Professional Level QFD Training: Learn it right, the first time. The QFD Green Belt® Training is an internationally acclaimed workshop where you can learn the most up-to-date QFD/ISO16355 in both theory and practice. Attendees can begin applying the tools on their actual work project under the guidance of the instructor. For those who aim to be a project leader or facilitator, the QFD Black Belt® Training is an ideal place to start their advanced training.

Both trainings are now offered as a live virtual workshop, using the Zoom platform.

They include modern QFD/ISO16355 training manuals and templates for the respective level, plus case studies and ISO 16355 reference materials. The templates include modern House of Quality, Customer Voice Table, Maximum Value Table, Analytic Hierarchy Process, and more.

Companies that have sent their employees to QFDI training…

Testimonials…

If your organization has more than six (6) attendees, you might request for in-company private training that offers privacy and a tailored curriculum that better fits your development process.

QFD Newsletters: QFD approaches, and application tips are discussed, as well as TQM issues.

Case Studies:‍ ‍Glenn Mazur’s case studies are a treasure trove of real world QFD applications. You can see how companies around the world are using QFD to stay competitive. Most of them are client-authored papers, so you know they represent real-life implementation and use of tools.

Symposium Research Papers & Case Studies: QFD symposium transactions are also a good source of case studies and research papers. You will be able to see the transformation and progression of QFD and ISO 16355 concepts and methods.


Books: Most recommended are books of the men who founded the methodology — Mizuno and Akao. These books contain the original QFD concept and early applications by these QFD founders.

Mizuno, Shigeru, and Yoji Akao, Ed. 1994. [1978] Quality Function Deployment: The Customer-Driven Approach to Quality Planning and Deployment. Rev. ed. Tokyo: Asian Productivity Organization. ISBN 92-833-1122-1. [Translated by Glenn Mazur]

Akao, Yoji, Ed. 1990 [1988]. Quality Function Deployment: Integrating Customer Requirements into Product Design. Foreword by Bob King. Cambridge, MA: Productivity Press. ISBN 0-915299-41-0. [Translated by Glenn Mazur]

QFD Institute and its instructors strive to present only the best and most current in QFD/ISO16355 knowledge, practice and tools.

Our instructors have studied the subjects directly under Dr. Akao (co-founder of QFD) since the mid-1980's, as well as in international study groups.

Every year, our instructors attend privately-held study sessions with international QFD / ISO 16355 experts and other pioneers in the field to research, keep themselves up-to-date, and to refine their teaching methods. They have lectured on QFD and ISO 16355 internationally for many years, delivered keynotes, and have published numerous QFD case studies and articles. The QFD Institute executive director Glenn Mazur is the convenor of the ISO 16355 in charge of writing the international standard.

This uniquely qualifies them to bring leading edge QFD knowledge to their students and explain the complete picture of Comprehensive QFD, its origin, transformation, what are facts, what are myths, etc.

More important, they are the developers of the only QFD / ISO 16355 curricula in English authorized by Dr. Akao, founder of QFD. The course materials are continuously updated for both public and in-house courses, and custom-tailored to your company's needs and development process for in-house training.

Many consulting firms also rely on the QFD Institute's training program to train their QFD consultants and trainers. (Companies that have sent their employees to the QFD Institute's training.)

More on Excellence in Training

In the beginning...

When Dr. Akao introduced QFD to the US in the 1980s, the auto industry saw a way to regain lost customers using the same techniques their Japanese competitors used. Component suppliers opted for a bare-bones approach to QFD to quickly address design improvements using a standardized 4-matrix analysis.

This cookie-cutter approach (one of its leading proponents even dubbed it kindergarten QFD) in the hands of a poor trainer is often abbreviated further to just one matrix — the so-called House of Quality. "A House of Quality is Not QFD." -Yoji Akao, QFD Master Class, 1994.

Forced inclusion of all the data in a single chart results in a huge matrix that gives inconclusive results. One misguided QFD study cited over a million data cells in the House of Quality that needed to be cross-checked. This is not good QFD. On the other end of the scale are those that try to do more than 30 matrices! No wonder many abandon QFD as being too difficult and time consuming. But, nothing could be further from the truth.

Too short, too long, isn't anything just right?

Study Japanese QFD thoroughly as we have, and you will see that each company has unique QFD approaches that need tailoring. There is no "right" number of matrices. The House of Quality or other matrices alone do not make QFD and they may even be unnecessary. If you do build the matrices, to do it correctly and to analyze correctly require the guidance from someone who has this thorough understanding.

The QFD Institute has created its training approach and materials with Dr. Akao and his associates — we know what works, what does not, and how to custom-tailor QFD to best fit your organization. We also played a leading role for the establishment of the new ISO 16355.

Certified for what?

The QFD Institute was sanctioned by Dr. Akao in 2000 to certify several levels of QFD expertise. These include QFD Green Belt®, QFD Black Belt®, QFD Master Black Belt®, QFD Red Belt® and QFD Gold Belt® for management and executives.

The QFD Institute's QFD Belt Certificate program emphasizes mastery proven through competent application. In both in-house and public QFD Belt courses, students receive a provisional QFD Belt Certificate upon successful completion of the course. Full status is earned upon successful review of the students' QFD project using their QFD process, submitted within a specified time frame.

Provisional Certificate holders are additionally recommended to attend the periodic QFD Green Belt® Update and QFD Black Belt® Update in order to keep their Certificate status current as well as to keep their skills at the cutting edge.

This assures the integrity of The QFD Institute's QFD Belt Certificate, ascertaining that full certificate holders who are licensed to certify others below their level are using the most up-to-date and comprehensive materials available anywhere in the world, according to the QFD Institute's Excellence in Training principles. A QFD Belt status may be verified by contacting the QFD Institute office.

Good QFD / ISO 16355 training will teach you the state-of-the-art global best practices and tools, and the most efficient and sound deployments, including those that are now described by the ISO 16355 for new product development and innovation.

Good QFD / ISO 16355 training will teach you the differences between QFD for manufactured and assembled products, service and business process, food and chemical products, software, and small business. It will show you how to position your new product according to customer, competition, and corporate strategy.

A good QFD / ISO 16355 trainer knows how to custom-tailor the process and tools to your industry, product type, and organization. With custom-tailoring, QFD tools and flow will be integrated into your product development process, whether you follow Design Thinking, Six Sigma, Stage-Gates®, Concurrent Engineering, or other product development approaches.

QFD training, that uses bare-bones approach or gives the impression that the House of Quality or the 4-phase matrix analysis are all you need, may be inadequate or outdated, and it is often unsustainable.

See Best vs. Worst Practices.

Does your trainer know the difference? ...Classical QFD, Blitz QFD®, Reverse QFD

How to QFD and What Not To Do

Some people ask, "I have been doing the '4-phase model QFD' process for over 15 years, leading QFD workshops and DFSS projects and earning a Six Sigma Black Belt. Why should I need to start all over from the QFD Green Belt® level? Why can’t I jump in the QFD Black Belt® program?"

This is a legitimate question that should not be treated lightly. The legacy issue, in fact, is one of the reasons why the QFD Belt® Certificate program was created. The tools and methods taught in the QFD Green Belt® training are part of Modern QFD and rarely covered in six sigma classes..

It also raises the issue why it is imperative for today’s business to update their quality practices, especially QFD and ISO 16355.

Please contact us for questions about QFD and training.

Often, sending some employees to a public QFD Green Belt® training and QFD Black Belt® training is a good way for companies to find about how QFD may fit in their project and business.

The attendees of these courses are encouraged to bring a part of their marketing data, if feasible, so that they can begin applying QFD tools on their actual work project in the class (no need to reveal confidential data), rather than learning from a fictitious example.

Companies who are starting a project might wish to consider the In-house Training. The in-house QFD Green Belt® training includes Technical Review of your product development process and uses a QFD process and tool set that are custom-tailored to your unique project and business goals.

More companies are beginning to recognize the importance of management support when they introduce a new idea such as QFD. We have a short management overview called QFD Gold Belt® training that is perfect for busy executives, whose understanding and support is essential to your project success.