Misunderstanding Quality

Dr. Tsuda is saying that Western industry is satisfied to improve quality to a level where visible figures may shed doubt about the economic benefit of further improvement. As someone enquired, “How low may we go in quality without losing customers?” This question packs a mountain of misunderstanding into a few choice words. It is typical of management’s misunderstanding in America. In contrast, the Japanese go right ahead and improve the process without regard to figures. They thus improve productivity, decrease costs, and capture the market.

Deming, W. Edwards (2011-11-09). Out of the Crisis (p. 2). MIT Press. Kindle Edition.