According to Deming, what should management cease dependence on to achieve quality?

Deming emphasized the importance of quality in management and suggested that organizations should move away from over-reliance on inspection as a means to ensure quality. He believed that relying on inspection to catch defects after they occur is a flawed approach. Instead of waiting until the product is completed to check for quality, the focus should shift to improving processes and systems to prevent defects from occurring in the first place. This proactive approach fosters continuous improvement and leads to higher quality outcomes.

Inspection often addresses the symptoms of poor quality rather than the root causes. By ceasing dependence on inspection, management encourages a culture of quality that prioritizes preventive measures such as process optimization, employee training, and robust quality management systems. This shift aligns with Deming’s philosophy of focusing on system optimization and understanding variation in processes which leads to overall quality enhancement.

In contrast to inspection, training, standards, and certification all have roles that support quality improvement. Training equips employees with the necessary skills, standards provide benchmarks for performance, and certification ensures compliance with established quality frameworks. However, without addressing the underlying processes, reliance on inspection does not create a sustainable culture of quality.