In his October 2011 blog post ASQ CEO Paul Borawski asks, “How is it that you came to be passionate about quality?” and “How will you help in your country to observe and celebrate the importance of quality?”.
I thought I would share my story in a home video created on my Flip Video™ Camcorder and edited using Camtasia Studio software.
ASQ recently announced the new World Quality Month website: http://asq.org/world-quality-month/index.html. November is designated as a worldwide celebration of quality – a time to showcase the advancements and valuable quality contributions in businesses, communities and institutions. Visit this site often to learn about quality tools and techniques, heroes and the stories of quality in practice everyday, and World Quality Month events.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Sunday, October 09, 2011
Quality and Business Performance Achieved Through Constancy of Purpose
In the September 2011 posting to A View from the Q, ASQ's Managing Director Laurel Nelson-Rowe asks, "Do you think companies must sometimes (often? regularly?) undergo radical organizational change or substantial economic shifts to get back to the rigorous quality systems?" I recently completed my annual Baldrige Evaluator refresher training for the MN State Quality Award. I believe that the Baldrige Criteria contain all the elements necessary and sufficient for sustainable organizational success. The Criteria are based on key learnings adopted and synthesized from role model organizations in the following 7 categories:
During Laurel Nelson-Rowe's interview with Terry Woychowski, GM's VP of Global Quality & Launch, Terry shared the 3 P's of GM's emerging culture: Promise, Personal, and Performance. I agree that quality is personal. Personal accountability is enabled through an engaged workforce. Effective leaders understand the need to monitor and improve employee satisfaction and build employee engagement. Delivering the Promise is achieved through personal accountability, teamwork and aligned processes. One can often accurately assess process performance, product quality and organizational health by a site visit. For example, evidence of poor housekeeping or unsafe practices are often symptomatic of uncontrolled processes, lack of personal accountability and ineffective leadership. If an organization lacks respect for its employees, (or individuals for their peers and colleagues) then what am I to infer about its/their commitment to quality processes, products, or service?
Though I am an unabashed Ford man, I sincerely wish GM a successful comeback and sustained performance. The automotive industry is a bell-weather of the US economy.
- Leadership (120 pts)
- Strategic Planning (85 pts)
- Customer Focus (85 pts)
- Measurement, Analysis, and Knowledge Management (90 pts)
- Workforce Focus (85 pts)
- Operations Focus (85 pts)
- Results (450 pts).
During Laurel Nelson-Rowe's interview with Terry Woychowski, GM's VP of Global Quality & Launch, Terry shared the 3 P's of GM's emerging culture: Promise, Personal, and Performance. I agree that quality is personal. Personal accountability is enabled through an engaged workforce. Effective leaders understand the need to monitor and improve employee satisfaction and build employee engagement. Delivering the Promise is achieved through personal accountability, teamwork and aligned processes. One can often accurately assess process performance, product quality and organizational health by a site visit. For example, evidence of poor housekeeping or unsafe practices are often symptomatic of uncontrolled processes, lack of personal accountability and ineffective leadership. If an organization lacks respect for its employees, (or individuals for their peers and colleagues) then what am I to infer about its/their commitment to quality processes, products, or service?
Though I am an unabashed Ford man, I sincerely wish GM a successful comeback and sustained performance. The automotive industry is a bell-weather of the US economy.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Baldrige Blues
The U.S. Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Commerce, Justice and Science recently voted not to fund the Baldrige Program for fiscal year 2012. Everyone agrees that the U.S. Government must drastically cut its spending to reduce our national debt. However, not all spending is the same; not all dollar-for-dollar cuts are equal. The Baldrige Program costs just $10M per year; its return on investment is estimated at $25B in benefits to the U.S. economy. I agree with Paul Borawski that model programs such as Baldrige ought to be "showcased not eliminated."
The Baldrige Program is a proven systemic management framework helping organizations achieve performance excellence. Senior leaders use the Baldrige Criteria to build and sustain an organization focused on continual performance improvement, accomplishment of strategic objectives, innovation, and organizational agility. In today's world of a recessionary global economy, low growth and a highly erratic stock market many organizations lack the confidence to hire for growth. Spending is again significantly curtailed in order to preserve cash, similar to what we experienced in 2009 when Cash was King.
What is needed now is a roadmap to growth and profitability; a framework that is the Baldrige Program. Given today's economic environment, businesses need to remember the key teachings of the Deming Chain Cycle: do not pursue cost reduction for cost savings sake; rather, focus on delivering customer value through quality and productivity improvement. Institutionalize constancy of purpose and view quality as a competitive strategy. Customer-focused quality improvement will result in less waste and scrap, improved productivity, lower costs, increased customer satisfaction, more market share, more growth... and more jobs.
I encourage everyone to contact your elected government officials to save - and expand - the Baldrige Program.
The Baldrige Program is a proven systemic management framework helping organizations achieve performance excellence. Senior leaders use the Baldrige Criteria to build and sustain an organization focused on continual performance improvement, accomplishment of strategic objectives, innovation, and organizational agility. In today's world of a recessionary global economy, low growth and a highly erratic stock market many organizations lack the confidence to hire for growth. Spending is again significantly curtailed in order to preserve cash, similar to what we experienced in 2009 when Cash was King.
What is needed now is a roadmap to growth and profitability; a framework that is the Baldrige Program. Given today's economic environment, businesses need to remember the key teachings of the Deming Chain Cycle: do not pursue cost reduction for cost savings sake; rather, focus on delivering customer value through quality and productivity improvement. Institutionalize constancy of purpose and view quality as a competitive strategy. Customer-focused quality improvement will result in less waste and scrap, improved productivity, lower costs, increased customer satisfaction, more market share, more growth... and more jobs.
I encourage everyone to contact your elected government officials to save - and expand - the Baldrige Program.
Monday, September 05, 2011
Quality - Past and Present
In his latest blog post Paul Borawski asks two questions pertaining to the past and future of quality and ASQ.
Does the quality community bear some responsibility for making sure its philosophic foundations are not lost to history?
As a Certified Manager of Quality / Organizational Excellence (CQM/OE) and a Certified Quality Engineer (CQE), I always felt that ASQ over-emphasized the importance of being able to match the Quality guru with his contributions to quality philosophy in its certification exams. Quality philosophy, principles, tools and methods are bedrock. In this age of the internet, powerful search engines exist that provide almost instantaneous global access to man's acquired, accumulated knowledge. Social and professional networking tools such as wiki's, websites, webinars, Facebook, LinkedIn, blogs, microblogs, etc., offer unlimited access to case studies, best practices, benchmarking, discussion boards, tools, templates, and global collaboration with knowledge experts. In addition, there are numerous, prestigious awards that honor and perpetuate the memory and philosophy of the quality gurus. More important, I believe, is ASQ's role and value proposition to couple and disseminate quality theory, philosophy, and principles with continuous improvement methods and tools, organizational and project management skills, team dynamics and interpersonal communication skills, change management, leadership principles, and organizational design to empower individuals and organizations to achieve excellence. Knowledge of what to do, and how to do it are only part of any solution. A good plan poorly executed is no better than no plan at all. Flawless execution is what separates the winners from the losers; and, execution requires more than just an understanding of how to use a tool.
What do professionals under the age of 35 see as the future of quality?
I am not a member of this demographic, but my role in 3M has me teaching, coaching and consulting many younger professionals as well as seasoned experts. In more recent classroom discussions of "Quality" many of the younger professionals cite customer focus, defect-free features, entitlement thinking, reliability, speed, and end-to-end value stream performance. Definitions of Quality range from the traditional "Conformance to Requirements" (Crosby), "Fitness for Use" (Juran), "Delight the Customer", "Loss to Society"(Taguchi), etc. but on a more personal level I hear phrases like service, community, social responsibility and sustainability.
Does the quality community bear some responsibility for making sure its philosophic foundations are not lost to history?
As a Certified Manager of Quality / Organizational Excellence (CQM/OE) and a Certified Quality Engineer (CQE), I always felt that ASQ over-emphasized the importance of being able to match the Quality guru with his contributions to quality philosophy in its certification exams. Quality philosophy, principles, tools and methods are bedrock. In this age of the internet, powerful search engines exist that provide almost instantaneous global access to man's acquired, accumulated knowledge. Social and professional networking tools such as wiki's, websites, webinars, Facebook, LinkedIn, blogs, microblogs, etc., offer unlimited access to case studies, best practices, benchmarking, discussion boards, tools, templates, and global collaboration with knowledge experts. In addition, there are numerous, prestigious awards that honor and perpetuate the memory and philosophy of the quality gurus. More important, I believe, is ASQ's role and value proposition to couple and disseminate quality theory, philosophy, and principles with continuous improvement methods and tools, organizational and project management skills, team dynamics and interpersonal communication skills, change management, leadership principles, and organizational design to empower individuals and organizations to achieve excellence. Knowledge of what to do, and how to do it are only part of any solution. A good plan poorly executed is no better than no plan at all. Flawless execution is what separates the winners from the losers; and, execution requires more than just an understanding of how to use a tool.
What do professionals under the age of 35 see as the future of quality?
I am not a member of this demographic, but my role in 3M has me teaching, coaching and consulting many younger professionals as well as seasoned experts. In more recent classroom discussions of "Quality" many of the younger professionals cite customer focus, defect-free features, entitlement thinking, reliability, speed, and end-to-end value stream performance. Definitions of Quality range from the traditional "Conformance to Requirements" (Crosby), "Fitness for Use" (Juran), "Delight the Customer", "Loss to Society"(Taguchi), etc. but on a more personal level I hear phrases like service, community, social responsibility and sustainability.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Creating a Culture of Accountability to Drive Statistical Thinking
Peter Drucker, famed management consultant, is credited to have been the first to say, "Culture eats strategy for breakfast". I frequently recommend the book Journey to Emerald City by Roger Conners in organizations I am involved with, to help the leadership team understand their role in driving change. This book was written in 1999 and is just as relevant today as it was 12 years ago. (http://www.amazon.com/Journey-Emerald-City-Roger-Connors/dp/073520358X)
Albert Einstein stated that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. If we want to create a customer focused, statistical thinking, run-to-target culture, our leaders and key influencers ("key hubs" - the hidden organization - http://www.keyhubs.com/) must not just give casual lip service to run-to-target expectations in presentations and reviews, but must model the desired behaiors. They must create the experiences that will change beliefs and actions (accountability) to deliver the expected results. For example, managers and leaders must end the practice of reacting to two data points; instead, look for patterns, trends and shifts in the data, then investigate for deeper root causes. Management, leaders and key hubs must model this practice in their day to day activities.
Roger Conners writes, "Getting people to take the right action is not accomplished by command and control, rather by engaging their hearts and minds in fulfiling the purpose of the organization... Ernest Hemingway said never to mistake motion for action. Motion produces activity. Action produces results... The distinction between motion and action underscores the need to have people assume accountability for producing results." Roger Conners further explains the four steps to accountability as: See It, Own It, Solve It, and Do It, and in his book Journey to the Emerald City, Roger Conners illustrates how the main characters in The Wizard of Oz apply the Steps to Accountability representing Above the Line actions and thinking versus Below the Line habits of thought and behavior.
Personal Accountability is the central message in John G. Miller's book QBQ! Question Behind the Question. (http://qbq.com/). Personal Accountability means avoiding the blame game and not playing the victim.
Miller offers three simple guidelines for asking better questions. He says that QBQ's:
Albert Einstein stated that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. If we want to create a customer focused, statistical thinking, run-to-target culture, our leaders and key influencers ("key hubs" - the hidden organization - http://www.keyhubs.com/) must not just give casual lip service to run-to-target expectations in presentations and reviews, but must model the desired behaiors. They must create the experiences that will change beliefs and actions (accountability) to deliver the expected results. For example, managers and leaders must end the practice of reacting to two data points; instead, look for patterns, trends and shifts in the data, then investigate for deeper root causes. Management, leaders and key hubs must model this practice in their day to day activities.
Roger Conners writes, "Getting people to take the right action is not accomplished by command and control, rather by engaging their hearts and minds in fulfiling the purpose of the organization... Ernest Hemingway said never to mistake motion for action. Motion produces activity. Action produces results... The distinction between motion and action underscores the need to have people assume accountability for producing results." Roger Conners further explains the four steps to accountability as: See It, Own It, Solve It, and Do It, and in his book Journey to the Emerald City, Roger Conners illustrates how the main characters in The Wizard of Oz apply the Steps to Accountability representing Above the Line actions and thinking versus Below the Line habits of thought and behavior.
Personal Accountability is the central message in John G. Miller's book QBQ! Question Behind the Question. (http://qbq.com/). Personal Accountability means avoiding the blame game and not playing the victim.
Miller offers three simple guidelines for asking better questions. He says that QBQ's:
- begin with "What" or "How" (not "Why," "When," or "Who");
- contain an "I" (not "they," "them," "we," or "you");
- focus on action.
Where have you seen good examples of managers and leaders modeling the behavior of statstical thinking?
Sunday, August 07, 2011
Do You Have "Good" Inventory, or "Bad" Inventory?
Imagine Glinda the Good Witch of the North (Wizard of Oz movie) observing your current value stream when she encounters piles of inventory. To each inventory bucket she would ask, "Are you good inventory or bad inventory?" Not all inventory is equally bad; some inventory is necessary given the current lack of flow and synchronization in your end-to-end value stream. Lean principles and industrial engineering tell us that inventory is an outcome of a lack of speed; and, eliminating inventory frees up cash that can otherwise be used more effectively elsewhere in your organization to generate growth. Unfortunately, many process improvement teams erroneously treat inventory as a critical 'x' in their Lean Six Sigma projects to improve value stream performance. As a result many improvement teams focus on reducing the piles of incoming materials and/or finished goods inventory - by working with their supplier base to adopt vendor managed inventory, and/or working with their customers to try to improve forecast accuracy and/or extend the acceptable lead time. Unfortunately, the financial benefits are often short-lived because these improvements did not address the lack of stability and flow in the organization's value stream. Nor did the earlier changes address the culture of the organization that fundamentally accepts inventory as a necessary cost of business.
Instead, treat inventory is an outcome ('Y'). Speed - the lack of it - is a critical 'x'. A focus on speed will transform the value stream. To become faster the value stream capability and stability must be improved. Flow cannot be sustained in an unstable, unpredictable environment. Increased speed results in increased productivity, yield, quality and reliability, improved product availability, predictable service levels, additional capacity for growth, and improved cash flow.
Speed can be improved through the removal of non-value-add work, fewer touches, elimination of waste, smaller batch sizes and shorter production run lengths, quicker changeovers. Inventory, when needed (e.g. due to lack of synchronization), now can be moved upstream where it is less expensive and more flexible. So, if your value stream has excess inventory, Speed is the yellow brick road to your Emerald City.
Instead, treat inventory is an outcome ('Y'). Speed - the lack of it - is a critical 'x'. A focus on speed will transform the value stream. To become faster the value stream capability and stability must be improved. Flow cannot be sustained in an unstable, unpredictable environment. Increased speed results in increased productivity, yield, quality and reliability, improved product availability, predictable service levels, additional capacity for growth, and improved cash flow.
Speed can be improved through the removal of non-value-add work, fewer touches, elimination of waste, smaller batch sizes and shorter production run lengths, quicker changeovers. Inventory, when needed (e.g. due to lack of synchronization), now can be moved upstream where it is less expensive and more flexible. So, if your value stream has excess inventory, Speed is the yellow brick road to your Emerald City.
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Putting Quality in its Rightful Place
ASQ's Paul Borawski recently had the privilege of interviewing Tata Group's Dr. J.J. Irani about its quality journey to excellence. Tata Group's quality journey began in the late 1980's with the adoption of Joseph Juran's quality improvement methodology, then embraced the Malcolm Baldrige criteria in the 1990's. Dr. Irani states that every organization must have a Quality System - and it must be institutionalized throughout its operations. "A quality management system is the DNA of an organization; Quality is in everything we do.. it is our culture" states Dr. Irani.
Paul Borawski asks, "I find hope in the wisdom of Dr. Irani , and ask myself—and you—how can we, you and I, and ASQ, raise the voice of Dr. Irani and other enlightened leaders to put quality in its rightful place in every organization and in our communities?
I attended the Pittsburgh WCQI and heard Dr. Irani's keynote address. To be honest, I was underwhelmed by his presentation. While Dr. Irani brings solid credentials, and exhibited sincerity and genuine authenticity, his laid back style lacked that certain pizzazz - or what marketers call "Pop". However, upon returning to my office and browsing the internet, I became very impressed by Tata Group. Tata's tagline is, "Leadership with Trust." Tata Group's website states their principle purpose is "To improve the quality of life of the communities it serves". Dr. Irani stated that Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is not a cost, it is an investment, built on trust, transparency, governance and ethics. Tata Group's quality philosophy is a model for every enterprise.
Which brings me back to Paul Borawski's question / challenge: How can we raise the voice of Dr. Irani and other enlightened leaders to put quality in its rightful place in every organization? Tata Group's quality journey is on its 4th decade of continuous improvement. How many other organizations or communities have that type of staying power, that level of constancy of purpose? My initial reaction to Dr. Irani's WCQI presentation was rather subdued because I was expecting something more flamboyant, more polished, more entertaining. Yet Tata Group's quality story is very compelling indeed. I posit that this need to be entertained, given our rather short attention spans are an indictment of our fast paced society, where change is accelerating exponentially. So, how do we capture the hearts and minds of the C-Suite to elevate quality?
First, we must always remember to speak the language of management... money.
Second, we must demonstrate the direct relationship between quality and Social Responsibility - by focusing on the elimination of waste.
Third, executives learn best by collaborating with their peers and their bosses. The ASQ Executive Roundtable is an excellent forum that brings Enterprise member organizations together to discuss common challenges and share best practices. The local MN ASQ Section recently completed its 3 year Long Range Planning session. One of its outcomes is to develop an Executive Roundtable of Quality Directors and leaders from all sectors of the local economy to collect VOC and match organizational needs with products and services - whether provided by ASQ or our partners. In addition, we (quality professionals) must forge new alliances and partnerships with organizations that cater to the C-Suite; organizations like The Conference Board. The Conference Board is a global, independent business membership and research association working in the public interest to help its member companies understand and deal with the most critical issues of our time.
Fourth, knowledge is increasing exponentially. C-suite executives do not have time to peruse all of the journals and other sources of knowledge sharing on their own. The Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award showcases "role model" organizations in every sector of the economy. However, recent budget discussions in the US Congress puts government funding support the Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award at severe risk. We must find new, innovative ways to keep the Baldrige Criteria alive, and increase its relevance to the executive. Perhaps incorporate it into the MBA body of knowledge?
Paul Borawski asks, "I find hope in the wisdom of Dr. Irani , and ask myself—and you—how can we, you and I, and ASQ, raise the voice of Dr. Irani and other enlightened leaders to put quality in its rightful place in every organization and in our communities?
I attended the Pittsburgh WCQI and heard Dr. Irani's keynote address. To be honest, I was underwhelmed by his presentation. While Dr. Irani brings solid credentials, and exhibited sincerity and genuine authenticity, his laid back style lacked that certain pizzazz - or what marketers call "Pop". However, upon returning to my office and browsing the internet, I became very impressed by Tata Group. Tata's tagline is, "Leadership with Trust." Tata Group's website states their principle purpose is "To improve the quality of life of the communities it serves". Dr. Irani stated that Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is not a cost, it is an investment, built on trust, transparency, governance and ethics. Tata Group's quality philosophy is a model for every enterprise.
Which brings me back to Paul Borawski's question / challenge: How can we raise the voice of Dr. Irani and other enlightened leaders to put quality in its rightful place in every organization? Tata Group's quality journey is on its 4th decade of continuous improvement. How many other organizations or communities have that type of staying power, that level of constancy of purpose? My initial reaction to Dr. Irani's WCQI presentation was rather subdued because I was expecting something more flamboyant, more polished, more entertaining. Yet Tata Group's quality story is very compelling indeed. I posit that this need to be entertained, given our rather short attention spans are an indictment of our fast paced society, where change is accelerating exponentially. So, how do we capture the hearts and minds of the C-Suite to elevate quality?
First, we must always remember to speak the language of management... money.
Second, we must demonstrate the direct relationship between quality and Social Responsibility - by focusing on the elimination of waste.
Third, executives learn best by collaborating with their peers and their bosses. The ASQ Executive Roundtable is an excellent forum that brings Enterprise member organizations together to discuss common challenges and share best practices. The local MN ASQ Section recently completed its 3 year Long Range Planning session. One of its outcomes is to develop an Executive Roundtable of Quality Directors and leaders from all sectors of the local economy to collect VOC and match organizational needs with products and services - whether provided by ASQ or our partners. In addition, we (quality professionals) must forge new alliances and partnerships with organizations that cater to the C-Suite; organizations like The Conference Board. The Conference Board is a global, independent business membership and research association working in the public interest to help its member companies understand and deal with the most critical issues of our time.
Fourth, knowledge is increasing exponentially. C-suite executives do not have time to peruse all of the journals and other sources of knowledge sharing on their own. The Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award showcases "role model" organizations in every sector of the economy. However, recent budget discussions in the US Congress puts government funding support the Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award at severe risk. We must find new, innovative ways to keep the Baldrige Criteria alive, and increase its relevance to the executive. Perhaps incorporate it into the MBA body of knowledge?
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