The Big Difference Between Business Process Reengineering and Continuous Improvement

question 79

Multiple Choice

The big difference between business process reengineering and continuous improvement programs such as TQM or Six Sigma is that

• A)reengineering is a tool for installing process organization,whereas TQM and Six Sigma concern defect-free production methods and delivering world-class customer service.
• B)reengineering helps create core competencies,whereas TQM and Six Sigma are tools for making a core competence stronger and more efficient.
• C)reengineering is a tool for achieving one-time quantum improvements,whereas TQM and Six Sigma programs aim at incremental progress improvement (striving for inch-by-inch gains again and again in a never-ending stream).
• D)business process reengineering requires benchmarking,whereas TQM and Six Sigma do not.
• E)reengineering represents an effort to totally revamp a firm's value chain,whereas TQM looks at incrementally improving the performance of two or three targeted value chain activities.

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Definitions:

Situational Factors

External forces that influence individuals' behavior and decision-making in specific contexts or environments.

Outgroup Heterogeneity Effects

The tendency to perceive members of an outgroup as more similar to each other than members of one's ingroup, often leading to stereotypes.

Stereotypes

Overgeneralized beliefs or expectations about the characteristics, behaviors, and roles of a particular group of people.

External Attributions

The process of attributing the cause of one's own or others' behaviors and outcomes to external factors.