Kano Model for Customer Requirements

The Kano model, developed by Noriaki Kano, distinguishes customer requirements by how their presence or absence affects satisfaction — a key input to QFD and product design.

Three requirement categories

Category	If present	If absent	Example
Must-be (Basic)	Neutral — expected	Very dissatisfied	Brakes on a car
One-dimensional (Performance)	More = more satisfied	Less = less satisfied	Battery life on a phone
Delighter (Exciter)	Delighted — unexpected	Neutral — not missed	Heated seats on entry model

Two additional categories

Indifferent: customers don't care either way
Reverse: some customers dislike the feature

Key insight: delighters degrade over time

What is a delighter today becomes a one-dimensional requirement tomorrow, and eventually a must-be. Heated seats were a delighter in the 1990s; today many buyers expect them on mid-range vehicles.

CQE exam tips

Must-be requirements do NOT create satisfaction when met — they only prevent dissatisfaction.
Kano is used as a VOC (Voice of Customer) input to QFD — it prioritizes HOWs in the House of Quality.
Survey questions are paired (functional: "How do you feel if the product has X?" / dysfunctional: "How do you feel if it does NOT have X?").

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