SEO info
- Target keywords: QC circle topic selection / how to choose a QC topic / QC pain points / workplace needs in QC / QC circle needs
- Target readers: QC leaders and members who are stuck choosing a topic
Choosing a topic isn't just picking a title
Here's a shallow way a lot of people write up a QC topic.
We have a lot of missed clock-ins, so we'll improve that.
It isn't wrong.
But it's too weak to score well on the evaluation sheet.
The judges aren't looking at the topic name.
They're looking at things like these:
- Does it match what the circle needs?
- Does it match what the workplace needs?
- Is it clear what's going wrong?
- Is it clear how much it hurts?
- Does it show consideration for related departments?
In other words, topic selection is the step where you explain why this topic needs to be picked at all.
Breaking down "too many missed clock-ins"
Let's break "we have a lot of missed clock-ins" into the points on the evaluation sheet.
| Angle | The raw feeling | How to put it briefly in your QC materials |
|---|---|---|
| Workplace needs | We want higher labor productivity | Cut wasted work hours and raise productivity |
| What's going wrong | Missed clock-ins create extra work | Missed clock-ins force unnecessary checking and corrections |
| Who is hurting | We in the admin department take the hit | Employees, their supervisors and the admin department all have to follow up |
| Where it piles up | Hell right before month-end close | Checking work piles up just before the closing date |
| Consideration for related departments | Just press the button properly, people on the floor | Don't blame individuals; build a setup that makes misses less likely |
| Reason for choosing the topic | We've told them a hundred times and nothing changes | Reminders alone haven't made the improvement stick |
| Direction of improvement | Somebody fix this | Catch misses early and run things so they're less likely to recur |
The key is not to erase the raw feeling.
The raw feeling holds the core of the problem.
But if you put it out as is, it turns into words that blame people or departments.
So you convert it into short, QC-material language.
Turn the "are you kidding me" anger into a workplace need
Here's the raw feeling.
We want to raise labor productivity, but dealing with missed clock-ins eats up the admin department's hours. It's not our fault, and yet the productivity of the next step down the line drops. Are you kidding me?
You don't have to get rid of this anger.
But if you put it out as is, your presentation is dead.
In QC materials, convert it like this:
Missed clock-ins create checking and correction work that shouldn't be needed. The work is especially concentrated just before the closing date, so improvement is necessary from the standpoint of cutting wasted work hours.
You're not erasing the anger.
You're translating it into words that land on the evaluation sheet.
Forget consideration for related departments and you lose points
"People on the floor should just press the button properly."
I get the feeling.
But if you write it like that, your consideration for related departments looks weak.
In QC materials, write it like this:
Rather than blaming individuals or departments, we will put in place a setup where missed clock-ins are less likely to happen, along with a routine for catching them early.
This way, nobody is cast as the villain.
You're looking at the system, not the people.
An example of a finished topic statement
Keep the heading on the topic selection slide short.
Missed clock-ins increase pre-close workload
In the body, explain it like this:
Missed clock-ins force employees, supervisors and the admin department to follow up. Checking work is especially concentrated just before the closing date, so improvement is necessary from the standpoint of cutting wasted work hours. Reminders alone haven't made the improvement stick, so we chose building a setup that makes misses less likely as our topic.
This hits the points on the evaluation sheet quite well.
A design sheet for topic selection
Before you open PowerPoint, fill this in.
| Point on the sheet | Question | Answer |
|---|---|---|
| Circle needs | What do the members want to improve? | Reduce the rework from checking missed clock-ins and resubmitting requests |
| Workplace needs | What does the workplace want to improve? | Cut wasted work hours and raise productivity |
| What's going wrong | What exactly is the problem? | Missed clock-ins create unnecessary checking and corrections |
| Who is hurting | Who is carrying the load? | Employees, supervisors and the admin department all have to follow up |
| Consideration | Does it avoid attacking individuals? | Don't blame individuals; build a setup that makes misses less likely |
| Reason for choosing | Why do it this time? | Reminders alone haven't made the improvement stick |
Fill this in and your topic selection gets a lot stronger.
Summary
Topic selection isn't the place where you write the topic name.
It's the place where you answer the evaluation sheet's question: "Why does this topic need to be picked?"
For missed clock-ins, the key points are these:
- We want to cut wasted work hours
- Unnecessary checking and corrections are happening
- The load falls on employees, supervisors and the admin department
- The work piles up just before the closing date
- Don't blame individuals; improve through the system
- Reminders alone haven't made it stick
Show all of this with a short heading and numbers.
That's how you win at topic selection.
