Noriaki Kano
Encyclopedia
Noriaki Kano is an educator, lecturer, writer and consultant in the field of quality management. He is the developer of a customer satisfaction
model (now known as the Kano model
) whose simple ranking scheme distinguishes between essential and differentiating attributes related to concepts of customer quality. He is a professor emeritus
of the Tokyo University of Science
.
. Kano challenged the conventional beliefs that improving each attribute of a company's product or service will lead to increased customer satisfaction. Kano believed that not all attributes of product or service performance are equal in the eyes of the customer, and that some attributes create higher levels of customer loyalty
than others.
One of his well known books is the Guide to TQM in Service Industries.
. He retired from the Tokyo University of Science (TUS) after 35 years in research and education, as a lecturer and associate professor at the University of Electro-Communications
and a full professor and head of the Department of Management Science at TUS.
He was the 1997 recipient of the Deming Prize
for Individuals, administered by the Union of Japanese Scientists and Engineers (JUSE). In 1997 he also received the Deming Lecturer Award of the American Statistical Association; his paper for the annual Deming Lecture was titled "Business Strategies for the 21st Century and Attractive Quality Creation."
Kano is an elected fellow of the American Society for Quality
(ASQ). He was the recipient of two ASQ Medals of Distinction: the E. Jack Lancaster Medal for 2002 and the E. L. Grant Medal for 2007.
Customer satisfaction
Customer satisfaction, a term frequently used in marketing, is a measure of how products and services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectation...
model (now known as the Kano model
Kano model
The Kano model is a theory of product development and customer satisfaction developed in the 80s by Professor Noriaki Kano which classifies customer preferences into five categories:*Attractive*One-Dimensional*Must-Be*Indifferent*Reverse...
) whose simple ranking scheme distinguishes between essential and differentiating attributes related to concepts of customer quality. He is a professor emeritus
Emeritus
Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...
of the Tokyo University of Science
Tokyo University of Science
Tokyo University of Science is a private university of science and technology in Japan...
.
Contributions to quality
In the late 1970s and early 1980s Kano and his colleagues laid the foundation for a new approach to modeling customer satisfactionCustomer satisfaction
Customer satisfaction, a term frequently used in marketing, is a measure of how products and services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectation...
. Kano challenged the conventional beliefs that improving each attribute of a company's product or service will lead to increased customer satisfaction. Kano believed that not all attributes of product or service performance are equal in the eyes of the customer, and that some attributes create higher levels of customer loyalty
Loyalty business model
The loyalty business model is a business model used in strategic management in which company resources are employed so as to increase the loyalty of customers and other stakeholders in the expectation that corporate objectives will be met or surpassed...
than others.
One of his well known books is the Guide to TQM in Service Industries.
Academic achievements, awards and honors
Noriaki Kano completed his undergraduate, masters, and doctoral degrees in the engineering school of the University of TokyoUniversity of Tokyo
, abbreviated as , is a major research university located in Tokyo, Japan. The University has 10 faculties with a total of around 30,000 students, 2,100 of whom are foreign. Its five campuses are in Hongō, Komaba, Kashiwa, Shirokane and Nakano. It is considered to be the most prestigious university...
. He retired from the Tokyo University of Science (TUS) after 35 years in research and education, as a lecturer and associate professor at the University of Electro-Communications
University of Electro-Communications
The is a national university in the city of Chōfu, Tokyo, Japan. It specialises in the disciplines of computer science, the physical sciences, engineering and technology. It was founded in 1918 .-Graduate schools:*Graduate School of Electro-Communications...
and a full professor and head of the Department of Management Science at TUS.
He was the 1997 recipient of the Deming Prize
Deming Prize
The Deming prize, established in December 1950 in honor of W. Edwards Deming, was originally designed to reward Japanese companies for major advances in quality improvement...
for Individuals, administered by the Union of Japanese Scientists and Engineers (JUSE). In 1997 he also received the Deming Lecturer Award of the American Statistical Association; his paper for the annual Deming Lecture was titled "Business Strategies for the 21st Century and Attractive Quality Creation."
Kano is an elected fellow of the American Society for Quality
American Society for Quality
American Society for Quality , formerly known as American Society for Quality Control , is a knowledge-based global community of quality control experts, with nearly 85,000 members dedicated to the promotion and advancement of quality tools, principles, and practices in their workplaces and in...
(ASQ). He was the recipient of two ASQ Medals of Distinction: the E. Jack Lancaster Medal for 2002 and the E. L. Grant Medal for 2007.