Final answer:
Continuous improvement is the function within an organization aimed at increasing efficiency, reducing waste, and cutting costs. It is distinguished from command-and-control regulation and is often complemented by market-oriented tools to achieve more flexible, cost-effective outcomes.
Step-by-step explanation:
The function within an organization that is focused on ways to increase overall efficiency by reducing waste, improving quality, and reducing costs is known as continuous improvement. This is part of the management process that entails ongoing efforts to improve products, services, or processes. These efforts can seek incremental improvement over time or breakthrough improvement all at once.
Continuous improvement is different from command-and-control regulation, which is a more rigid and uniform approach to managing operations, including environmental regulations. A more dynamic alternative to command-and-control is market-oriented tools, which offer more flexibility and are designed to be more cost-effective by allowing the market to identify the most efficient methods for reducing pollution or waste.