Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA Cycle)

We briefly touched upon this topic earlier in our ITIL discussion but here we can look into it strictly from PMP Exam standpoint

The first thing to know about Plan-Do-Check-Act or the PDCA cycle from PMP Exam standpoint would be the different names it is known by.

Shewhart Cycle

Plan-Do-Check-Act was created by Walter Shewhart. It is thus known as Shewhart Cycle. Walter also created the Control Chart while working at Bell Labs in the 1920s

Deming Cycle

Although W. Edwards Deming didn’t create the PDCA cycle, he is accredited for popularizing the concept. Deming is a well-known quality theorist and his work in the field has led this concept be known as Deming Cycle

The Concept

PDCA is used by many Kaizen practitioners as it is one of the ways for making process improvements. PDCA can be explained in the form of following steps,

1. Plan and execute a small improvement in the process
2. Measure the benefits of the change
3. If the benefits are deserving enough, introduce the process change

From the steps above you can clearly understand why this is a preferred way to go about improving the process for Kaizen practitioners.

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