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Glenn Mazur

Glenn Mazur is an international authority on QFD and leading Kansei trainer in the U.S. He is the Executive Director of the QFD Institute and International Council for QFD, and president of Japan Business Consultants.

A Japanese quality specialist since 1980, he has studied and worked with Japanese quality masters, including Dr. Yoji Akao (founder of QFD) and Dr. Mitsuo Nagamachi (founder of Kansei Engineering), teaching QFD seminars side by side with Dr. Akao during many of the master's visits to U.S. companies. Fluent in Japanese, Mazur is one of a few Westerners who can articulate often too foreign and inexplicable oriental concepts with intelligibility and accuracy appreciated by English-speaking audience.

Glenn Mazur is a recipient of the 1998 Akao Prize® for Excellence and one of the only two non-Japanese to be certified as QFD Red Belt® by Dr. Yoji Akao (the highest QFD mastery level). He has taught Total Quality Management at the University of Michigan School of Engineering for 10 years, delivered many keynotes at international quality conferences (both QFD and Kansei Engineering), written over a hundred articles and papers on QFD and quality methodologies, and trained numerous QFD Green Belts® and QFD Black Belts® worldwide since 2000.

Mazur is a senior member of ASQ (American Society for Quality), an Academician in the International Academy for Quality (IAQ) and the convenor of ISO Working Group for writing the International QFD Standards.

Glenn Mazur can be reached at this e-mail address or through his personal website or QFD Institute.

Glenn Mazur c.v.

Recent Case Studies by Glenn Mazur

2010 Symposium

Quality approaches to new product development as a pipeline for commercialization has been growing in recent years. Methods such as Stage-Gate®, Design for Six Sigma, Design for Lean Sigma, and others have been helping organizations structure their techniques. QFD has been recognized by all these methods as an important tool set within the process, but exactly what QFD tools to use and when to use them must be determined on a case-by-case basis by custom-tailoring the QFD process to the organization and the development process being used. This paper shows how to expertly integrate QFD into different processes and different companies, through similarities and differences in each. The discussion will include the characteristics of Stage-Gate®, Design for Six Sigma (DFSS), Design for Lean Sigma, and how to truly benefit from these and other New Product Development (NPD) techniques by efficiently and correctly integrating QFD through customization into your unique NPD process and business strategy. [ Keywords: Stage-Gate®, Design for Six Sigma (DFSS), Design for Lean Sigma, Integration of QFD (Quality Function Deployment), QFD Customization, New Product Development (NPD), Quality Methods]

This paper shows the benefits of traditional and Modern QFD approaches applied to align design complex IT Systems to meet customers' priority business needs. The uniqueness of this paper is the comparative study of Traditional QFD vs. Modern QFD - a rare opportunity in real business applications - in Complex IT System design and the revelation that how the associated prioritization and value analysis techniques in the latter bring alignment with business drivers - a key issue for IT Systems design today. First, it discusses Traditional QFD supported by other Six Sigma Methods, namely Boundary Analysis, Supplier, Input, Process, Output, Customer (SIPOC) and Critical To Quality Characteristic Analysis, and Prioritization using Pair-wise Comparison. It then demonstrates how inclusion of Blitz QFD® methods brings a level of clarity to customer and stakeholder value for the Business Solution and Business Architecture on which IT Systems are developed. [Keywords: Blitz QFD®, Traditional QFD, IT Systems, Design]

As a regional medical facility, the goal of Rutland Regional Health Systems is to develop standardized processes and clear expectations for how they serve their customers. Through working to apply quality thinking, the hospital team has identified the non-clinical areas needing improvements such as the way they deliver care to the patients, staff behaviors, words, body languages and different team coordination. This presentation will share an on-going project that demonstrates this hospital's commitment to understanding what is important to their patients and bringing fresh improvements in the delivery of patient care and the mind-set of healthcare professionals through the use of QFD (Quality Function Deployment) and DREAM (Design/Redesign Effectiveness Assurance Method). [Keywords: Quality Function Deployment (QFD), Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), Service Excellence, Healthcare, Voice of the Customer (VOC), Design/Redesign Effectiveness Assurance Method (DREAM)]

The physician induction process is an interactive process beginning from the recruitment of a physician and continuing over the first year to help him/her as well as the doctor's family adjust to both the medical and broader community environment. Its success is crucial to physician retention and development of a happy work force that can ultimately affect better patient care. This project shares our ongoing efforts to build a better process of orienting and inducting new physicians in our hospital and community, by using Modern QFD tools and Voice of the new physician feedback. [Keywords: Quality Function Deployment (QFD), Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP), physician orientation, healthcare, Voice of the Customer (VOC), Design/Redesign Effectiveness Assurance Method (DREAM)]

The basic principles of QFD were adopted to develop an industrial training curriculum model for service-oriented manufacturing industries in Hong Kong. Recognizing the importance of dually meeting job performance requirements and knowledge needs of the incumbents, the model is characterized by the performance-focused as well as learning-oriented approaches, based on the Voice of Customers from both employers and individuals, as well as the dynamics of trainers who make use of their subject-matter expertise to suggest the kinds of industrial knowledge for meeting the defined performance needs vs. course developers who make use of his/her professional knowledge to synthesis the derived subjects into an effective and coherent curriculum. Affinity Diagram, VOC Table, and AHP were used as the tools for assisting the operation of the model. [Keywords: QFD, Curriculum Development, Industrial Training, Vocational Training]

2009 Symposium

There are numerous approaches for understanding consumer motivation and insight. This paper explores the application of new product development methods such as Quality Function Deployment, Kansei Engineering, and Analytic Hierarchy Process to assist sales and marketing groups to better understand how customers feel about the products they buy. QFD is a Japanese created approach to translating the voice of the customer into product functional requirements, kansei is a Japanese created approach to identify product sensory attributes that affect consumer emotions and image, and the AHP is an American created method to determine priorities based on human decision making modes. The authors have applied these techniques to learn about how the image that Thailand’s premier beer, Singha, is perceived by consumers in the U.K. to apply the findings for future marketing and branding campaigns. [Keywords: Gemba Study, Consumer Branding, Foreign Markets, Marketing, Kansei Engineering, AHP, Modern QFD]

For a manufacturer with a worldwide presence, especially, translating the Voice of the Customer was found to take on cultural in addition to linguistic imperatives. Sandvik Coromant is a leading manufacturer of metal cutting solutions with worldwide presence, with a long history of innovative products. The company has put forward a goal to reduce by half the time from identifying customer needs to achieving peak sales. This paper will focus on the going to the customer’s Gemba (or machine shop in our case), one of the methods in modern Blitz QFD® methods and discuss the differences of applying Gemba in different countries and cultures where Sand-vik Coromant is active. [Keywords: Need Finding, QFD, Gemba, Product Development, Cutting Tools, Multinational, International VOC]

This paper reports QFD application for food products industry using QFD's consumer-centric processes to enhance its existing product development process and to develop a new product. While the service aspects of this offering have been previously published, this paper focuses on the food product itself, and how QFD for a transforming chemical process (mixing and baking) differs from that of an assembled product or human process. Traditional tools such as the House of Quality (HOQ) as well as some of the tools of Modern QFD were integrated in this study as well. It discusses several steps necessary to focus the project and delivery channel, identify customers and their needs and preferences, and then work step-by-step through the process of the food product end characteristics, intermediate batch characteristics, ingredients and process parameters, and key manufacturing and final production quality control points. Sales impact will also be discussed. [Keywords: Modern QFD, House of Quality (HOQ), Cross-functional Product Development, New Product Development Process]

2008 Symposium

In order to distinguish ourselves from the competitive pack, it is becoming increasingly important to seek a deeper understanding of value-driving customer needs during the early stages of product/process development. Although automotive suppliers are often asked to be creative and lean, we still often build strictly to given specifications. We receive data in the old "build to print" paradigm but we are often required to design in a more creative and lean one. To address this dichotomy and break away from the costly design- build-test iterative loop, QFD suggests that we seek an understanding of customer's needs beyond the requirements specification and incorporate that understanding into the final product. In this case-study, you will hear how TRW Automotive has utilized QFD and augmented it with the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) to develop a working model for project leaders to prioritize and focus their design efforts effectively.

Election years breed uncertainty especially when the incumbent president and vice president are not seeking office. The 2008 U.S. presidential elections have additional healthcare related urgencies due to the impending retirement of the Baby Boomers and the shifting winds of global competitiveness. While forecasting the election outcomes is beyond the scope of this paper, just as many businesses do, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida (BCBSF) wants to anticipate how the next administration and congress might set new healthcare policy in order to begin planning for and implementing new processes for their members, providers, and business decision makers. To achieve this, this project used a combination of QFD, AHP, and other forecasting tools to look at possible 2008 election and policy outcomes and what new opportunities might be created to service both their traditional members as well as the uninsured in the State of Florida.

This project utilized the QFD methodology to anticipate the changing needs of consumers and how service might evolve. The requirements for the project included: 1) Understanding the future-state of the industry; 2) Anticipating and prioritizing future member needs as a result of new industry pressures; 3) Developing a well defined goal for the service organization; 4) Identifying solutions that target member needs; 5) Validating solutions from the member's perspective; 6) Selecting the best solution(s) given benefits and constraints; and 7) Implementing solutions that are most valuable to the member and continue to differentiate BCBSF.

2007 Symposium

This keynote discusses how technological advancements led to improved product quality and choice, and how this new found choice of goods inevitably led to a demand for freedom of choice in all aspects of life. It shows the revolutionary path from industrial revolution to to consumer revolution to lifestyle and political revolutions. QFD is about the Voice of the Customer. Once unleashed, this voice continues to demand more and more from the marketplace and beyond. Those who supply goods, services, and ideas will see that when the customer wins, we all win.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida (BCBSF) is the oldest and most respected health insurance organization in the State of Florida. This paper will discuss thee company's use of Analytic Hierarchy Processing (AHP) in terms of audience and technology delivery, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of each of the technologies when working with our constituent groups

For many years, the selection of transportation routes, design of roadway features, etc. were based mostly on engineering considerations. QFD has developed since the 1960s a powerful tool set for new product development that enables engineers to listen to the Voice of the Customer and translate the most important needs into design requirements and then assure their quality in the resulting goods and services. This paper will show how QFD tools can be adapted for Context Sensitive Solutions (CSS) and Design in road building and other large projects.

2006 Symposium

Recently, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Florida (BCBSF) began to use QFD to discover the unspoken customer needs for an underserved portion of our population. QFD has allowed us to convert their needs into new products, services, and features to delight and attract new customers as well as retain current customers. This paper describes some of the new opportunities we are facing, and shows step by step how we are addressing them by understanding the Voice of the Customer and innovating and implementing exciting solutions.

The Kano model is often cited by experts in quality, design, and marketing. And yet, it is one of the topics that are often misunderstood. What is the historical background of this concept? Are there methods that product developers and marketers can apply beyond the visually-interesting diagram? What is the relationship between QFD and Kano's model, and how it can be integrated into QFD? What should QFD practitioners know about applying this in their project? This paper examines the Kano Model, including the latest developments as presented in the October 2006 Kano master class taught by the master himself, and introduces new application methods and models that are currently being developed by the QFD Institute through its on-going international research.

2005 Symposium

Outsourcing and the search for the lowest cost producer has lead to increasing commoditization of products. Companies in developed nations are searching for the next "edge" that will help them produced highly profitable, differentiated products and services. This paper will explore an emerging area in applying QFD to lifestyle, image, and psychological needs. The basics approach, easily available software tools, and case studies will be presented, including a review of Boeing's application of these methods to their brand new B787 Dreamliner commercial aircraft, which is priced higher than competitor Airbus and yet is "set to jet past " them, according to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal.

2004 Symposium

Kansei Engineering process was used to ease the difficult task of down-selecting the final interior architecture concept for the Boeing's new commercial airplane that is under development. This paper reports the Kansei experiment performed by the design team, simultaneously with several other methods in a project that is still on-going. To be presented at the symposium are: the Kansei Engineering methodology used for this project including extraction of the Kansei words from a market research study, the Kansei Domain and Physical Domain, examples of Kansei Engineering matrices and software, and the results, as well as the experience and lessons learned by the project team

America's technology-driven juggernaut roars unabated by economic uncertainty, employee outsourcing, and even international opinion. Our innovative capacity is the engine for a successful tomorrow. Yet, both marketing and engineering groups within these companies complain of the same problems: too many opportunities with too few resources, products too new for customers to define their requirements, and an organization too immature to cope with it all. This paper explores some of the major front end deployments in QFD, including Strategy Deployment, Project Deployment, Customer Deployment, Voice of Customer Deployment, Quality Deployment, and Schedule Deployment, as well as key processes and tools, to achieve this.

2003 Symposium

In this Operational Analysis (OA), QFD was used to identify and quantify DoD user requirements for the next generation EOD remote controlled vehicle. The OA data was obtained using joint armed service focus groups, surveys, and one-on-one interviews with 322 DoD unit-level EOD technicians. This paper presents the NGEODRCV Operational Analysis, including the methodology, process, and a prioritized list of seventy technical characteristics. This OA identifies user prioritized technical characteristics and desired abilities, and will aid program managers in identifying technology solutions and prioritizing developmental efforts for the Next Generation EOD Remote Controlled Vehicle.

National City Bank has applied QFD to help identify and prioritize the needs of the customers, and then used these findings to evaluate each IT project for its benefit contribution and degree of complexity to assign appropriate resources. This presentation will show customization of the QFD process through the QFD Green Belt® training of the QFD Institute, development of a list of internal customer needs which became the criteria for determining project benefit, and further development of another set of criteria for determining project complexity and technical skill level required to work on the project. This case study demonstrates how IT projects can be prioritized and optimum human resource assignment can be determined through the use of QFD in order to deliver the greatest value to the customers. The paper will include charts and matrices defining the process.

2001 Symposium

We assumed customers would be as excited as us about the advanced technology of our new product. We were surprised at what they told us during our QFD-guided customer visits early in the development. To avoid disaster, we had to rethink our strategy and redesign a more successful product line. This paper shows how QFD can save high-tech companies from making costly market decision errors by determining customer benefit of a new technology or features before it actually commits resource.

The US Army must consider the requirements of many new fighting scenarios in order to build adequate com-bat systems. QFD is used to better understand and prioritize mission requirements, translate them into system requirements, and then select the most promising technologies for further design and development. Lockheed Martin, a major weapon systems supplier has collaboratively guided them in this effort.

The September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and the passenger-led crash in Pennsylvania to avert an event worse catastrophe have led the President of the United States to form a new Office of Homeland Security. While QFD is not new to the US government, its use has mostly been within the command structure of a single entity, rather than across the very independent agencies of the Executive Branch or the Constitutionally independent Legislative and Judicial branches. This paper is a "call to arms" to the many QFD specialists within the government to use their talents to support the President's initiative to develop and implement effective homeland security activities.

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