| By now almost 225 "managers" in the district have had their first introduction to developing and implementing the Continuous Improvement Process through Quality Improvement Teams, and they are taking the message back to their branches and units. The Manitoba Mission Statement for Quality reflects our commitment to Quality in everything we do: To differentiate ourselves as the undisputed leader of Quality in the Manitoba Financial Services Industry by achieving and sustaining excellence as defined by our customers. During a recent Quality People, Quality Leadership kick-off held Jan. 28, managers were put through an intense simulation of developing a Plan as part of the Quality Improvement Cycle where they had to prepare an issue statement - conduct root cause analysis - identify and define the main problem - and select a course of action. Continuous improvement is a specific technique based on the quality improvement cycle of Customer Check, Plan, Do, Check, Act. For any initiative put in place - start with the customer, plan it carefully, implement it, check and measure it to see if it was successful. Then act accordingly. "The first step is for each branch and department to set up Quality Improvement Teams to address and solve problems that get in the way of delivering Quality Service to our customers, internal and external," said Dennis Hilderman, manager, Quality Service. There will be three key levels within the Quality Improvement Teams process. Branches and departments will be able to deal with many of the issues within their units, anything not within their scope of authority will be addressed at the next level, the Area Quality Council. This council will in turn come up with a Plan and act on it, those issues which cannot be resolved will be forwarded to the District Change Council. The district council will be a cross functional team of personnel from various units within the district, who will endeavour to find solutions for those issues which inhibits Quality Service from being delivered to clients. The Quality Improvement Teams are a natural eveolution from existing programs such as Service Excellence, Speak Up, or other, local initiatives. A Maiking Quality Happen Kit, is being forwarded to each participant who attended the kick-off, to take the message back to their units and introduce the Quality Service Improvement Process. "Quality is a continuous improvement process. It is a continuous journey," said Hilderman. Customer expectations are increasing. Yesterday's big wins are today's minumum expectations. He add: "Quality Improvement Teams are not only made up of member from a specific branch or unit. There will also be cross functional teams established as the need arises, to address issues that impact on a number of areas within the bank. Using a systematic common approach process and terminology, will enhance our ability to share our knowledge and successes with other units." The process is customer driven. And since it is the bank's goal to exceed customer expectations, this process of Continuous Quality Improvement can be measured by continually requesting feedback from our customers. If, for example, a problem had been identified and a solution implemented without first seeking client feedback on the level of service provided in a particular areas, we might find that what "we" thought needed to be improved didn't, and what our customers thought about our service was totally overlooked. There lies the danger of the unsatisfied customer. It is important that those employees who best understand the needs of customers are part of the problem solving process, this is what will make the implementation of Quality Improvement Teams successful. | 
