ASQ Exam Success: Real-Life Best Practices

While it has been several years since I was in the arena, from 1998-2004 I stepped up and wrote 8 of the most difficult exams ASQ has to offer including the Certified Manager of Quality and Organizational Excellence (back when it was simply Certified Quality Manager), Certified Six Sigma Black Belt, Certified Quality Engineer, Certified Software Quality Engineer, Certified Reliability Engineer, and the various derivations of the ASQ Certified Auditor program (includng HACCP and Biomedical).  From that experience, I also contributed back to ASQ several years ago by co-authoring a certification handbook and developing exam questions for the illustrious question bank.  I have lived the advice which I am now imparting.  In sharing this advice, I am presuming that the ASQ vetting process restricts exam participation only to those who have the necessary knowledge and experience to legitimately earn their certification.

For simplicity I will keep it to 5 key best practices:
- Material Preparation
- Memorization
- Elimination
- Essay Completion
- Time Management

1. Material Preparation
The ASQ rules must be followed: no questions, no internet connections, etc.  Some practices which have helped me succeed include:
- Make personal notes from all references, courses, and solutions to anticipated questions across the entire body of knowledge.  This reduces the dependency on textbooks and cumbersome references, and targets your awareness.
- Summarize key points, formulas, and examples of common statistical questions.  This is helpful not only as a study aid, but performing this step reinforces the key concepts.
- If you are using statistical tables, highlight the most frequently occurring numbers to correspond to questions (z table: 1.96 for +/- 0.5 two-tailed rejection area for null hypothesis H0).  If the numbers are highlighted, they can be readily applied to your formulas, saving time and creating certainty.
- If you do use a textbook or certification handbook/primer, photocopy the index pages and reference them outside of the book.  This will save from the repetitive inconvenience of having to constantly flip to the back, then the middle of the book in use.

2. Memorization
- While some educators frown upon this as a learning method, it is extremely effective when being tested for a large body of knowledge.  The power of instant recall provides certainty and confidence, and reduces mistakes from "second-guessing".
- Rapidly responding to a known question allows you to "bank" valuable time to be devoted to more complex or intricate questions.  Since the test is a mix of questions across all levels of Bloom's Taxonomy, the intent of ASQ is to balance complex questions with simple and straightforward rote confirmations of basic fundamental knowledge.  Spending too much time on simple rote questions will be to your disadvantage.

3. Elimination
- This requires the examinee to have the bias, not to select the first right answer, but to eliminate the incorrect responses until only the best response remains.
- Exam questions can be phrased very carefully, and it is important that the examinee understands not only why their selection is correct, but why the other choices are invalid.  Forcing this bias may reveal trickery and intentional diversions in a seemingly straightforward question, making it evident why careful comprehension is essential to success.
- This trait is important when the examinee is required to select from several options and determine which of the options are correct.  The ability to eliminate invalid options is a higher demonstration of knowledge and reflects capabilities to apply the knowledge.
- Mathematical and statistical questions are challenging in that every incorrect step or choice will be reflected in an invalid choice on the exam.  With back-tracing, walk the solution through the steps to the initial problem, and by showing your math work, you can deduce whether the response is suitable.

4. Essay Questions
- In the most advanced exams, the participants will be required to demonstrate their knowledge by responding to scenarios in an essay form.  The scenarios are carefully written to address several key points requiring references from the body of knowledge.
- Marking is based largely on the adequacy of coverage of the main points within the scenario.  The message must be mined and inputs yielded to determine a suitable response.
- Create the entire outline first, leaving several lines between each point.  This will convey that the entire scenario has been considered within the time constraints.
- Start with a small summary along each outline point, and apply 2-4 sentences to each area.  As time permits, add more content to elaborate the position.
- Reinforce the key themes by connecting the key points of the essay back to the explicit words in the question, thereby closing the loop introduced in the initial scenario.

5. Time Management
- Since there is a finite window to respond to questions, time management is critical.  It is imperative to maximize the available time provided, so personal choices need to be made to arrive early and persist until the exam time has completed.
- Allocate a reasonable amount of time per question.  As a default, a 3-5 minute maximum should be applied.  If the question cannot be completed, it should be abandoned until all questions have been addressed.
- One approach is to complete the instant response questions first.  For example, if an exam had 60 questions that could be responded on sight, completion of this portion could take 15-20 minutes, and increase the confidence and certainty of the examinee, along with a higher average time per remaining question (from under 2 to over 3 average minutes per question).  This is a counter-attack to the ASQ exam strategy of "Shock and Awe" where the first 20 questions will have complex and time-consuming challenges.
- Track "Earn vs. Burn" during the exam to compare questions addressed with time remaining.  If you add an extra 20% of effort to check and confirm responses, the ratio should be
- 50% completion at 40% time elapsed,
- 100% completion at 80% time elapsed
- remaining time to check for mistakes or incomplete questions

I want everyone who attempts an ASQ exam to pass and become confident long-term professionals, eventually working their way towards recertification and progression towards Senior and Fellow Membership.

It might be helpful to consider that the 5 key best practices exist to mitigate risks that inhibit exam success:


- Material Preparation: mitigate risk of inadequate exam readiness

- Memorization: mitigate risk of confusion and uncertainty

- Elimination: mitigate risk of improper selection of "best response"

- Essay Completion: mitigate risk of unbalanced communication

- Time Management: mitigate risk of managing multiple challenges within a short time window

The Red Flags of Baldrige: Identified Flaws and Fixes To Save American Quality

WARNING:  This post takes a contrary-minded viewpoint on the merits and validity of this U.S. government program.  It is intended to stimulate necessary discussion that will ultimately lead to necessary changes to be relevant and applicable to the industry.  Those who approach quality as dogmatic fundamentalists should cease reading any further, lest their staunch convictions be adulterated with reason and objective evidence.

The article in the View from the Q poses the question why after 25 years, the Baldrige program has not been more widely adopted, but in fact is hovering on the list of endangered government programs.  As a Canadian, I read this article with detached interest, since the mandate of the 1987 Quality Improvement Act is to aid and support companies of the United States of America.  For analysis and evolution of this program, I have identified the following gaps or “Red Flags” which I believe to be impediments to the adoption and participation in this government program.

1.      Outdated Model:   It has been 25 years since the Quality Improvement Act was ratified.  Imagine opening a time capsule from 1987 and reviewing the business literature of the day.  There have been many changes since that time which have affected American business and quality, which were not considered in the initial intentions of the Baldrige program.  The proliferation of technology in software, devices, automation, and individual connectivity to internet communications has altered every major business model in that time.  The emergence of foreign economies as service and manufacturing centers with superior opportunities for cost-saving labor arbitrage (a.k.a. cheaper workers with higher productivity) has changed business models for companies.  The effects of NAFTA and WTO on trade and commerce have expanded supply chains and market opportunities.  Finally, the combined effects of increased deficits and debt, multiple wars on terror, and expansive government bail-outs have bloated the public debt, necessitating an upcoming “Fiscal cliff” in 2013 which will be characterized by tax increases and significant spending cuts to non-essential programs.  Baldrige was created to reflect a bygone era which no longer exists.

2.       Baldrige success does not predict future prosperity:  The premise of the Quality Improvement act was the affirmation of Tom Peters’ hypothesis in the book In Search of Excellence: Quality leaders will have sustained profitability.  While the merits of this argument are sound, the actuality is not universally applied.  In two particular examples, Baldrige Award recipients have encountered severe losses.  General Motors, who won for the efforts of their Cadillac division, reached a point of distress that required severe government intervention.  Motorola, an award winner in multiple categories, encountered significant financial losses and declines in market share until it finally was absorbed by Google, where it now operates as a subsidiary.

3.       Program Redundancy:   In the detailed account within View from the Q, there are now 40 concurrent programs in operation within the United States at the State or Regional level.  There are also approximately 40 similar programs offered internationally, reflective of the transnational, globalized mode of 21^st century business operations.  The underutilized but highly valued ISO 9004:2009 standard for Quality Management replicates many of the ideals of quality improvement in a more concise and structured format that aligns with the other ISO standards for management systems and quality auditing.  From this description it would appear that there is a substantial amount of noise and confusion from the plethora of competing options and opportunities.

4.       Bureaucratic Layer:  The Baldrige program has entrenched itself as a permanent and indefinite entity of the federal government.  The growing number of Baldrige examiners, duly sanctioned to evaluate and bestow upon worthy organizations the highly prized seal of Baldrige approval, provides the impression not of a value-adding program, but a self-serving appendage creating overhead and financial burden.  The justification and rationalization is that Baldrige is equivalent to quality.  As an anecdote, I attended the WCQI in Anaheim in May 2012, and during my stay had the opportunity to shop at a convenience store located within a few blocks of the conference.   I was shocked SHOCKED to find that, in spite of having no Baldrige certificate, this store independently managed to keep the fresh fruit chilled, the beer and white wine cold, the red wine and spirits at room temperature, and the cigars humidified in the humidor.  It doesn’t take a Baldrige examiner to impart the wisdom to a convenience store operator about the customer dissatisfaction from warm and mouldy fruit, warm beverages, or dry cigars.  If anything, the Baldrige “seal of approval” can be used to divert attention from poor quality outcomes by forcing the customer to presume quality and evade direct accountability for day-to-day events.

5.       Partisan Political Patriotism:  By naming the award after Baldrige, this tags the program as a Republican initiative, which implicitly disconnects itself with the 45-60% of those who are not card-carrying Republicans.  While the late Secretary Baldrige was held in high personal regard, the overall impression of the Reagan’s second term was steeped in disruption, controversy and scandal.  Land of Confusion  An example of pop culture was the Spitting Image video to the song Land of Confusion which portrayed a bumbling and confused Reagan accidentally setting off a nuclear bomb.  .  Consider the reaction and willingness to adopt if the award was named after political figures of similar stature: (i.e. Robert McNamara, Ralph Nader, Janet Reno).  I am personally uncomfortable with anything that has advocates terming themselves as “zealots”, which implies irrational levels of inflexibility and objectivity.  Zealots are useful in defending fortresses under siege (i.e. the Alamo, Masada, Chick-Fil-A), but highly inappropriate within a professional environment.

6.       Public challenge to the Private Sector:  Nothing strikes fear in the hearts of those who prize liberty and freedom more than the phrase “We’re from the government and we’re here to help you”.  Apparently the bureaucrats within the Beltway don’t believe that the private sector already faces enough challenges with managing against competitors, appeasing shareholders and creditors, eliciting productivity from employees and unionized collective agreements, and dealing with an ever-expanding regulatory burden.  By taking inspiration from historical figures like Mao and Stalin, the federal bureaucrats have manifested their own “Great Leap Forward” and “Five Year Plan” to entrench quality improvement by decree.  The “carrot” in the program is the presentation of the award by a senior government official, being either the President or the Secretary of Commerce.  This reinforces the anti-business sentiment expressed by President Obama, “You didn’t build that” by making government pick winners in the marketplace.  The European model of mixed economies, which is proving its worth in places like Italy, Greece, Spain, and France, is culturally incompatible with the heroic frontier risk-taking, thrill-seeking mentality of the American mindset.

Having established the reasons why the current incarnation of Baldrige falls short of its ideals and intentions, I propose six solutions to address the gaps, and in so doing, restore Quality as a top executive priority.

1.       Unified program with international scope:  Instead of having 81 distinct programs with the same intention, start with the internationally recognized ISO 9004:2009 standard, and rebuild a single robust program that is relevant to global organizations and adopted by all levels of government.

2.       Politically neutral and generic:  In this increasingly partisan environment and separation of convictions, it would be less offensive if a more neutral or generic nomenclature were used to define this program.  By tagging a program with a political reference (i.e. ObamaCare, Reaganomics),  the objectivity and virtues are lost and the political supporters or opponents rally in support or defiance without regard to the merits of the respective initiatives.

3.       Emphasize objectivity, simplicity and common sense: Instead of using bombastic references to galvanize support (i.e. zealots), impress upon the collective intelligence and respect to build a quality culture based on objectivity, shared values and reinforced positive outcomes.

4.       Privatize, industrialize, and modernize:  By decoupling from the federal bureaucracy, this program can function and more readily adapt to changes in order to remain relevant and sustainable.  This will force the program to “walk its talk” by transforming from detached “examiners” to value-adding partners and collaborators.  While this will deprive the worthy organizations of a photo opportunity with a leading political figure of the day, the organizations will just have to adjust. 

5.       Recognize impact of high-performing individuals:  The advent of technology has given rise to an Artisan Mentality, where individuals with specialized skills can affect quality outcomes more profoundly than an organizational system.  This reality should be addressed and encouraged as an element of overall quality improvement.

6.       Adaptable and agile:  The only constant is change.  By anticipating the effects of change, a program should incorporate a robust change mechanism to continually review and integrate new developments.   For example, how would a social networking company like Facebook demonstrate their quality improvement?  This is what an adaptable program must address.

Socially Responsible and Affordable Health Care

Several years ago, while at a prior employer, I directed Quality and Regulatory Affairs for a medical software company that made a wide array of clinical products, installed and deployed in Europe and North America.  One of the success stories was an innovative firmware solution that combined innovative mobility technology with usable software to track patient and blood samples to support safe and accurate blood transfusions.

Several years after having this technology demonstrated and proven, the national media in Canada has caught up to our innovation by publishing a very powerful article at the site (http://news.nationalpost.com/2012/08/06/errors-mislabelled-samples-pose-staggering-cost-to-canadas-blood-banks/).

After these many years, I take personal pride in the role I played in the development, testing, regulatory approval, deployment, and ongoing maintenance of this particular product suite.  The alternative to an automated barcoding solution was a cumbersome administrative process that was more susceptible to human error in delivering mismatched, expired, or contaminated blood.  This small but successful solution contributed to affordable health care by alerting with alarms of blood that did not match the patient (saving expensive and potentially fatal responses) or spent too long between controlled environments (resulting in less waste of precious blood inventory and better medical outcomes).

There are many examples of technological and process improvements which have simultaneously reduced costs and risks, resulting in health care outcomes which are more socially responsible and affordable.  Had America followed Canada's example (thank you Tommy Douglas) and adopted a nationwide health program as early as 1974 as cited in this proposal at the site (http://www.kaiserhealthnews.org/stories/2009/september/03/nixon-proposal.aspx), the effects could have been contained and the efficiencies realized decades before the devastating economic impact emerged during the Great Recession.

The lack of affordable health care was dramatically evident when it became a major contributor to automotive manufacturing losses.  According to multiple accounts, particularly Lee Iacocca at (http://www.leeiacocca.net/thoughts-on-leadership/health-care.aspx) and this CNN Money site at (http://money.cnn.com/2007/01/26/news/companies/pluggedin_taylor_ford.fortune/index.htm), the impact was substantial when losses were realized by the three major American car manufacturers.  The average amount per vehicle (over $1500) accounted for over 50% of the profitability difference between American and transplanted import cars manufactured in USA ($2900 according to CNN).  Iacocca also expressed that in addition to the employer's burden, average healthcare costs per family exceeded $12,000 and was a leading cause of personal bankruptcies.

The principles of Social Responsibility align very closely with the provision of Affordable Health Care.  There is not a single principle that is in conflict with risk reduction and cost savings.  It only needs the will of engaged citizens and stakeholders to bring this vision into fulfillment for the benefit of all.

1. Principle: Accountability: An organization should be accountable for its impacts on society, the economy, and the environment.

2. Principle: Transparency: An organization should be transparent in its decisions and activities that impact on society and the environment.

3. Principle: Ethical Behavior: An organization should behave ethically

4. Principle: Respect for Stakeholder Interests: An organization should respect, consider and respond to the interests of its stakeholders.

5. Principle: Respect for the Rule of Law: An organization should accept that respect for the rule of law is mandatory.

6. Principle: Respect for International Norms of Behavior: An organization should respect international norms of behavior, while adhering to the principle of respect for the rule of law.

7. Principle: Respect for Human Rights: An organization should respect human rights and recognize both their importance and their universality.

Inspire Your Chosen People

In the recent View from the Q, the CEO of American Society for Quality posted the following questions, for which I have provided my responses.

If you’re working on a culture of quality, or sustaining one, what do you look for in the people you hire into the organization?
1. They are independently competent and capable of performing the work required.
2. They interact harmoniously and respectfully with others, at all levels.
3. They are fastidious about details and conscientious about matching expectations within time and budgets provided.
4. Their expressions reflect passion, energy, enthusiasm, and overall positive reception to quality culture goals.

How can you tell whether an applicant will contribute to, thwart, or work at quality culture goals?
Ask for real-life examples demonstrating where they supported quality culture.  As a starting point, evaluate the credibility of their "show-me" examples.
Be attentive to cynicism and a jaded mentality, which is the opposite of passion, pride and esprit d'corps.
Be attentive to the pronouns selected (We vs. They) which reflects their accountability.  If the applicants distance themselves and describe themselves separately from their team, their true impressions are revealed.
Ask them to describe their mentors and key influences, and close professional companions.  Since people reflect those with whom they most frequently interact, this would provide some insight to their personal convictions and principles.

What attitudes support the success of a culture of quality?
Respect, Pleasure, Passion (from virtuous convictions), Accountability  (description is below)

Are the personal attributes universal, or do they in your experience differ around the world?
Personal attributes are constant, but are demonstrated in different ways, not just across international cultures but by different personality types (i.e. Myers-Briggs categorizations).  Some cultures show their passion with boisterous and bombastic expressions, while others demonstrate their passion through expanded work ethic and extreme diligence.

This is the executive short version.  To understand my rationale for these selections, please enjoy the remainder of the blog posting.

___________________________________________________________________

To elaborate, I would like to start with a "Worst-Case Scenario" which I obtained from Paul Ingrassia's book Crash Course (2010 Random House) which details the history and decline of the American Automobile Industry.  I hope that with this example from the early 1970s, I can refute the linear expectation that increased quality can be achieved simply by increasing compensation to worker.  


"The new contract granted the company's hourly employees a 30 percent wage hike over the next three years.  It ended the cap on cost-of-living adjustments, and accelerated the payment schedule from annually to quarterly.  Most notably, the new contract allowed workers to retire after thirty years on the job with a full pension."

The effect of this inspiration was detrimental to the work-ethic of the American autoworker.  According to Ingrassia's account.

"Rights were trumping responsibilities ... many factories had to close for the first days of deer-hunting season ... some auto plants had gambling rings ... when a machine broke down and stopped the assembly line, only skilled tradesmen were allowed to repair machinery.  The electricians or machinists often took their time getting to where they were needed, so that the plant would have to go into overtime to make up for lost production, and everybody would get more money."

The effect of this (mis)management was realized in the deliberate reduction of quality levels due to a combination of poor decisions and hostile employees.

"... also reduced the number of quality inspectors ... highly automated assembly process would ensure high quality without much traditional quality inspection ... Autos regularly roll off the line with slit upholstery, scratched paint, dented bodies, bent gearshift levers, cut ignition wires, and loose or missing bolts ... the trunk key is broken off right in the lock, thereby jamming it."

So the combination of expensive resources, poor worker motivations, and inadequate quality culture created the perfect storm for domestic auto manufacturers.

"Somebody had to pay for it all, and that would be the hapless consumer.  In three years the prices jumped nearly 20 percent.  Just when Detroit needed to boost sales to pay for soaring wages and benefits for its employees, its price increases gave consumers a strong incentive to try a foreign car."

As Santayana allegedly quoted, "Those who cannot learn from history are condemned to repeat it."  The lessons from four decades ago remain relevant and pertinent in today's business culture, not just for automotive manufacturing but across all industries and domains.

As a prerequisite to addressing the specific questions from the ASQ CEO, the illustrious Mr. Paul Borawski, I would like to treat this as a process challenge where I would identify Special Causes and Common Causes that would need to be controlled and protected in order to achieve our desired goal.  The title of this post is Inspire your "Chosen" People.

Special Causes

I have identified 4 Special Causes which can ensure that your employees fall within the predefined boundaries to reflect a status of being chosen.  Those that exist outside of the boundaries are not the ideal and have to be either tolerated, contained, or removed.  It is important to refine your people before attempting to inspire them, in order to reduce the waste and frustration associated with failed or futile programs.

1. Independently competent and capable:  The foundation of all work is that the participants are independently competent and capable of delivering the desired outcome.  While a certain level of orientation and customization can be provided to "train-up" a resource, without this capability, all of the quality cultural inspiration is for naught.  No amount of passages from Deming or Juran will make me competent in brain surgery, nuclear fission, or sinking the 3-point jumpshot at the final buzzer in the championship game.

2. Harmonious interactions with others:  Culture refers to the interactions between people to generate ongoing traditions, norms, and implicit expectations.  If an individual is consistently clashing and interrupting discussions, their very presence creates negative encounters.  Positive exchanges are negated by confrontations, avoidance, defensiveness, and overt hostility leading to sabotage and disruptions.

3. Alignment with quality vision: This refers to the common understanding of the quality target.  For example, if a business had to prepare and provide 500 fresh cheeseburgers from a food cart within a 2 hour serving range, it would actually be detrimental if one of the line cooks spent 15 minutes shaping and seasoning each hamburger patty into sculpted perfection prior to placing it on the grill.  If team participants had different beliefs or impressions of adequate quality, the disconnect would create fervent and passionate disagreements which would create the risk of disrupting the otherwise harmonious interactions.

4. Containment within time and budget:  As with any enterprise, the employee who consistently exceeds time or budget constraints will be detrimental to the business.  This may be simply the effect of using an overqualified resource in a junior capacity (i.e. $75/hour heavy equipment mechanic to perform common car maintenance at a retail oil change shop).  Even if all other attributes are in place, the continued use of this resource will create additional cost needing to be borne by customers or stakeholders.

Common Causes

Having used the Special Causes to refine staff into "Chosen People", some Common Causes could be monitored to determine the positive receptiveness to quality programs.

1. Respect
An employee displays their respect or contempt through their attitudes and actions.  They show respect for their role and employer by their level of preparation and capability.  They show respect for their colleagues through their diligence, teamwork, and assistance when called upon.  They show respect for the customer or client by going beyond the contractual obligation to deliver a delightful and meaningful outcome.  Without respect, quality is still possible, but it will be delivered with defiant hostility and reluctance. In contrast, an employee without respect shows contempt for the work and customers, in extreme cases leading to worst-case scenarios of delivering overtly damaged products to market.


2. Pleasure
An employee serves at the pleasure of their employers and customers, making it a social contract exchanging goods and services by choice and selection.  To be competitive, the pleasure derived by the client or customer must be adequate to be sustained.  In turn, if the employee is performing in a suitable role which interests them, and which is appropriate for their skills, the pleasure will radiate.  Imagine a corporate trainer who is inspired by the subject material and enjoys his extroverted interactions with others, the work would be so natural as to generate joy and fulfillment.

3. Passion
When the pleasure escalates, there is a certain level of energy and enthusiasm that takes on a life of its own and compels people to voluntary actions that would normally be considered irrational (like remaing at home on a beautiful August evening to compose a blog post for ASQ Influential Voices).  How does an employee demonstrate passion for quality?  There are many ways: articles, innovative practices, facilitated discussions, independent studies and investigations (on personal time), research, improvement of personal capabilities, presentation, publications, voluntary service, to name a few.  This passion is contagious and when applied by a positive and competent person, can reflect well on an organization.  Passion aligns closely with ideals and convictions, so it is important that passionate people draw their motives from deeply-held virtues.

4. Accountability
People with accountability are truthful about their specific actions and outcomes, those who are not are expert at excuses and diversions.  The absence of accountability is reflected in denial, deflection, and deception.  The worst characteristics associated with political bureaucracies can be traced to the destructive desire to take full credit of accomplishments without absorbing the blame when trouble ensues.   As President John F. Kennedy claimed to quote "Success has many fathers, but failure is an orphan".   The lack of accountability, even in small matters of seemingly insignificant details, leads to a violation of integrity.  Once the accountability is lost, the very viability of the quality program is potentially compromised.  When a Quality Program is infused with deception, it becomes a tool of political bureaucracy or "Propaganda", which actually moves the organization further from the Quality ideal than when it first started.  From a practical viewpoint, organizations misuse quality metrics and key indicators to provide a false assurance.  This is often refuted when post-release problems are revealed, only to find that the quality program did not include common occurrences within the scope of control.  An example of this is an airline ticket ordering system which did not function when deployed to a real-life environment because it was never tested to handle more than 255 concurrent requests.  Or to circle back to the example of the American Automotive industry, the lack of accountability was demonstrated when the makers of the Chevrolet Corvair failed to recall the 1.1 million defective cars which were prone to spin out at low speeds when taking sharp curves, due to an unstable distribution of weight in the rear of the vehicle.

My concluding point is to reinforce that people need to be inspired and empowered so that when confronted with the choices, they are not micromanaged but draw from their personal motives and convictions.  If the choices prove incorrect, this can be rapidly revealed and corrected through accountability, and overcome with the continual improvement ethic that characterizes passionate employees.