Mixed Deck — All ASQ Topics Flashcards

In the Measure phase of DMAIC, which metric represents the number of defects per million opportunities?

Answer: DPMO

DPMO (Defects Per Million Opportunities) is the standard metric used to quantify process defect rates in Six Sigma.

Which of the following accurately describes a flowchart?

Answer: A picture used to separate steps of a process in sequential order

A flowchart is a visual representation that illustrates the sequential steps and decision points within a process. It uses standardized symbols to depict the flow of activities, making it easier to understand, analyze, and communicate how a process works. This 'picture' helps clarify the order of operations and identify potential areas for improvement.

In a Value Stream Map, activities that do not add value from the customer's perspective are called:

Answer: Waste (Muda)

Muda is the Japanese term for waste — any activity that consumes resources without creating value the customer is willing to pay for.

A social services reference guide's publisher has hired a company to create an electronic version of the publication. Due to the user community's and the publisher's staff's insufficient technical skills and knowledge of the technology, the product has only been informally defined up to this point. Two new hires at the company and one inexperienced programmer will make up the development team for this project. Which of the following strategies would best suit this project's requirements?

Answer: Iterative development

Iterative development would best suit this project's requirements due to the informally defined product, the user community's and publisher's insufficient technical skills, and the inexperienced development team. This approach allows for requirements to evolve and be refined over successive iterations, providing early feedback from users and enabling the team to learn and adapt. It mitigates risks associated with unclear requirements and inexperienced personnel by breaking the project into smaller, manageable cycles.

A certain kind of line graph is used to evaluate the stability of a process.

Answer: control chart

A control chart is a specialized line graph used to monitor a process over time and evaluate its stability. It plots data points from a process and includes statistically derived upper and lower control limits. By observing whether data points fall within these limits and exhibit random patterns, one can determine if a process is in statistical control, meaning it is stable and predictable.

Which ISO standard provides guidance on auditing management systems?

Answer: ISO 19011

ISO 19011 provides guidelines for auditing management systems, covering audit principles, managing audit programs, and conducting audits.

'Kaizen' in lean manufacturing means:

Answer: Continuous, incremental improvement involving all employees at all levels

Kaizen (Japanese for 'change for better') is a philosophy of continuous incremental improvement involving everyone in the organization, from management to front-line workers.

In Design of Experiments (DOE), what is a 'main effect'?

Answer: The average change in the response when a factor moves from its low to high level

A main effect is the average impact of a single factor on the response variable, independent of other factors.

Which of the following can be accomplished using a Process Decision Program Chart (PDPC)?

Answer: Identify potential problems and actions to fix them.

A Process Decision Program Chart (PDPC) is a management tool specifically designed for planning and risk management. It helps teams anticipate potential problems that might arise during the implementation of a plan or project. By systematically mapping out a process and identifying possible failure points, the PDPC enables the development of countermeasures and contingency plans to prevent or mitigate these issues proactively.

What is 'benchmarking' in the context of quality management?

Answer: Comparing an organization's processes and performance metrics to best practices

Benchmarking involves comparing your organization's practices and performance against recognized leaders to identify improvement opportunities.

In the Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) cycle, what occurs during the 'Check' phase?

Answer: Evaluating actual results against the plan and objectives

During the Check phase, results of the implemented plan are measured and compared against the objectives to determine whether the intervention was effective.

Which of the following is the primary justification for the adoption of Quality Function Deployment (QFD)?

Answer: To implement the voice of the customer.

Quality Function Deployment (QFD) is a structured methodology primarily adopted to translate customer requirements, often referred to as the 'voice of the customer,' into technical requirements for product design and development. Its main justification is to ensure that customer needs and expectations are thoroughly understood and systematically integrated throughout every stage of the product development process, from conception to manufacturing.

Which of these experts in quality is connected to Fishbone Diagram?

Answer: Ishikawa

The Cause and Effect Diagram is also called the Fishbone or Ishikawa diagram. It is called Fishbone Diagram because it looks like a fishbone. It is called the Ishikawa diagram because it was developed by Kaoru Ishikawa in Japan in the 1950s.

Which of the following quantitative techniques DOESN'T applicable to evaluating the reliability of actual systems or components?

Answer: Statistical allocation of reliability goals.

Statistical allocation of reliability goals is a planning and design technique used to distribute an overall system reliability target down to its individual components or subsystems. This is a predictive activity performed during the design phase, not a method for evaluating the reliability of actual, existing systems or components based on observed data. The other options involve analyzing real-world test or field data.

Which statistical tool is used to determine whether two or more population variances are equal?

Answer: Bartlett's or Levene's test

Bartlett's test (for normal data) and Levene's test (for non-normal data) are used to test equality of variances across groups.

In Kotter's 8-step change model, what is the first step?

Answer: Create a sense of urgency

Kotter's model begins with creating a sense of urgency to motivate people to overcome complacency and embrace the need for change.

The next line of code may have a "divide by 0" error. while (N>=10) and (N=10) loop, J=50 K=1 End loop: M [K] = J/N K = K + 1 N = N Which of the following methods is best for spotting this error?

Answer: Source code inspection

A "divide by 0" error, especially within a loop, is best spotted through source code inspection. This method involves a systematic, manual review of the code by peers or experts to identify logical flaws, potential runtime errors, and adherence to coding standards. While compilation might catch syntax errors, and testing could eventually trigger it, a thorough inspection can proactively identify such a critical flaw before execution.

Which Six Sigma metric expresses defect rate in terms of opportunities for defects rather than units?

Answer: Defects Per Million Opportunities (DPMO)

DPMO normalizes the defect rate by the number of opportunities per unit, allowing fair comparison across processes with different complexity levels.

Which Six Sigma function is most likely to respond if a specific circumstance in a company calls for the elimination of organizational barriers and making sure the team has the right resources? ‥ Champion ‥ Process Owner ‥ Change agent ‥ Black Belt

Answer: The main responsibilities of a Champion are to remove roadblocks and ensure the team has needs resources. Process owners can make changes only within their processes. Change agent is another designation for the Black Belt does not include authority to remove roadblocks.

The Champion is responsible for removing organizational barriers and securing the resources a team needs, giving them the authority to clear roadblocks across the organization. A Process Owner can only make changes within their own process, and a Change Agent (often the Black Belt) leads improvement work but lacks the authority to remove organizational obstacles.

Which of the following people is normally in charge of funding initiatives for software process change?

Answer: Sponsor

The sponsor is normally in charge of funding initiatives for software process change. The sponsor is typically a senior manager or executive who champions the change, provides the necessary resources (including financial), and removes organizational roadblocks. Their active support and financial commitment are critical for the successful implementation of any significant process improvement.