More than 95 percent of all the businesses around the globe are small-and medium-sized (International Organization for Standardization [ISO], 2016). However, the limited resources of small businesses represent a difficulty in implementing a quality management system (QMS) complied with ISO 9001:2015, which is many times demanded by the supply chain of these companies. The object of this research was to develop an artifact, named e-Qualifácil, to access the current stage of the small business' QMS. Using the Design Science Research method, the artifact was built considering the seven guidelines of the Design Science and the five phases of research applied to development cycles of artifacts. e-Qualifácil was tested in three small businesses of discrete manufacturing. For each business, the artifact generated a prioritized list of activities that together represent an action plan for the adequacy of business' process to the requirements of the ISO 9001 standard. In addition, the application process of the artifact pointed out the lack of leadership in planning, formalization and control of quality processes, and technical processes in general. Design Science Research showed up as a good option to include rigor in organizational interventions and a practical tool to strengthening knowledge dissemination.

RESUMONum cenário competitivo, estratégias destinadas à melhoria e à qualidade, se destacam as Ferramentas da Qualidade. Foi realizada uma pesquisa bibliométrica na "Revista Cientifica Eletrônica de Engenharia de Produção" no período de 2002 a 2015 a fim de verificar o interesse da academia nesse tema. O resultado obtido foi comparado com as técnicas da qualidade mais empregadas em uma amostra de micro e pequenas empresas (MPEs). A pesquisa constatou similaridades em ferramentas destinadas ao conhecimento dos processos e de melhoria contínua tais como "Fluxograma" e "Diagrama de Causa e Efeito". As desigualdades mais relevantes estão relacionadas à "Estratificação" e "Histograma", encontradas na publicação científica, porém não na prática.Palavras-chave: Melhoria Contínua, Ferramentas da Qualidade, Gestão da Qualidade, Micro e Pequenas Empresas (MPEs). TOOLS APPLIED TO QUALITY: COMPARATIVE OF LITERATURE AND ACTIONS IN MICRO AND SMALL ENTERPRISES (MSE ABSTRACTIn a competitive environment, strategies for the improvement and quality stand out which are called Quality Tools. A bibliometric research in the "Journal of Scientific Electronic Production Engineering" in the period 2002-2015 in order to ascertain the interest of academia on this issue was held. The result was compared with quality techniques most used in a micro sample and small enterprises (MSE). The research found similarities in tools for the understanding of the processes and continuous improvement such as "Flowchart" and "Diagram of Cause and Effect". The most significant inequalities are related to "Stratification" and "Histogram", found in scientific publication, but not in practice.