Editing W. Edwards Deming (section)

=== Seven Deadly Diseases ===
The "Seven Deadly Diseases" include:
# Lack of constancy of purpose
# Emphasis on short-term profits
# Evaluation by performance, merit rating, or annual review of performance
# Mobility of management
# Running a company on visible figures alone
# Excessive medical costs
# Excessive costs of warranty, fueled by lawyers who work for contingency fees

"A Lesser Category of Obstacles" includes:
# Neglecting long-range planning
# Relying on technology to solve problems
# Seeking examples to follow rather than developing solutions
# Excuses, such as "our problems are different"
# The mistaken belief that management skills can be taught in classes<ref>{{cite book |title=The Deming Management Method |last=Walton |first=Mary |publisher=Penguin Group |year=1986 |page=94}}</ref>
# Reliance on quality control departments rather than management, supervisors, managers of purchasing, and production workers
# Placing blame on workforces who are responsible for only 15% of mistakes while the system designed by management is responsible for 85% of the unintended consequences
# Relying on quality inspection rather than improving product quality

Deming's advocacy of the [[Plan–do–study–act|Plan-Do-Study-Act cycle]], his 14 Points and Seven Deadly Diseases have had tremendous influence outside manufacturing and have been applied in other arenas, such as in the relatively new field of [[sales process engineering]].<ref name="Selden">{{cite book |title=Sales Process Engineering: A Personal Workshop |last=Selden |first=Paul H. |publisher=ASQ Quality Press|location=Milwaukee, WI|year=1997|pages=60–74}}</ref>