What is a variation in the context of quality improvement?

In the context of quality improvement, variation refers to the differences between actual performance and the performance that was designed or expected. This concept is fundamental in quality management, as it helps organizations identify gaps in their processes or products. Understanding the variations allows for the investigation into their causes, facilitating better decision-making to enhance quality.

When discussing variation, it is essential to recognize that it can stem from numerous factors, including process inconsistencies, human error, equipment failure, and external influences. By focusing on the differences from the designed and expected outputs, organizations can take corrective actions to minimize these variations, thereby improving overall quality and consistency of products or services.

By contrast, the variations expected in outputs, those arising from external factors, and the differences in input quality are more specific contexts or categories of variation. They may be noteworthy for analysis, but they do not encompass the comprehensive view of what variation signifies in quality improvement, which is fundamentally about the discrepancy between actual and expected results.