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Deming PDCA Cycle Four Stages, Advantages, and Disadvantages

Deming PDCA Cycle- Four Stages, Advantages, and Disadvantages. PDSA Cycle Pros and Cons. PDSA or Deming Cycle Revolution. 4 Stages of PDCA.

Deming PDCA Cycle

Deming PDCA cycle refers to a repeated four-step management model that ensures the continuous improvement of products and services in the industry. In the 1950s, a famous management scholar Dr. William Edwards Deming, introduced the PDCA method; therefore, it is also known as the Deming cycle or Deming Wheel. It is a very famous method to solve problems to yield the highest quality result. The full meaning of PDCA is the Plan–Do–Check–Act is a four-step action method.

In addition, it has many names, such as the PDSA abbreviation of the Plan–Do–Check–Adjust, the Deming cycle or circle or wheel, the Shewhart cycle, and the control cycle or circle. The Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycle is a quality improvement framework commonly used in various industries, including healthcare, manufacturing, and education.

The Four Stages of the Deming Cycle

The Four Stages of the Deming Cycle are Plan, Do, Study or Check, and Act. These are the inevitable elements of the Deming cycle.

1. Plan

PLAN is the initial step of the four steps method that identifies the problem and opportunities to suggest recommendations. In addition, it analyzes and describes the overall current situation of the project. The authority recruits a team to understand the full process of the project in this stage; they will identify the problems that need to be changed and find solutions to fix the problems. You have to find out the answers to some basic questions regarding the project. The questions are as follows;

Firstly, what is the main problem that must need to be solved?
Secondly, what kind of resources do you have now?
In addition, what resources do you have to have?
Moreover, what is the solution that you have taken with resources?
Finally, how long will it take to analyze the problems and implement the planning?

2. Do

The DO phase is the second stage of the Deming cycle, where the testing of the solution starts to execute to identify the results. After completing the planning step, you have to take action to solve the problems. You will apply all plans that you have taken in the first stage. Some unwanted problems can emerge in this stage, so you have to be aware to confront them. For increasing your confidence level, you can apply your actions to a small arena in the project. It is a subtle way to control the situation properly as well as avoiding an unpredicted big mistake. All team members stay alert at this stage to play their roles and responsibility. In addition, you with your team members will take some initiatives mentioned below:

Keep a record of what happened and what is happened?
When do you apply the planning?
Collect data from the planning stage.
Try to use a check sheet, swim lane map, and flowchart to capture data.

3. Study or Check

Study or check is probably the most important step of the Deming cycle. You must pay attention to the CHECK stage if you want to scrutinize the output that yielded from the earlier stage. It will help you to avoid repeating mistakes and clarify the success of your planning and applying steps. This stage will allow you to audit your plan’s performance; you will be confirmed whether the plan works perfectly or not. Additionally, your team will identify the problematic portion of the project to eliminate them in the future. You would be able to discover the root cause of the problem if something went wrong. In short, this stage will assess the system’s effectiveness and help you decide whether the theory is helpful or not.

Example: Appraisals or Gap analysis.

In this stage, you have to answer some questions mentioned below.
Is the system effective or not?
Do you want to continue this system or need to change it?
Have you outlined a list including the unexpected results, failures, successes, and outcomes?

4. Act

ACT is the final stage of the system that finalizes the perfect solution to implement it. In this stage, your organization should follow adapt, adopt, and abandon factors. Adapt refers to changing and modifying the PDSA circle for the next test. Adopt indicates considering expanding the system to all departments in the organization. Abandon means modifying your full approach and repeat the PDCA circle. In sum, it is the step of standardization that is considered standardized when goals are exceeded.

The Pros and Cons of the Deming Cycle or PDSA / PDCA

Firstly, PDSA is a simple and effective process to resolve a new and recurring problem in the industry. In addition, it is a repeated approach that will allow you to measure results without a waste of time. Moreover, it is a risk-free cycle to apply a small scale in the project; therefore, no need to change the full process if it doesn’t work.

In contrast, the full process of the PDSA is slow when applying the four steps in the industry to yield the final result. It is not a straightforward execution process that can apply to urgent problem-solving issues. Additionally, you need to use some resources, including effective team members, to ensure that each circle step is directed perfectly.

The Eight Advantages of PDSA Cycle

Systematic Approach: The PDSA cycle provides a structured and systematic approach to problem-solving and continuous improvement. By breaking down improvement efforts into manageable steps (Plan, Do, Study, Act), organizations can methodically test and refine solutions to address complex issues.
Flexibility: The PDSA cycle is flexible and adaptable to a wide range of settings and industries. It can be applied to small-scale projects or larger initiatives, making it suitable for organizations of all sizes and types.
Iterative Process: The iterative nature of the PDSA cycle allows organizations to make incremental improvements over time. By continually cycling through the steps of the PDSA cycle, organizations can refine their processes, systems, and practices to achieve greater efficiency and effectiveness.
Focus on Learning: The PDSA cycle emphasizes learning and experimentation as essential components of improvement. By studying the results of each cycle, organizations gain valuable insights into what works and what doesn’t, enabling them to make informed decisions and adjustments.
Empowerment of Teams: The PDSA cycle encourages collaboration and engagement among teams involved in improvement efforts. By involving frontline staff in the planning, execution, and evaluation of improvement initiatives, organizations empower employees to take ownership of the process and contribute their expertise and insights.
Data-Driven Decision-Making: The PDSA cycle relies on data and evidence to drive decision-making. By collecting and analyzing data throughout the improvement process, organizations can identify trends, root causes, and opportunities for improvement, enabling them to make informed decisions and prioritize actions effectively.
Rapid Implementation: The PDSA cycle enables organizations to implement changes quickly and test their impact in a controlled manner. By breaking down improvement initiatives into small, manageable steps, organizations can avoid delays and minimize the risks associated with large-scale changes.
Continuous Improvement Culture: The PDSA cycle fosters a culture of continuous improvement within organizations. By encouraging ongoing reflection, learning, and adaptation, organizations can create an environment where innovation and excellence are valued and rewarded.

Disadvantages of PDSA Cycle

While the PDSA cycle offers numerous benefits for continuous improvement, it also has some potential disadvantages:

Time-consuming: Implementing the PDSA cycle requires time and effort to plan, execute, and evaluate improvement initiatives. For organizations with limited resources or competing priorities, the PDSA cycle may add to the workload and strain resources.
Complexity: The PDSA cycle involves multiple steps, including planning, implementation, data collection, and analysis. This complexity can be daunting for individuals or teams unfamiliar with quality improvement methodologies, leading to confusion or errors in implementation.
Risk of Inefficiency: In some cases, organizations may engage in the PDSA cycle without clear goals or objectives, leading to inefficient use of resources. Without proper planning or alignment with strategic priorities, improvement efforts may yield minimal results or fail to address critical issues.
Resistance to Change: Implementing the PDSA cycle often requires changes to existing processes, workflows, or behaviors. Resistance to change from stakeholders, including employees, management, or customers, can impede the effectiveness of improvement initiatives and hinder progress.
Limited Scope: The PDSA cycle is best suited for small-scale, incremental improvements rather than large-scale organizational change. For complex or systemic issues requiring comprehensive restructuring or transformation, alternative methodologies may be more appropriate.
Data Quality Issues: Effective implementation of the PDSA cycle relies on accurate and reliable data for decision-making. However, organizations may encounter challenges with data collection, measurement, or analysis, leading to flawed conclusions or ineffective interventions.
Lack of Sustainability: Improvement initiatives resulting from the PDSA cycle may struggle to sustain long-term gains without ongoing support, monitoring, and reinforcement. Without a culture of continuous improvement or organizational commitment, improvements may regress over time.

Cost: While the PDSA cycle can lead to cost savings through efficiency gains or error reduction, there are also associated costs with implementing quality improvement initiatives. These costs may include training, technology investments, or hiring additional staff to support improvement efforts.

Overall, while the PDSA cycle offers a systematic approach to continuous improvement, organizations must carefully consider its limitations and potential drawbacks to maximize its effectiveness and achieve sustainable results.

The Evolution of the Deming Cycle or PDSA

The Deming cycle has been evolved from time to time to make it an effective process. I will discuss how the Deming cycle came to be and how it has evolved from time to time.

Dr. W. Edwards Deming

Deming was an American management consultant who graduated as an electrical engineer, later concentrating on mathematical physics. He has become a famous person in the Japanese industry for his work and initiatives after WWII. In addition, Dr. W. Edwards Deming got recognition as one of the most influential Japanese manufacturing industries who are not Japanese but American. He championed the work of Walter Shewhart, including total quality management, statistic process control, and renamed the Shewhart Cycle. After all, He had a great contribution to the rise of the post-war economic growth in Japan.

The Shewhart Cycle

Deming had been inspired by an American engineer Walter Andrew Shewhart who was also a physicist and statistician. In 1939, Shewhart published a book on the Viewpoint of Quality Control. It was the first book that articulated a three-stage systematic process of specification, production, and inspection. These three stages were developed to test the hypothesis of experiments. Finally, he mentioned that these stages should not go straight, but they should go in a cycle. Thus, the Shewhart Cycle came up with the process of a circle.

The Deming Wheel

In 1950, Deming analyzed Shewhart’s Cycle to modify it. He introduced a new version of Shewhart’s Cycle: a four-step of design, production, sales, and research. This cycle has been known as the Deming’s Circle or Deming Wheel.

PDCA

Some Japanese executives probably modify the Deming cycle or Deming wheel into Plan, Do Check, Act (PDCA), although the exact reason for changing the term name is unclear. This four-step cycle was introduced to identify the problems in the industry and solve them by applying four steps together. The prime objective of this cycle is to standardize if the results are satisfying.

PDSA

Deming was not satisfied with the name of PDCA; therefore, he amended it in 1986. He emphasized the core meaning of checking, and he mentioned that checking is not incorporate the cycle. Hence, the PDSA emerged with the recommendation of Deming.

When to Apply PDSA

The PDSA or PDCA framework can develop any process or product by splitting it into a shorter steps. This cycle can be used in every kind of organization in many aspects such as changing management, new service or product deployment, product lifecycle, and so on. This framework is beneficial for assisting the improvement of the six sigma and total quality management process. It is the best option to dig out problems and practical solutions.

Deming Cycle or PDSA Quality Improvement

The Deming cycle is one of the essential parts of the quality improvement process in the big industry. Apart from that, organizations apply other quality improvements program that is much complex QI processes.

Continuous Quality Improvement: It is also known as the CQI process that organizations apply to reduce waste, increase efficiency, and increase internal and external satisfaction. It is a management philosophy that assesses how the industry works to develop its process. These more complex quality improvement programs include the following:
Lean: The lean process is a manufacturing program that effectively improves efficiency and reduces wasteful practices. This program focuses more on improving services and products based on customer’s demands.
Six Sigma: The six sigma process is the set of tools and techniques that develop the quality of a process by eliminating defects and minimizing variability in manufacturing.
Total Quality Management: It is a process of a management system based on practicing a principle that instills good business culture where every employee maintains a high standard of work. It influences the organization to maintain a high quality of service in every aspect of the company.
Quality Improvement Collaboratives: It is a process that usually applies to the healthcare center in which many organizations work together to develop services for patients.

Conclusion

Deming cycle refers to a repeated four-step (PLAN, DO, STUDY, ACT) that ensures the continuous improvement of products and services in the industry. Today, many organizations worldwide use this method to improve the product and service by solving problems.

Symbolic Convergence Theory Definition, Example and Strengths & Weaknesses

Symbolic Convergence Theory: History, Description, Example and Strengths & Weaknesses. Examples of Symbolic Convergence Theory.

Symbolic Convergence Theory

Symbolic convergence theory refers to a communication model representing fantasies that transform from individuals to cohesive groups. Ernest Bormann developed it. People share common fantasies and visions, and these collections of individuals are merged into a cohesive group. SCT explains the appearance of a group’s cohesiveness, consisting of shared emotions, motives, and meanings. Symbolic Convergence Theory consists of three words: symbolic, convergence, and theory. Group members cooperatively create and sustain a shared consciousness, including shared meaning through interaction.

A diagram of the Anatomy of the Symbolic Convergence Theory has given below.

Symbolic Convergence Theory (SCT)- Code Words Phrases Slogans Gestures

Convergence

Convergence means forming a new unified whole or evolving into one by combining two or more things. It comes from the prefix con- and the verb verge. The prefix con means together, and the verb verge means to turn toward. We can use convergence to explain things coming together, like the slow convergence of your opinions with those of your mother or for things that have already come together. For example, a crowd of mass people all move together into a group.

Theory

The theory is a set of principles on which the practice of an activity is based. It is a formal concept or idea that aims to explain something. For example, the Tw0-step flow of communication theory, Groupthink Muted Group Theory, SOCIAL IDENTITY THEORY, Tubb’s Theory- Small Group Communication, etc.

Symbolic convergence: When 2 or more private symbol worlds incline toward each other, come closer, or overlap. It is called a symbolic convergence.

History of the Symbolic Convergence Theory

Ernest Bormann established Symbolic Convergence Theory in 1972. SCT was first proposed by Ernest Bormann in the Quarterly Journal of Speech in 1972. Bormann and his colleagues at the University of Minnesota introduced SCT as a framework for discovering, describing, and explaining the dynamic process by which humans come to share symbolic reality.

SCT is a communication-related theory introduced by Ernest Bormann, a Professor at the University of Minnesota in the United States. American communication theorists, known as the originator of symbolic convergence theory (SCT) and its attendant method, fantasy theme analysis, explore how sharing narratives or “fantasies” can create and sustain group consciousness. He argued that group consciousness could occur at any level of communication, from within small groups to mass media. Thus, he identified symbolic convergence as a general theory of communication.

Description of Symbolic Convergence Theory

Symbolic Convergence Theory offers elucidation for the appearance of a group’s cohesiveness, consisting of shared emotions, motives, and meanings. Through SCT, members of the group can build a community or a group consciousness that grows stronger if they share a cluster of fantasy themes. Although this theory allows theorists and practitioners to anticipate or predict what did happen and what will happen it does not allow for control of human communication.

It attempts to explain how communication can create and sustain group consciousness through the sharing of narratives or fantasies. SCT explains that meanings, emotions, values, and motives for action are in the communication contexts by people trying to make sense out of a common experience. It is a process through which collectives create and share a consciousness and develop a common symbolic reality.

Symbolic Convergence Theory has a three-part structure

Firstly, elucidation of the recurring forms of communication involved in shared group consciousness.

Secondly, the illustration of why group consciousness begins rise and is maintained.

Thirdly, an explanation of the process of how an individual begins to share (or stops sharing) a common symbolic reality.

Anatomy of symbolic Convergence Theory

The social sciences and the communication discipline readily accept the use of several metatheoretical concepts (for example, power and scope, heuristic and isomorphic, elegance and parsimony, and validity and utility) to evaluate the quality of theories. There is less agreement about the metatheoretical concepts that would allow us to compare one theory’s anatomy (muscles, bones, arteries) with the anatomy of another.

Basic Concepts: (Fantasy themes)

A fantasy theme is a dramatizing message that depicts characters engaged in action in a setting that estimates for and explains the human experience. It is not something imaginary, but rather it is a “creative or imaginative interpretation of events which fulfills a psychological or rhetorical need.

Fantasy Theme Analysis is a form of rhetorical criticism. Rhetorical criticism explains the symbolic artifacts of discourse, including the words, phrases, images, gestures, and performances used to communicate. It shows how the artifacts work, entertain, arouse, and convince and persuade the audience. Rhetorical criticism studies and analyzes the purpose of the words, sights, and sounds that are the symbolic artifacts used for communication among people.

Collective consciousness refers to the shared beliefs, ideas, attitudes, and knowledge common to a social group or society.

The basic concept is the fantasy theme, and its associated basic concepts include symbolic cues, fantasy type, and saga.

Symbolic Cue

A symbolic cue is a code word, phrase, slogan, sign, or a nonverbal communication example that works to trigger previously shared fantasies and emotions. They can also heighten a group’s cohesiveness.

Fantasy types

A fantasy type is a stock scenario that explains new events in a well-known, dramatic form, such as Watergate, Irangate, and Whitewatergate. Taking stock is thinking about all the aspects of a situation or event before deciding what to do next. A fantasy type is a fantasy theme that has a large number of rhetorical visions. They help make sense of a new phenomenon by providing known references.

Notable Examples of Fantasy types

For example, a fantasy type would be when Richard Nixon was campaigning through his home state of California in 1952. Some wealthy Southern California businessman put a fund together on behalf of Nixon. The newspapers picked this up and ran headlines such as “Secret Rich Men’s Trust Fund Keeps Nixon in Style Far Beyond His Salary”. The purpose of this fund was to help Nixon pay for expenses that he could not otherwise pay for out of his income. National newspapers were two to one in the favor of dropping Nixon from the ticket after this. And, his only hope was to find a way to regain public trust and support. Six days after the crisis, Nixon addressed the public by radio to respond to the charges against him.

A fantasy theme emerging from this story would be Nixon presenting himself as the American dream. During his speech over the radio, he emphasized how he made his own way in the world and had to work for a living. Richard Nixon also said, “How does a candidate pay for political expenses not covered by the government? The first is to be a rich man, which I am not. I feel that it is essential in this country of ours that a man of modest means can run for President. He offers autobiographical references that allow him to appear like the average man. This is an appropriate fantasy theme because it developed a response to the allegations. He is not a rich man who is getting money from everyone, but a hard-working man who started from the ground and worked upwards.

Saga

A saga is a long story of heroic achievement of the life of an individual, group, organization, or larger entity such as a nation. It is a great historical achievement and event for individuals or a nation. For instance, examples of American sagas include “the spirit of entrepreneurship” and “the power of the ballot box. Symbolic convergence theorists claim that the Soviet Union had difficulty managing the coherence of the fifteen republics due to the weakening of the communist rhetorical vision and decreasing sagas.

Finally, this theory declares that communities are formed and maintained by the stories they share. The theory also suggests that humans are storytellers and share dramatization of an event. They make sense out of the complexities by creating a script or narrative to account for what happened. People share symbolic facts called fantasies, cues, and types with each other.

Message Structural Concepts: (Rhetorical vision)

A rhetorical vision is a composite drama that unifies people in a common symbolic reality. A rhetorical vision has five elements such as:

Dramatis personae – the actors and players who give life to the rhetorical vision
Plotline – provides the action of the rhetorical vision
Scene – details the location of the rhetorical vision
Sanctioning agent – legitimizes the rhetorical vision
Master analog – the reflection of a deeper structure within the rhetorical vision

Dynamic Structure Concepts

At the meta-theoretical level of analysis, the dynamic structure concepts of any communication theory refer to the deep structure tension or war underlying a message’s cast, form, or mold. With SCT, the war occurs between righteous, social, and pragmatic fantasy themes and ultimately competing for rhetorical visions.

Righteousness refers to the quality of being morally correct and justifiable. A pragmatic way of dealing with something is based on practical considerations rather than theoretical ones. A pragmatic person practically deals with things.

Communicator Structure Concepts

At the metatheoretical level of analysis, communicator concepts focus on the names given to communicators from the lens of a particular theory. With RAT, the communicators are called arguers, audiences, and critics. With Symbolic Convergence Theory, the major communicator concepts are fantasizers and rhetorical community, along with their attributes such as the inclination to fantasize and dramatic communication style.

Medium Structure Concepts

This metatheory concept allows us to understand the medium as a propagating matter, such as in the statement: corn grows best in sandy loam soil. For example, IST grows best in open and mixed communication systems but not in closed ones. RAT grows differently in field-invariant and field-dependent media. URT operates differently in high-context, collectivist cultures than it does in low-context, individualist cultures. Likewise, NPT grows best in an open, democratic society and does not do well in a closed, totalitarian state. Fantasies (and thus SCT) grow best in a medium that fosters group sharing or public sharing as opposed to just personal fantasizing.

As Bormann (1972) noted, fantasies that begin in small groups often are worked into public speeches, become picked up by the mass media, and “spread out across larger publics”. With both group and public sharing the tendency for fantasies to be embellished, reconfigured, reworked, and evolved increases. The result is that members of groups and public rhetorical communities come to have a stake in the symbolic construction. The resultant symbolic construction has then entered their consciousness through the causative entity.

Evaluative Concepts

At the metatheoretical level of analysis, all communication theories posit one or more technical concepts. These concepts allow for the evaluation of communication that falls within the purview of a particular theory. For example, with IST, the primary evaluative concepts are fidelity, capacity, and uncertainty reduction.

With SCT, three primary technical concepts enable the evaluation of the quality and effects (outcomes) of fantasy-sharing among the members of rhetorical collectivities: shared group consciousness, and rhetorical vision reality-links, and fantasy theme artistry.

Shared group consciousness

A shared group consciousness must exist within a rhetorical community in order for a fantasy theme to chain out, a rhetorical vision to develop, a saga to exist, or a symbolic cue to imbue meaning. Some terms that portray a shared group consciousness are common ground, mutual understanding, created social reality, meeting of minds, and empathic communication. Once a group has reached shared group consciousness, they no longer think in terms of “I” or “me” but in terms of “us” and “we.” After all, communication is the drive that allows groups of people to move toward their goals. A shared group consciousness also reduces uncertainty by allowing groups to develop an identity that shapes their culture. Shaping their own culture can influence norms, roles, and even decision-making.

Rhetorical vision reality link

A rhetorical vision reality link allows for a viable rhetorical vision that includes an authentic account of the phenomena and tangible evidence. The lack of a rhetorical vision reality link, with no clear observational impressions of the facts, may lead to disprovable fantasies, characterized by rumor, innuendo, gossip, and even paranoia.

Fantasy theme artistry

Fantasy theme artistry is the rhetorical ability to present situations in a form that appears attractive to people so that they will share them by presenting situations in a form that appears attractive to an audience or showing that you understand the stories that the group shares. You can speak to their stories and turn their opinions in your favor.

Strengths and Weaknesses of the Symbolic Convergence Theory

Strengths of the Symbolic Convergence Theory

The stories or fantasies of symbolic convergence theory can help businesses, corporations, or politicians because SCT is a general theory built on the method of natural sciences. People apply it to many different cultures and timelines. They also use to account for the communicative processes created by a group, used to foster the creation and sustenance of the group’s so-called “consciousness.”

Strengths

Below are a few points of how and why SCT can be useful in everyday situations. Determining communication malfunctions. A question that happens a lot within SCT is, “Why do some fantasy themes spark a chain of sharing while others fail?”

Groups fate, as a part of a group, has everyday experiences that predispose them to share fantasies that relate to their concerns. Therefore, these groups will have successful fantasy chains because they have more in common and can share more. Group members often find the confrontation of such issues unsettling when issues of power, sexism, role conflict, social rejection, and other touchy topics come into play. These fantasy chains may begin but often do not last very long. Assessing communication efforts and persuasive campaigns. This theory can provide insight into small groups, meetings, lectures, and speeches. However, it provides a more effective use of assessing effects within the media.

In the 1976 campaign, the investigators included the relationship between the media messages and the audience’s effects in their study. These studies analyzed the extent to which actual voting behavior can be anticipated by participation. By being able to predict voting behaviors, political representatives could carefully craft their messages for different groups of people before giving their speeches and lectures to benefit themselves best—the role of consciousness. Within fantasy chains, three phases keep the chains going. They are consciousness-creating, consciousness-raising, and consciousness-sustaining. In the first phase, people create a commonality among their group. If the groups share this common fantasy, consciousness-raising will often fall in line next. And lastly, the two first points combined will create a sustaining fantasy chain that will last.

Weaknesses of the Symbolic Convergence Theory

The dangerous phenomenon is an essential element of symbolic convergence theory. It is the propensity of the phenomenon that people use against public goodwill. SCT can be seen at work in revisionist history, whether unintentionally or intentionally. The intentional malevolent use of SCT principles against the public good. People can use it in the rash of “Fake News” campaigns. Therefore, false perceptions are feed to society in order to create a false, but widely believed, consensus (convergence) of belief. This is tantamount to intentionally creating false representation on the walls of Plato’s cave.