CQI Tools

The fundamentals of Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI) includes the seven Quality Control tools and the seven Planning & Management tools. The tools provide a variety of opportunities to organize the team's efforts toward the common goals.

Specific tools lend themselves to ease of use and provide an introduction to the use of the CQI tools. We refer to these tools as Gateway tools ©.

Gateway Tools ©

Affinity Diagram - gather and organize ideas

Tree Diagram - map out the details

Interrelationship Diagram - Identify the influences between items, establish priorities

Flowchart - draw a picture of the process

Run Chart - show changes over time

Select a Tool

The process of an effective change effort is enhanced with the use of the correct Quality tool. A frequent question that we hear is, "What tool do I use when I need to (fill in the blank)?". The Gateway tools© provide an introduction to the use of the Continuous Quality Tools. We have developed a "Select a Tool" chart designed to provide you with additional guidance of when to use a tool.

Select a Tool