Driving Aviation System Performance using Quality Assurance Techniques

How to deliver Performance Audits?

One example concerns a process or concept which is known as Total Quality Management (TQM), if TQM is effectively embedded within the organisation it can play a significant role and serve as a driving force to improve performance.

As with all effective business processes it requires ownership and a timeline to deliver.

If the organisation system process is to be improved, then that system must be understood in terms of all key elements:

- Objectives
- Costs
- Competencies
- Process & Procedure Effectiveness & Efficiency

A significant part of this understanding, concerns factors deep in the organisation which can make a significant contribution to overall effectiveness of the process.

A study found that it is quite possible in an organisation to find people “short cutting” to make the system work (meaning people where choosing on an ad hoc basis to optimise system performance). There is even an acronym for this - "well-intentioned people in dysfunctional organisations" (WIPIDO).

We call it Violations But…?

Whilst we consider certain behaviours as "violations" what about the case when people are simply violating to make the system work.

It is not so easy to discriminate between a good procedure or a good system and a bad one.

If we are to fully understand the relationship between a procedure and practice, we need to fully understand the system behind the procedure. We should consider the organisation system in all its totality and how it can be modified to influence improvements in human performance in order to improve system outcomes.

Organisational Dynamics

How does the organisation react with its immediate environment?

How effective is the organisation related to the need to adapt to changes in the immediate environment? How effective are the recovery strategies?

Can they actually drive recovery when things go wrong?

In order to understand fully the prerequisites to enable change we need to consider a number of challenges. To consider error in terms of deviation from a procedure, but not only - To evaluate what is meant to happen against what normally happens. Finally to understand how the system needs to change in order to drive improvements.

Areas of Focus

- Organisational readiness to change and identify key areas to be addressed with staff.
- Reviewing the existing process using a selection of business tools.
- Assessing the needs of the business process from a staff perspective.
- Consider process interactions with other departments (e.g. planning and commercial, engineering).
- Establish a systematic approach to the development & oversight of key performance indicators (KPIs) in relation to the overall objectives.

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