edge. So
the Deming influence snuck in because the timing was right.

So here we are....interesting times, these......we are beginning to talk
with one another in conversation and dialogue...understanding the
destructive influences of competitive tallk...discussion. Deming, Senge,
Wheatley, Capra, Quinn, Frued, Koffman, Kaufman, Ackoff, etc, etc, etc,
are helping us listen......there is a message here!! The "boss" need may
be evolving out of us and that brings us to the "God" need......oh dear...

I have to get back to work...but could not pass this up....cheers to
all...Myrna

casebmj@wp.dhss.state.wi.us

--
Myrna Casebolt <CASEBMJ@DHSS.STATE.WI.US>