8.4 Activities of the Measure Phase

Creating a Detail Process Map

You start the Measure phase by developing a fine-grained understanding of your process using process mapping. Keep in mind that the process steps and the data encompassing them are vital to project success. You need to map the process in detail to avoid missing any Xs that could cause issues. As the team map the process, address the following two questions for each step:

1. Why do we perform this step?

2. How do we know the result is quality?

It would be best to keep in mind that the detailed process mapping at this stage goes beyond the high-level SIPOC map you produced during the Define phase. The idea is for the team to leverage the map to systematically think about the process, identify factors that may be causing problems, identify points to collect data, and identify waste forms and issues. For instance, have you ever waited for your luggage at the airport carousel just to learn it had been lost? Let’s take a look at a step in the handling baggage process, the tag luggage. See Figure 8.1.

In examining this process step in the baggage handling process, you could learn that the amount of time necessary to tag a piece of luggage is about 10 min. You could uncover that 66 bags are incorrectly tagged for every 1,000 bags, producing a defect per unit (DPU) of approximately 0.7 in this step. Besides, you could also learn that information entering this stage consists of passenger name, destination, and flight number. Product entering the step consists of the piece(s) of luggage. Data leaving the process consists of flight legs and final destination checkout. Products going out of the process step would be the piece(s) of bags and tags.

Questioning the step, you could also learn that the airliner performs this step to identify the luggage owner and the destination. However, you could also discover that associates cannot articulate whether the outcomes are good or not. Upon walking the process, you could find that the airline has set two printers per agent, a potential X, causing them to take the wrong tag when operations peak. At the peak time, the operators may print multiple tags simultaneously. Again, the point here is that you use the tool to think deeply about the process. You identify the crucial inputs and outputs from each step and any constraints or issues.

Creating Operational Definitions of the CTQ(s)

An operational definition is an accurate description of how you will derive a value for a measuring characteristic. It includes a precise definition of the characteristic and how, precisely, you will measure the attribute. This activity focuses on removing ambiguity and ensuring that you, your team, and other stakeholders have the same understanding. You should not underestimate the importance of such an outcome. More often than not, projects fail, and teams end up facing conflicts because of the absence of clarity and common understanding.

Imagine that your professor tells you that you will receive 10% of your final grade as a percentage of attendance, and each attendance will be worth 1 point. At the end of the semester, you missed only two classes for a total of 28 points out of 30 possible. You expect to receive 93% of this grade component. However, you receive only 85% and learn that the reason is that you did not participate actively in some of the classes. You would likely angrily complain that the syllabus did not inform you about that rule. Similar outcome results from an inadequate or absent operational definition. An operational definition can ward off such situations and misunderstandings.

An operational definition contains three parts: a criterion you will apply to an object or group, a test of the object or group, and a decision as to whether the object or group meets the criterion. The list below summarizes each of these components:

1. Criteria: operational definitions establish voice of the customer (VOC) specifications for each CTQ that you will compare with the capability of the process outputs in the test of the definition.

2. Test: it involves comparing the process capability with VOC specifications for each CTQ for a given unit of output.

3. Decision: it involves you determining whether a given unit of output meets VOC specifications.

ASQ provides the following example of an operational definition of the sales-fulfillment cycle:

Developing a Data Collection Plan for CTQ(s)

The data collection essentially draft how you will collect the baseline data on the CTQ by defining what you will measure, how you will measure it, who will collect it, the sampling plan, what data to collect, and data sources. It is similar to other organizational procedures in that you need to oversee and improve it. The data collection plan helps you and your team in that task and enables you to ascertain its efficiency relating to cost, value, time, and effectiveness in terms of the output measures. Let’s take a look at the elements of a data collection plan.

1. What are you going to measure?

   • Metric: What is the CTQ on which you are collecting data?

   • Type of Metric: Is the data an attribute (classification or count) or measurement data?

2. How are you going to measure?

   • Measurement method: are you collecting the data visually or via automated means?

   • Data collection method: are you collecting data manually or on a spreadsheet?

3. Who will collect the data?

   • Team members assigned: who will you task with and hold accountable for data collection?

4. What is your sampling plan?

   • Where are you collecting the data?

   • When are you collecting the data?

   • How many data points are you collecting?

Table 8.1 shows an example of a data collection plan for the CTQ turnaround time for lab test (TAT). In clinical laboratories, TAT can make a massive difference to patients even under a non-emergency situation. For instance, patients receiving chemotherapy may face long wait times—in part due to the lab. When patients arrive for a chemotherapy infusion, oncologists routinely order complete blood counts and comprehensive metabolic panels to discern whether they are healthy enough for treatment. Chemotherapy drugs are so toxic that they can destroy red blood cells and damage the liver and kidneys. Delays can be torturous for patients.