A cyclical method of performing work and receiving feedback on the work, to improve products and processes. Plan-Do-Check-Act incorporates feedback loops to reinforce an empirical process, which focuses on inspection and adaptation instead of following a comprehensive, fully defined plan, where that plan is established up front and adhered to regardless of the outcomes or discoveries along the way. The concept behind the PDCA cycle is credited to W. Edwards Deming, who referred to it as the Shewhart cycle, which he named after his mentor, and which, in its original formulation, was Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA).
Related Media
PDCA Cycle Video
PDCA Cycle Podcasts
PDCA Cycle Example
Related Subjects
Acknowledgements
Authored by Philip Rogers
Agile World Resources are provided as free resources to anyone seeking to learn more and are shared under a creative commons attribution license. This means if you use a resource elsewhere you must name Agile World Resources as the source, who the author is, and the photo creator (if used).