RE: PDSA, PDCA, SPDA, etc

["Cliff" <cliffnorman@sbcglobal.net>]

Hello Alan, there are many views of PDSA. When Shewhart first laid out the
cycle it was viewed as one big cycle. Many people still think of it this
way. Deming eventually evolved the cycle closer to the scientific method.
Plan to Do is the deductive approach using theory to observe. Do to Study is
the inductive approach to updating theory as needed. We refer to the PDSA
cycle as the Learning and Improvement Cycle. If the intent is to learn or
improve then the PDSA cycle would apply. A typical (assuming some moderate
level of complexity) improvement project will have 15 to 20 PDSA cycles
leading to implementation. 

Best,

Cliff