【正确答案】In business management, quality circles improve work efficiency by giving workers a say in organizing work and production rather than just fulfilling their own duties. The example the professor gives is of a car company.
According to the lecture, a car company was almost ready to go bankrupt. So the CEO was changed. And the new executive officer organized staff into small groups to find problems in each stage of the production process and get them solved. For example, the headlights of the car were weak, so the staff designed a brighter one right away. With numbers of such little improvements, the quality circle approach had shown its worth, the car had become popular, and sales had been boosted.

【答案解析】[听力原文]
M: The book sounds as if quality circles were a totally unique innovation. In fact the idea has been around for a long time. But how do these groups actually work? Look right here in this city.
Less than a decade ago, a car corporation was almost bankrupt. Under a new CEO and at the union's urging, they organized all staff into quality circles or small groups with a supervisor in each one. The groups were tasked with finding inefficiencies in production and eliminating mistakes. A further mission was to suggest improvements in the car's design as well.
As a result, some members soon corrected problems that never seemed to get solved such as weak headlights. Until, that is, quality circles were formed. Within a few weeks they had licked all the problems! This made the cars more popular, increased sales, and is just one of dozens of little improvements that have helped save time and make more profits for the company and thus save the company from possible bankruptcy.