An examination of Juran's Pareto Principle

Dr. J.M. Juran named the Pareto Principle, or commonly known as the 80-20 rule, after he discovered that there is a natural phenomenon that occurs in a group of data where a relative few factors contribute to the bulk of an effect. He coined the phrase the vital few from the trivial many. Dr. J.M. Juran named this important tool after Vilfredo Pareto, a 19th century Italian economist.

A Pareto Analysis can be applied in everyday situations. It is typically used when prioritizing problems, analyzing symptoms, and identifying root causes. It can also be used to check performance after a solution has been implemented to a problem. Jurans Pareto Principle attempts to find patterns that show the highest number of improvement potential with the fewest number of projects or remedies. These vital few offer the greatest gain for the least amount of managerial and investigative effort to assure the highest return on investment. You must focus on these vital few versus the other trivial many factors.

The historical origins and use of this classic quality analysis tool are revealed in this Juran Quality Minute.

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Access this 1-minute, 53-second video by clicking on the link below.