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As American consumers became more exposed to foreign products, particularly cars, they began to realize that the quality and service of American firms could stand some review. Gradually, business owners noticed that foreign companies were winning market share by demonstrating a commitment to quality. Since then, books on quality have consistently topped national best-seller lists. One of the best known of these books is Philip Crosby's Quality Without Tears. Cliff Bregstone, CFC, president of CBI Corporation in Schaumburg, ILL., and former Member of NBFA's Board of Directors, read it and found a new perspective on quality and what it meant for his company. Bregstone, Nancy Butler; CBI's vice president of operations, and other CBI staff members, implemented a successfully quality program. This is their story.
Doing it Right:
A Distributor's Quality StoryFORM Magazine, Dec. 1990
Eight years ago getting our house in order became a priority. We embarked on an extensive quality program to improve our products and our services. It wasn't easy, but with help from our manufacturers, clients and staff we did it, and it's been worth it. We know our program works. Documentation proves it and our efforts have been rewarded.
- We began by asking our plants to become our quality partners. Our tracking and measuring systems provide information on which plants maintain the highest rates of conformance to our standards checklist. Each plant receives this checklist—a 5-page document that is read and signed by each manufacturer prior to doing business with CBI. We monitor each plant's adherence to these standards, announce the results and present an award to the top plant in each product classification at an annual "Partners in Quality" meeting and in FORM magazine.
- We are a service organization, and our customers are No. 1, so commitment to quality logically extends beyond our plants and our own facility. We involve each client in the program. We ask clients several questions: What are their needs? What is important to them? What are their expectations? Are we meeting or exceeding these needs and expectation?
Since we need specific answers to monitor our quality process efficiently, we developed a client questionnaire that asks clients to rate our product and service performance on a regular basis. (Frequency depends on the size of the account.) And, as in all areas of the quality process, we make alterations and adjustments to documentation as we grow. This year, for example, we reworded questions to make them easier to understand and answer.
Our philosophy—"99 percent right equals 100 percent wrong"—was applied to our performance. It wasn't good enough if a client felt our level of performance was "good." We strive for "excellent." We analyze our clients' responses and meet with them to discuss each category on the form to learn what we can do to be "excellent." By identifying their needs and expectations, we actively involve our clients to better meet their needs.
- Major clients receive a Client Performance Report that documents our performance to them. This document calculates CBI's conformance rate based on problems compared to activity (orders, shipments from our distribution center, typesetting). Our goal is 100-percent accuracy.
- Each employee keeps a record of office hassles such as not being able to locate a file, for example. We track the time involved in these interruptions in normal workflow. This procedure is now a way of life, but more importantly, we take action based on the results of these records.
- Error correction is not a written part of employee job descriptions, but all problems that inhibit learning or job performance are noted on a form designed for that purpose. Such documentation is not used to point fingers or place blame, but to develop solutions to remove the cause of the problem ... forever. The staff works together as a team to determine areas that need the most improvement and develop long-term solutions. We track information on internal problems and those created by our plants and our distribution center.
- A new purchase order checklist, changes in some paperwork procedures and minor computer programming changes helped reduce or eliminate many of our hassles. Office productivity has increased more than 35 percent in the past two years thanks to the following error identification, cause and removal steps:
- Identifying problems.
- Correcting problems.
- Determining the original cause (training or procedures, for example.)
- Taking action to prevent problems' causes.
- Measuring to see each problem is solved.
Our plants helped us design and implement a new purchase order checklist with which we collect information to take additional steps to improve the quality of work we send to our manufacturers.
The checklists indicate that 7.2 percent of the orders CBI sent during the second quarter of 1990 had questions. In some cases it was only to confirm information, but our goal is 100 percent accuracy and clarity, so we're not happy with a 92.8 percent conformance rate. However, it feels good to know how we're doing and what we have to do to improve.
- Faxing price quotes has a major impact on quality by minimizing incorrect specs and incorrect plant quotes. We redesigned our spec sheet to make it fax-compatible, and we require plants to fax us prices to prevent misunderstood or transposed numbers.
- We developed a sales service back-up binder to help ensure quality when a sales service specialist is on vacation or out sick. The binder contains the client data sheet for each of that sales service person's accounts. These data sheets contain information such as the clients contacts, PMS colors used, desired delivery hours and most importantly any unusual or special client requirements. These answer questions, save time and ensure that we can instill confidence in clients even though they are talking to someone else in the company.
- The data sheet helps during absences, but since employee attendance affects quality and service, we began working on improving employee health through better awareness. Last March we began a wellness campaign. A nutritionist spoke to us about diet once each week for 12 weeks, and we distributed Quality of Health articles. In just five months, 70 percent of CBI employees were involved in some type of exercise program. Significant weight loss was achieved and employee sick days were reduced by 31 percent over last year at the same time. Our productivity improved and there are fewer visits to the doctor, keeping insurance premiums from increasing.
How Have We done?
The above procedures have produced dramatic results. Here are a few statistics from January 1989 through June 1990:
- Plant conformance rates on production average 98 percent—produced exactly to requirements, not just close. (This is an increase from 96 percent three years ago.)
- Problems which delayed client billing have been reduced 85 percent.
- Errors in updating inventory worksheets have been eliminated.
- The number of days it takes to close the month's books has been reduced by four days because of fewer loose ends.
Manufacturers, clients and employees ... a true quality partnership.
Judy Andreyeu, CFC, manager of systems and design; Cliff Bregstone, CFC, president; Nanch Butler, CFC, vice president of operations; Sandy Seaborg-Grzonka, controller; Holly Fratamico, assistant production coordinator; Stand Gillenwater, account manager; Debbi Griffin, operations administrative assistant and Sarah Humpa, executive assistant, members of CBI Corporation's Quality Committee wrote the above article.