The CQI Challenge

He who ceases to try and do better ceases to do well.
Oliver Cromwell

Welcome to MSU Billings CQI page! The university is committed to an organizational culture of continuous quality improvement where all levels of campus community in all programs and disciplines are constantly motivated to improve their services. CQI emphasizes the continuous study and improvement of the processes of providing services to our “clients” and the community.

Continuous Quality Improvement (CQI), adopted from the principles of Total Quality Management (TQM), provides the tools to help the university enhance existing programs, improve our effectiveness in the teaching-learning process, foster a collaborative work environment, and tap the expertise of University faculty, staff, and students. First applied in manufacturing and later expanded to service organizations, quality initiatives now assist colleges and universities across the country.

CQI also means a method of evaluation that is composed of structure, process, and outcome evaluations which focus on improvement efforts to identify root causes of problems, intervene to reduce or eliminate these causes, and take steps to correct the process. CQI recognizes that the majority of problems result from a failure in the process of providing the service, as opposed to being attributable to the providers themselves. Students, faculty and staff will find an improved climate for learning as MSUB moves forward with its continuous improvement efforts.

CQI efforts at MSUB will position the university in meeting several major mandates in the coming years such as the NWCCU commission visit in fall 2008, NCATE in spring 2009, AACSB and other program accreditation visits. In addition, it will help the university to meet the Board of Regents’ cyclic program review mandate. Most of all, this approach will allow us to integrate the university strategic initiatives and goals into the self-study process that will be conducted using the processes outlined by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU). Program reviews and accreditation visits are end points of our efforts, but CQI is an ongoing effort that continues beyond those mandates.

This website is created to communicate the various activities and the progress of CQI on our campus. We invite you to explore this website for the deliberations of the CQI committee as we post the minutes of our meetings. We welcome your suggestions to improve this site and the communication of information on CQI activities through this site, and we look forward to your participation in the process.

Core Concepts of CQI

• Quality is defined as meeting and/or exceeding the expectations of our customers.

• Success is achieved through meeting the needs of those we serve.

• Most problems are found in processes, not in people. CQI does not seek to blame, but rather to improve processes.

• Unintended variation in processes can lead to unwanted variation in outcomes, and therefore we seek to reduce or eliminate unwanted variation.

• Using the scientific method it is possible to achieve continual improvement through small, incremental changes.

• CQI is most effective when it becomes a natural part of the way everyday work is done.