CPIM Practice Exam

Which quality tool focuses on resolving the most common customer complaints?

1. Check sheet

2. Cause-and-effect chart

3. Pareto chart

4. Control chart

The correct answer is: Pareto chart

The Pareto chart is a quality tool that is particularly effective in identifying and prioritizing the most significant factors contributing to a problem, often based on the principle that a small number of causes are responsible for the majority of issues—the 80/20 rule. In the context of resolving customer complaints, the Pareto chart helps organizations visually display the frequency or impact of these complaints, allowing them to focus resources and efforts on addressing the most common issues that affect customer satisfaction. This tool typically features a bar graph that represents individual complaints and a cumulative line graph. By analyzing the data in this manner, organizations can quickly identify which issues should be addressed first, thereby maximizing the improvement impact on customer satisfaction and ultimately driving better service. Other tools like check sheets are primarily used for data collection, cause-and-effect charts (also known as Fishbone diagrams) are more focused on identifying root causes rather than prioritizing them, and control charts are utilized to monitor process variations over time rather than addressing specific complaints. In this context, the Pareto chart is most effective at tackling the most frequently occurring customer complaints.