Quality Cambridge IGCSE Business Studies (9–1) revision
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In plain words
Quality does not mean luxury. It means the product does what the customer expects it to do. A cheap pen that writes every time is a quality product. An expensive one that leaks is not.
There are two ways to get it: catch the faults at the end, or stop them happening at all.
5 things to know
- Quality means a product or service meets customers' expectations and is fit for its purpose.
- It matters because it builds reputation and customer loyalty, cuts the cost of returns, complaints and waste, and lets a business charge more than its rivals.
- Quality control is checking products for faults, usually at the end of production. Faulty goods are stopped before they reach customers, but the materials and time spent on them are already wasted.
- Quality assurance is setting standards and checking at every stage, so that faults are prevented. Every worker is responsible for quality.
- Total quality management (TQM) is a culture in which everyone in the business is responsible for quality all the time, aiming to get things right first time.
Tips and tricks
- Quality control finds faults. Quality assurance prevents them. That contrast is worth a mark in most questions.
- Quality assurance needs trained, committed staff. If workers do not care, it does not work, and that is its weakness.
It lands in your notebook with its questions as flashcards.
Quality: 5 questions and answers
These are the quiz’s questions. Do the quiz first, then come back here for the ones that got you.
Quality control involves
Inspectors check finished or part-finished goods.
Which is a disadvantage of quality control?
The waste has already happened by the time the fault is found.
In quality assurance, who is responsible for quality?
Standards are built into each stage of production.
Why does good quality allow a business to charge higher prices?
Reputation is worth money.
What does total quality management aim for?
Quality becomes part of everyone's job.
Quiz
5 questions
Tap an answer and you’ll see straight away whether it’s right, and why.
Worksheet
3 questions, 8 marks. Write your answers on paper, then check them.
Quality
Cambridge IGCSE Business Studies (9–1) 0986 · 8 marks · papermunch.org
Name ______________________________ Date ______________
Explain what is meant by quality.[2]
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A product or service that meets the expectations of customers and is fit for its purpose.
Explain the difference between quality control and quality assurance.[3]
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Quality control inspects products, usually when they are finished, to find and remove faulty ones. Quality assurance sets standards and checks at every stage of production, so that faults are prevented from happening.
Explain two reasons why quality is important to a business.[3]
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Customers who are satisfied buy again and recommend the business, which protects its reputation. There are fewer faulty goods to replace or refund, so costs are lower.
Answers: Quality
- 1. A product or service that meets the expectations of customers and is fit for its purpose.
- 2. Quality control inspects products, usually when they are finished, to find and remove faulty ones. Quality assurance sets standards and checks at every stage of production, so that faults are prevented from happening.
- 3. Customers who are satisfied buy again and recommend the business, which protects its reputation. There are fewer faulty goods to replace or refund, so costs are lower.