Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs – September, 2020

Welcome to September 2020 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

For the year 2020, we have chosen the core subject of Revisiting Basic Quality Concepts w.r.t. the sustained success of the organization As of now we have visited

• History of Quality in January 2020
• The Sustained Success of Organization in February 2020
• Organizational Context in March 2020
• Understanding Needs and Expectations of the Interested Parties in April 2020
• Risk Based Approach in May 2020
• Opportunity Based Approach in June 2020
• The Organizational Knowledge for the Sustained Success in July 2020
• Competent people for the sustained organizational success in August 2020

We take up Process Management for Sustained Success as our next core concept this month–

The importance of process as the fundamental block of every management systems of an organization is now universally accepted.

Unfortunately, ‘process’ is normally seen with a narrow utilitarian concept of the tool for managing the set of related activities. At best, it is considered a link in chain of different processes that makes up the management system. As result, many times its usefulness in in continually improving the effectiveness and efficiency of the organization’s performance also is underplayed.

The organizational knowledge that is inherently stored process management gets locked up in either the dusty files or on the huge database servers, behind well protected ‘security’ locks. This traditional approach to the process management falls short on fundamental process management requirements as a live vehicle to carry the organizational knowledge:[1]

These limitations help in providing the road map of a process management platform can help you prioritize process excellence and set your organization on the road to greater success.[2]

The stages of development in the ISO standard 9004 reflects the changing emphasis of importance of process management as a tool to attain sustained success. From being a set of guidelines for improved performance, it became guidelines for process improvement, and then process improvement itself became the approach to manage the sustained success, and now links it to the quality of the organization for achieving sustained success.

The Clause 8 relates process management of organization’s core and support processes behind the scenes of an organisation’s sustained success. This creates a system in which the needs and expectations of interested parties thrive in the vibrant quality of an organisation. The Quality of organization being now defined as “the degree to which the inherent characteristics of the organisation fulfill the needs and expectations of its customers and other interested parties, in order to achieve sustained success”.

The 2018 edition of the standard recognizes that by developing the leading KPIs that are linked to the organization’s dynamically changing context w.r.t. the needs and expectations of its customers and other relevant interested parties,  “Organisations deliver value through activities connected within a network of processes.”[3]

The detailed note on Process Management for Sustained Success can be accessed by clicking on the hyperlink.

We will now turn to our regular sections:

In the series the Organizational Culture, we have taken up Measuring Organizational Culture – Measurement of organizational culture acts as guide to the roadmap for improving culture and the performance through better decisions, by more engaged people and more cohesive culture leads to improved performance .

We now watch ASQ TV, wherein we look at a relevant video from the archive:

• What is the Baldrige Program? – The Baldrige Program was established in 1987 to encourage American organizations to practice effective quality control in the provision of goods and services so they could better compete in a demanding global market.

To learn more about the Baldrige Excellence Program Click Here.

From Jim L. Smith’s Jim’s Gems this month we have picked up one article

• Advantages of Wait Time and what we do with that time. You can either keep fuming and fretting or regard this as gift of time. In the latter case, this can be gainfully utilized to perform something which was being postponed because of ‘lack of time’ – be it develop possible solutions to till now unresolved problems, plan (revise) day’s to-do-list, or just creatively relax and recharge your batteries. The possibilities are endless, in fact limited by your own determination and imagination. But there is no doubt that this is THE time to create a better life for you and the others you influence

 I look forward to your views / comments / inputs to further enrich the subjects of Basics of Quality and Organizational Culture and their role in Creating and Maintaining Sustained Success.

Note: The images depicted here above are through courtesy of respective websites who have the copyrights for the respective images.

[1] 5 Key Factors to Creating Successful, Sustainable Process Management – Ivan Seseji

[2] 5 ways process management can drive sustainable success

[3] Achieving sustained success with ISO 9004:2018 – Hope Kiwekete

Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs – August, 2020

Welcome to August 2020 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

For the year 2020, we have chosen the core subject of Revisiting Basic Quality Concepts w.r.t. the sustained success of the organization As of now we have visited

• History of Quality in January 2020
• The Sustained Success of Organization in February 2020
• Organizational Context in March 2020
• Understanding Needs and Expectations of the Interested Parties in April 2020
• Risk Based Approach in May 2020
• Opportunity Based Approach in June 2020
• The Organizational Knowledge for the Sustained Success in July 2020

We take up Competent people for the sustained organizational success as our next core concept this month–

Competence is the set of demonstrable characteristics and skills that enable, and improve the efficiency or performance of a job… To be competent a person would need to be able to interpret the situation in the context and to have a repertoire of possible actions to take and have been trained in the possible actions in the repertoire, if this is relevant. Regardless of training, competency would grow through experience and the extent of an individual’s capacity to learn and adapt.[1]

In order to fill this gap, a list of 14 organizational and people characteristics that can be grouped into five broad dimensions is compiled, which can lead to sustained performance by driving organizational and people capabilities. .

High-performance organizations are effective at translating their business strategy into a compelling people strategy. [2]

The key to creating a vibrant and sustainable company is to find ways to get all employees—from top executives to assembly line workers—personally engaged in day-to-day corporate sustainability efforts… A company can implement eight practices to help bridge the distance between an employee’s personal values and a company’s business practices, to create a competent people platform for the sustainable company. [3]

Meanwhile, persistent uncertainty, a multigenerational workforce, and a shorter shelf life for knowledge have placed a premium on reskilling and upskilling. The shift to a digital, knowledge-based economy means that a vibrant workforce is more important than ever, and have elevated the importance of the learning-and-development (L&D) function.

One of L&D’s primary responsibilities is to manage the development of people—and to do so in a way that supports other key business priorities. L&D’s strategic role spans five areas –

Over the years, nine dimensions have been identified and field-tested that contribute to a strong L&D function. These dimensions are combined to create the ACADEMIES framework, which covers all aspects of L&D functions, from setting aspirations to measuring impact.[4]

Four things standout to prioritize people in times of crisis[5]

• First is the importance of prioritizing people, in terms of getting out, demonstrating empathy, and engaging with people to understand what their concerns are.
• Second would be the importance of creating clarity on what matters most. From a leadership perspective, giving some sense of certainty and hope is important to navigate the crisis.
• Third is the need to be responsive and fluid to the dynamics of an evolving crisis.
• And the final one is the importance of gaining perspective. Early on in a crisis, it can be easy to get tunnel vision and to focus on managing what’s in front of your nose. But the earlier that you can find a means of stepping back and seeing the bigger picture, and pushing out the time horizon of that perspective, the better. That will allow you to sense what’s coming and get ready for what’s around the corner.

The punch line is that the people need to be competent enough to address the challenges of the future successfully within the context of present, rapidly changing business scenario..

Additional Reading:

• Competencies That Work for Business © Development Dimensions International, Inc., 2015.

The detailed note on Competent people for the sustained organizational success can by clicking on the hyperlink.

We will now turn to our regular sections:

In the series the Organizational Culture, we have taken up Understanding the Organizational Culture – As anthropologist Margaret Mead states, “What people say, what people do, and what they say they do are entirely different things.”. They have a tendency to focus on “The way we say we get things done” and don’t focus on “The way we really get things done”, what is normally known as what’s below the organizations surface.[6]

We now watch ASQ TV, wherein we look at a relevant video from the archive:

• Process Needs a Culture – Tony Kern’s keynote address at the 2014 ASQ Lean and Six Sigma Conference

From Jim L. Smith’s Jim’s Gems this month we have picked up one article

• Core DNA – Values, ethics and integrity are the three attributes to achieve cultural excellence – Core DNA values act as guideposts to appropriate business behavior. Creating value requires the courage to have fierce conversations intended to help the business progress. The focus on values includes a desire to win and envisioning the future—not whining and wallowing in the past…. As an organization evolves, so do its core values… To create sustainable business value that will endure for decades, organizations must set standards and then abide by those codes. … A common myth is that an organization cannot simultaneously increase sales, protect its interests and be ethically sound…. However, by creating a standard set of ethical guidelines, organizations are laying the groundwork to protect their interests. While gains are not always quantifiable in the short term, these organizations will be building a foundation of prosperity for years to come….To be successful, organizations must synchronize values with desired outcomes… Ethics should be at the core of what makes a business run.

I look forward to your views / comments / inputs to further enrich the subjects of Basics of Quality and Organizational Culture and their role in Creating and Maintaining Sustained Success.

Note: The images depicted here above are through courtesy of respective websites who have the copyrights for the respective images.

[1] Competence

[2] High Performance organizations By Vikram Bhalla, Jean-Michel Caye, Andrew Dyer, Lisa Dymond, Yves Morieux, and Paul Orlander

[3] Engaging Employees to Create a Sustainable Business By Paul Polman & CB Bhattacharya

[4] The essential components of a successful L&D strategy By Jacqueline Brassey, Lisa Christensen, and Nick van Dam

[5] Prioritize people in times of crisis: An interview with Mike Henry, the CEO of BHP

[6] What have the invisible man and the organizational culture in common

Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs – July 2020

Welcome to July 2020 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

For the year 2020, we have chosen the core subject of Revisiting Basic Quality Concepts w.r.t. the sustained success of the organization As of now we have visited

• History of Quality in January 2020
• The Sustained Success of Organization in February 2020
• Organizational Context in March 2020
• Understanding Needs and Expectations of the Interested Parties in April 2020
• Risk Based Approach in May 2020
• Opportunity Based Approach in June 2020

We take up The Organizational Knowledge for the Sustained Success as our next core concept this month–

Auditing Practices Group Guidance on: Organisational Knowledge, ISO & IAF (2016) defines organizational knowledge as “Organizational Knowledge is the specific knowledge of the organization, coming either from its collective experience or from the individual experience of its persons. In an explicit or implicit way this knowledge is, or can be, used to attain the organization’s objectives.”

The two important features that emerge from this definition are:

Firstly, ‘knowledge’ is an important resource.

Secondly,  ‘Organizational Knowledge‘ is an asset that we cannot quantify

The two basic ways to classify the organizational knowledge are –

Tacit knowledge: This knowledge is often referred to as the ‘know-how’ that exists in an organisation.

Examples of tacit knowledge include skills acquired through tradition, common knowledge or understanding, etc.

Explicit knowledge – Explicit knowledge is the ‘know-what’ knowledge that has been formalized, articulated and most often documented.

Examples of explicit knowledge include databases, memos, notes, documents, etc.

Some more classifications are also applied:

• Implicit knowledge is ‘knowledge’ that can be articulated but has not yet been articulated.
• Procedural knowledge is ‘knowledge’ that manifests itself through an activity.
• Declarative knowledge is ‘knowledge’ that consists of descriptions of facts and things or methods and procedures.
• Strategic knowledge is the ‘knowledge’ of when to do something and why to do it.[1]

In general, the following are the Sources of Knowledge:

Knowledge can be found almost anywhere in your organization and comes in many tangible and intangible forms. For example:

• Individual—These are good sources of tacit knowledge.
• Group/Community— These are good sources of explicit, implicit, and tacit knowledge.
• Structural—These are sources of implicit knowledge.
• Organizational memory—These are good sources for a combination of tacit and explicit knowledge.

The knowledge is generally captured in the following Repositories of Knowledge

• Documentation of any kind
• Internal knowledge bases
• Customer-facing knowledge bases
• FAQs
• Intranets
• Onboarding materials
• Training materials
• Webinars
• Case studies

Other repositories can include:

• Databases
• Internal collaboration tools
• Ticketing systems
• Wikis/communities/forums[2]

Knowledge Model is represented as:

Knowledge Transfer is visualized as:[3]

The benefits of knowledge sharing are numerous[4]:

• Knowledge overcomes fear
• Knowledge breaks down barriers & facilitates communication
• Seeing the “Big Picture” reinforces that we’re all in this together.
• Knowledge reveals the reasons behind the actions
• Knowledge leads to intelligent decisions.
• Knowledge is motivating and empowering
• Knowledge encourages involvement & breeds a feeling of ownership –
• Knowledge creates opportunities –

Three key reasons why actively managing knowledge is important to a company’s success are[5]:

• Facilitates decision-making capabilities,
• Builds learning organizations by making learning routine, and,
• Stimulates cultural change and innovation.

While most business leaders appreciate the strategic value of knowledge and the need to manage their knowledge assets, many of them seem unable to derive real benefits from their efforts. There are several reasons for this, including their persistence in viewing knowledge management (KM) as a supply-side issue, namely their belief that the acquisition of the right knowledge automatically produces benefits. Other reasons that benefits don’t materialize include a lack of focus on KM initiatives; a staggering over reliance on technology to provide both the solution and the benefit; structures that are inappropriate for capitalizing on an organization’s knowledge assets; and lastly, a lack of proper ownership[6].

An effective knowledge management strategy enables an organization to create, apply, and share information, breaking down silos and increasing usage of valuable data. The right strategy sustains organizational objectives as technologies evolve, keeps companies on the bleeding edge of industry trends, and pushing one step ahead of the competition at all times.[7]

Suggested Additional Reading:

• Organizational Knowledge – NSF International
• ISO 30401:2018 – Knowledge management systems – Requirements
• The Journey: Achieving Sustained Organizational Success – By Charles A. Cianfrani, Isaac Sheps, John E. (Jack) West

The detailed note on The Organizational Knowledge for the Sustained Success can by clicking on the hyperlink.

We will now turn to our regular sections:

In the series the Organizational Culture, we have taken up Building The Organizational Culture –

We now watch ASQ TV, wherein we look at a few relevant videos from the archive:

• Culture Of Quality – explains 3 Ps – Proximity, Persuasion and Position- and 3 Cs – Connectivity, Clarity and Consistency.
• Creating and Sustaining a Culture of Quality – this episode we dig deeper into transforming the organizational culture into a culture of quality and a simple [A3] communications tool that can help create a culture of quality.

We do not have relevant article from Jim L. Smith’s Jim’s Gems this month.So we move on to  –

The Unfolding Course of Events – Looking to the past provides some perspective.by Michelle Bangert . “It is not given to human beings—happily for them, for otherwise life would be intolerable—to foresee or to predict to any large extent the unfolding course of events.” – Winston Churchill from his eulogy for Neville Chamberlain, November 12, 1940. – is a quote from the Erik Larson’s book The Splendid and the Vile, wherein the author has presented in the cinematic detail, how Churchill taught the British people “the art of being fearless.”

I look forward to your views / comments / inputs to further enrich the subjects of Basics of Quality and Organizational Culture and their role in Creating and Maintaining Sustained Success.

Note: The images depicted here above are through courtesy of respective websites who have the copyrights for the respective images.

[1] What is Organisational Knowledge and why is it so important?

[2] What Is Organizational Knowledge, and Where Can I Find It? – Emil Hajric

[3] A MODEL FRAMEWORK FOR MEASURING ORGANIZATIONAL INTANGIBLE ASSETS – Sudhir Warier

[4] 7 reasons – Organizational Knowledge is power – Donna Coppock

[5] Why Knowledge Management Is Important To The Success Of Your Company – Lisa Quast

[6] KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT AS A SUSTAINED COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE – Peter Murray

[7] The Competitive Advantage of the Right Knowledge Management Solution

Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs – June 2020

Welcome to June 2020 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

For the year 2020, we have chosen the core subject of Revisiting Basic Quality Concepts w.r.t. the sustained success of the organization As of now we have visited

• History of Quality in January 2020
• The Sustained Success of Organization in February 2020
• Organizational Context in March 2020
• Understanding Needs and Expectations of the Interested Parties in April 2020
• Risk Based Approach in May 2020

We take up Opportunity Based Approach as our next core concept this month–

One key area of recent development in the risk-based thinking is the inclusion of opportunity in the definition of risk, with a resulting broadening of the scope of the risk process to manage the uncertainty in both upside and downside proactively. Encompassing both opportunities and threats within a single definition of risk is a clear statement of intent, recognizing that both are equally important influences over business success, and both need to be managed proactively.[1]

The more complex anVUCA (an acronym for volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity)  environment is, the more unexpected opportunities appear and disappear again just as quickly. Therefore, opportunity management is above all a mindset. A mindset that also derives opportunities from risks. In effect, this would call for moving from the traditional causal model of decision-making logic to non-causal decision-making model, also known as effectuation.

Effectuation knows four principles. These principles stand in contrast to a causal logic that is often applied in classical (management) organizations:

• Middle orientation (vs. goal orientation)
• Reasonable input or loss (vs. expected return)
• Using circumstances and coincidences (vs. avoiding)
• Partnerships (vs. competitive thinking)

Effectuation also differs from causal logic in the subject of “posture”. The following is a small presentation of the attitude of the two orientations in comparison:

	Causal Logic	Effectuation
Basic Idea	The future is predictable and plannable	The future is not predictable, but it can be influenced
Basis for Action	goal-oriented	resource-oriented
Risk Orientation	expected return	affordable effort or affordable loss
Attitude towards others	competitive	cooperative
Attitude to Coincidences	avoid	utilize

And as soon as it makes sense to design projects with plans and implement them, this should also happen in practice.[2]

Notes:

• The Principle of Effectuation describes in detail how entrepreneurs deal with uncertainty.
• Planning subject to reservation describes how organisations can plan meaningfully despite uncertainty; and
• How can I avoid uncertainty? contains useful systemic questions to gradually reduce uncertainty.

The role of a quality professional needs to be able to facilitate an ongoing dialogue linking organizational context with the needs of interested parties (stake holders) during the business / product life cycle, w.r.t. the strategic direction of the organization and provide methods to facilitate dialogue with stakeholders. With this new role the quality professional will be key to improvements in products, processes and services while identifying new technology opportunities to effectively meet stakeholder expectations in the changing context of the organization.[3]

In order to present these concepts of creating a new mindset, here are a few videos. These should help in clarifying these concepts with the help of some real-life experiences.

Opportunity Based Thinking – Andrew Isham – The basic premise is – We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them. (Albert Einstein). In order to that, ne should ask the questions on the validity of the assumptions that are already made.

Uncommon Sense: Moving from a Problem-Focused to Solution-Focused Mindset | Mel Gill | TEDxVarna suggests that better look at the problem as a situation. View that as possibility, if not available outside, then from within. Rembert always, to take the first step, towards action of initiating that possibility into the reality. Do not, ever, accept failure as your destination.

How to Identify a Business Opportunity? | Sanjeev Bikhchandani | TEDxSRCC – is all about finding out what need or expectation of a customer, or for that matter, the relevant interested party, has remained unmet. Think about problems that are unsolved.

See Problems As Opportunities | Mona Patel | TEDxNewBedford –

We all have places in our lives where we say, “I can’t.” Even though this very human, the fact remain that these are excusesTo design your way around the “can’t,” you have to understand what your “can’t” is. Then, start looking at the problem as an opportunity. Funnel down the options to a manageable actionable set.

Additional Reading

Risk and Opportunity Management – Lockheed Martin

[N.B. – Detailed note on Opportunities Based Approach can be read / downloaded by clicking on the hyper link.]

We will now turn to our regular sections:

In the series the Organizational Culture, we have taken up Why Organizational Culture is (that Much !?) Important? –

We now watch ASQ TV, wherein we look at a few relevant videos from the archive:

• Risk, Organizational Culture and Small Business – In this video, Denise Robitaille, member of the U.S. Technical Advisory Group to Technical Committee 176 (TAG 176), discusses how the revised version of ISO 9001 may handle risk as well as the revision’s effect on small organizations.

Jim L. Smith’s Jim’s Gems posting for June 2020 –

• Change: Management Must Understand Why Changes Fail – Rick Maurer, in his book “Beyond the Wall of Resistance: Why 70% of All Changes Still Fail – and What You Can Do About It,” listed four big mistakes that change leaders consistently make: assuming that understanding equals support and commitment; understanding the potential power of employee and management engagement; failure to appreciate the power of fear; and failure to acknowledge that even a slight lack of trust and confidence in leaders can kill a good idea.
• Keep Going – We need to carefully consider each commitment before making it. After deciding to make the commitment, create a plan and move toward the goal….  The way to keep going is to continually remind yourself why the project was initially started. This will provide a compelling reason to be persistent…. Keep going, and after the journey is complete, enjoy the moment to bask in the glow of accomplishment. But do not become stagnant. Make another commitment to start anew as that is what life is about

I look forward to your views / comments / inputs to further enrich the subjects of Basics of Quality and Organizational Culture and their role in Creating and Maintaining Sustained Success.

Note: The images depicted here above are through courtesy of respective websites who have the copyrights for the respective images.

[1] Managing Both Sides of Risk: Threat and Opportunity – Dr David Hillson

[2] Decision making in uncertain circumstances

[3] “Opportunity Based Thinking; Is this a Paradigm Shift for a Quality Professional?” – Angelo Scangas, Quality Support Group, Inc.

Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs – May 2020

Welcome to May 2020 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

For the year 2020, we have chosen the core subject of Revisiting Basic Quality Concepts w.r.t. the sustained success of the organization As of now we have visited

• History of Quality in January 2020
• The Sustained Success of Organization in February 2020
• Organizational Context in March 2020
• Understanding Needs and Expectations of the Interested Parties in April 2020

We take up Risk Based Approach as our core concept this month–

The most prevalent change that the advent of 21^st century has witnessed is the extremely dynamic rate of change. If change was the constant of later part of 20^th century, it is almost becoming beyond human comprehension rapid rate of change that is becoming the new-normal with passing of every year of the present century. This rapid change is making what w=is already ‘known’ now ‘known unknown’. The uncertainty that this rapid rate of change ushers in creates the world around extremely fluid.

For our present purpose of “Revisiting the Basic Quality Concepts’ we will briefly look at two articles published in HBR – one in 1994 and the one in 2012.

The first article, A Framework for Risk Management  by Kenneth A. Froot, David S. Scharfstein, Jeremy C. Stein  (November–December 1994 Issue of HBR) is based on finance specific perspective of Risk.

The risk-management paradigm rests on three basic premises:

• • • making good investments.
    • to making good investments by generating enough cash internally to fund those investments.
    • maintaining adequate cash flow

A risk-management program, therefore, should have a single overarching goal: to ensure that a company has the cash available to make value-enhancing investments.

By recognizing and accepting this goal, managers will be better equipped to address the most basic questions of risk management.

If we paraphrase the message of this article for the organization as whole, we understand that basic aim of risk management practices is to ensure that while maintaining its near and medium term operating parameters the organization should sustainably manage its competitiveness in the areas of its core competence, as relevant to its present and future context.

The second article, Managing Risks: A New Framework by Robert S. Kaplan and Anette Mikes (June 2012 Issue of HBR), places the risk in a more broader perspective .

The article presents a new categorization of risk.

Category I: Preventable risks.

Category II: Strategy risks

Category III: External risks

The article goes onto examine the individual and organizational challenges inherent in generating open, constructive discussions about managing the risks related to strategic choices. The authors argue that companies need to anchor these discussions in their strategy formulation and implementation processes.

The authors caution the organizational leadership by bluntly stating that  managing risk is very different from managing strategy.

Active and cost-effective risk management requires managers to think systematically about the multiple categories of risks they face so that they can institute appropriate several and collectively interactive processes for each.

An approach based on adherence to minimum regulatory standards and avoidance of financial loss creates risk in itself. In a passive stance, companies cannot shape an optimal risk profile according to their business models nor adequately manage a fast-moving crisis.

In conclusion, the article looks at how organizations can identify and prepare for non-preventable risks that arise externally to their strategy and operations.

A thought provoking paper – Value and resilience through better risk management by Daniela Gius, Jean-Christophe Mieszala, Ernestos Panayiotou, and Thomas Poppensieker –  at Risk Insight studies by McKinsey and Compony provides a specific actionable perspective  –

More rigorous, debiased strategic decision making can enhance the longer-term resilience of a company’s business model, particularly in volatile markets or externally challenged industries..

Organizations need to manage their operations such that investments in product quality and safety/ environmental or societal expectations standards adopted by it can bring significant returns. And enable processes that are less prone to disruption when risks materialize.

To achieve standing among customers, employees, business partners, and the public, companies can apply ethical controls on corporate practices end to end.

Building robust, effective risk management is three-dimensional project: 1) the risk operating model, consisting of the main risk management processes; 2) a governance and accountability structure around these processes, leading from the business up to the board level; and 3) best-practice crisis preparedness, including a well-articulated response playbook if the worst case materializes..

Having accepted that uncertainty is a constant in business, robust risk management can help companies adapt and thrive. How risk management can turn a crisis into an opportunity is a re[presentative case study that demonstrates how using risk management processes and structures to identify and mitigate a wide variety of risks, even when what arises is not one of the feared scenarios, the business will be in a stronger position to respond to crisis and grow.

Risk Based Thinking and the risk management are very actively debated and documented topics in the management academics and the practice.

In a limited span of our present view, we recognize that by recommending these two additional readings –

• Is the world sleepwalking into a crisis? Global risks are intensifying but the collective will to tackle them appears to be lacking. Instead, divisions are hardening. – The Global Risk Report, 14^th Edition, World Economic Forum, and,
• Sustainability Risks and Opportunities Report

To conclude, every organisation should see risk-based thinking as an opportunity and a step in the right direction of attaining the sustained success.

[N.B. – Detailed note on Risk Based Approach can be read / downloaded by clicking on the hyper link.]

We will now turn to our regular sections:

In the series the Organizational Culture, we have taken up  Organizational culture’s relationship with organization’s strategic direction. The critical message is that hat whatever form the relationship between organization’s culture and organization’s strategic direction shapes, in order to attain the sustained success, the culture and strategy should seamless aligned. .

We now watch ASQ TV, wherein we look at a few relevant videos from the archive:

• Quality as Strategy – Greg Watson, ASQ past chair and ESTIEM professor, asks viewers if they believe there is, “a difference in having quality strategy or Quality as strategy?”

Jim L. Smith’s Jim’s Gems posting for May 2020 –

• Growth – It is natural to focus on our strengths and pretend our weaknesses don’t exist. To grow, however, requires that we admit where we’re weak and then work to strengthen those aspects of our life – personal and professional…Choose to embrace and engage those opportunities now while placed in front of us. Embrace these opportunities even though they may seem a little uncomfortable….And as we grow, the positive possibilities will grow even more superlative in our world.

I look forward to your views / comments / inputs to further enrich the subjects of Basics of Quality and Organizational Culture and their role in Creating and Maintaining Sustained Success.

Note: The images depicted here above are through courtesy of respective websites who have the copyrights for the respective images.

Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs – April 2020

Welcome to April 2020 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

For the year 2020, we have chosen the core subject of Revisiting Basic Quality Concepts w.r.t. the sustained success of the organization As of now we have visied

• History of Quality in January 2020
• The Sustained Success of Organization in February 2020
• Organizational Context in March 2020

We take up Understanding Needs and Expectations of the Interested Parties as our core concept this month–

It is an undisputed fact that  the past, present and future course of organization’s strategic direction to attain sustained success is affected by the ever, rapidly changing issues within and around the organization and by the dynamic relationship of these issues with the organization have far reaching impact. Similar far reaching impact is also attributed to the needs and expectations of the interested parties from the organization and their intra-dynamics of relationships and the individual and collective dynamics of relationship(s) these multiple forces with the organization.

The classic definition of a stakeholder according to Freeman is “an organization… [or] any group or individual who can affect or be affected by the achievement of the organization’s objectives” ^[7]. While Freeman’s ground-breaking book “Strategic Management: A Stakeholder Approach” in 1984 started the wider discussion and elaboration of stakeholders and their importance, an earlier concept of stakeholders had already emerged in the 1960s. In 1963, academics at the Stanford Research Institute stated that a firm also needs to be responsible – in addition to shareholders – to a number of stakeholders without whose support the organization would cease to exist ^[5]. Some scholars have even proposed that the roots of stakeholder thinking dates as far back as the 1930s ^[8].[1]

The process or framework for identifying, understanding, monitoring and reviewing interested parties is normally matrixed in terms of:

• Level of interest (Relevance)
• Level of influence (Significance)[2]

In the power/interest matrix there are two important sets of questions to be assessed. According to the classification proposed by Johnson and Scholes, the question “If we were to pursue this strategy with disregard to the views of this particular stakeholder, could/would they stop it?” assesses the power of the stakeholder. The interests of the stakeholder is assessed with the questions “How high is this approach on their priorities?” and “Are they likely to actively support or oppose this approach, or will their interest be short-lived?” [³²].

The power dimension indicates the level of influence a stakeholder has in either supporting or resisting a strategic initiative. Stakeholders may exercise their power in many ways, for example through a legal position, possession of knowledge and key resources or even informal networking with other decision makers. The interest dimension depends on how high a priority this strategy is. Interests can be open or hidden, which makes their assessment challenging. Interests may be based on a stakeholder’s anticipated economic gain, brand value or power position. The level of interest can be estimated by assessing whether a stakeholder has a long-term commitment to the strategy [³²].

Table depicted here above shows power / interest matrix and the corresponding strategies according to stakeholders.

Another major challenge that an organization has to face is the conflict of interest among differing needs and expectations of the interested parties.

Conflict is a natural and healthy part of a group behavior. An engaging and inclusive process of resolution of the conflicts of interests of the different parties, as well as the conflicts of infested parties needs and expectations from an organization should yield win-win outcomes, wherein the feelings of having compromised one’s interests is replaced by the spirit of mutual collaboration.[3]

The 2012 changes in the ISO Management system standards have clearly mandated Understanding the Needs and Expectations of Interested parties as a key enabling input to the design, implementation and improvement of the relevant discipline management system standard.[4]

Whereas the specific discipline ISO Management system standards look at the understanding the needs and expectations of the interested parties from its relevance to the respective discipline, ISO 9004: 2018 – “Quality management – Quality of an organization – Guidance to achieve sustained success”. – views the impact of needs and expectations of the interested parties on the organization’s ability to achieve sustained success. This is the stage for an excellent review and the starting point to understand the potential depth of examination of who is most involved – from the point of view of the power and the interest – in the issues identified as having contextual relevance and influence on the organization’s purpose and strategic direction.

In as much as understanding the needs and expectations of the interested parties is a key ingredient to the process of planning for the sustained successor an organization, it is also a vital tool to help in the implementation of the process and a key enabler for checking the outcomes achieved on the continual journey for higher, sustained, success.. [5]

 [N.B. – Detailed note on Understanding Needs and Expectations of the Interested Parties can be read / downloaded by clicking on the hyper link.]

We will now turn to our regular sections:

In the series the Organizational Culture, we have attempted to look at The Organizational Culture – Understanding the purpose of organization.. In its simplest form, purpose is the organization’s reason for being. It is a combination of vision, mission, and values.

We now watch ASQ TV, wherein we look at a recent video:

• Navigating Through Change and Ambiguity– Matt Meuleners, Executive Partner at FOCUS Training, discusses change and ambiguity, and the best practices an organization can use to lead through ambiguity.

Jim L. Smith’s Jim’s Gems posting for March 2020 –

1. Why employees leave – Common Sense Management Can Reduce Employee Turnover-

There are a lot of reasons good employees leave, including:

1. • Rude behaviour: Feeling mistreated is not an enticement for a good work environment.
   • Work-life imbalance: Increasing with economic pressures, organizations continue to demand that one person do the work of two or more people.
   • The job did not meet expectations: When a job to significantly vary from the initial description and what was promised during the interview stage,.it can lead to mistrust. When trust is missing, there can be no real employee ownership.
   • Job and the employee misalignment: Organizations should never hire employees unless they are qualified for the job and in sync with the culture and goals of the organization. Managers should not try to force a fit.
   • Feeling undervalued: Everyone wants to be recognized and rewarded for a job well done. It’s part of our nature. The most effective recognition is sincere appreciation.
   • Coaching and feedback lacking: Effective managers know how to help employees improve their performance and consistently give feedback to all employees.
   • Decision-making ability lacking: Organizations need employees to have ownership and be empowered! An organization should give employees latitude to do their jobs by placing trust in them; employees, in turn, should accept that responsibility and embrace that trust with enthusiasm.
   • People skills inadequate: Many managers were promoted because they did their jobs well and got results. However, that doesn’t mean they know how to lead. People skills can be learned and developed, but it really helps if a manager has a natural ability to get along with people and motivate them.
   • Organizational instability: Management’s constant reorganization, changing direction, and shuffling people around disconnects employees from the organization’s purpose. Employees don’t know what’s going on, what the priorities are, or what they should be doing.
   • Raises and promotions frozen: Studies have shown that money isn’t usually the primary reason people leave, but it does rank high when an employee can find a job earning more elsewhere. Organizations better pay competitive wages and benefits while making their employees feel valued! This is a critical combination.
   • Faith and confidence shaken: When employees are asked to do more and more, they see less evidence that they will ultimately share in the fruits of their labor. Employees know when a company is doing well and they expect to be treated as critical enablers of that success. Organizations need to stop talking about employees being their most important asset while treating them as consumables.
   • Growth opportunities not available: A lot of good talent can be lost if the employees feel trapped in dead-end positions. The most successful organizations find ways to help employees develop new skills and responsibilities in their current positions and position them for future advancement within the organization.

I look forward to your views / comments / inputs to further enrich the subjects of Basics of Quality and Organizational Culture and their role in Creating and Maintaining Sustained Success.

Note: The images depicted here above are through courtesy of respective websites who have the copyrights for the respective images.

[1] Understanding the Stakeholders as a Success Factor for Effective Occupational Health Care – Ari-Matti Auvinen

[2] “Interested Parties” and Their “Needs and Expectations”

[3]  Fundamentals of Sports Management, Pp. 14 – Robert E Baker, Craig Esherick . 2013

[4] Understanding needs & expectations of interested parties in ISO 9001:2015 – Mark Hammar

[5] Business Sustainability: Going Beyond ISO 9004:2018–  Alka Jarvis, Paul C. Palmes

Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs – March 2020

Welcome to March 2020 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

For the year 2020, we have chosen the core subject of Revisiting Basic Quality Concepts w.r.t. the sustained success of the organization We picked up

• • History of Quality in January 2020
  • The Sustained Success of Organization in February 2020

We take up Organizational Context as our first core concept –

An organization’s context involves its “operating environment.” The context must be determined both within the organization and external to the organization. It is important to understand the unique context of an organization before starting the strategic planning.[1]

The organizational context can be viewed as situational opportunities and constraints that affect the occurrence and meaning of organizational behavior as well as functional relationships between variables. Context can serve as a main effect or interact with personal variables such as disposition to affect organizational behavior.

The reasons to understand the context of the organization, essentially, are –

• if we do not understand situations, we will not understand person situation interactions.
• Context is also implicated in the poorly understood “missing linkages” (Goodman, 2000) that can explain how individual or team activity gets translated into larger organizational outcomes.
• it helps us to better convey the applications of strategy at planning, implementation, review and improvement stages

The understanding of organizational context

• Affects the observed range of organizational variables under consideration.
• As a consequence of range restriction, context can have a profound effect on the base rates of key organizational variables across occupations or locations, or over time. In turn, such variations in base rates will have a marked impact on the imputed importance of these variables, their meaning to actors and observers, and the inferred significance of their correlates.
• Can affect the cause and effect relationships
• Can help understand the likely effect of the strategic directional change that may take place in response to the dynamics of the context
• Helps in understanding the interacting and interrelated ripple effects of any trend or an isolated, black swan, event. The mechanics of context can be quite subtle, and small changes in context often matter greatly.
• Can affect the validity of the organization’s purpose[2]

The following graphic is used to understand any and all organizations, no matter how simple or complex, large or small.  It is used to clarify the relationship between this way of understanding context and our way of understanding content – the actual collaborative action that drives the organization forward day in, day out.

The “roof” and the “foundation” can be understood as the organizational context – who we are, where we’re going, why we’re going there and how we’re going to treat each other along the way.  In the foundation, we find the organization’s “come from” – the solid purpose for being, the mission, the core values, the key standards, value propositions and roles and rules of engagement.  And in the roof, we find the “go to” – the vision pulling us toward the desired future, the goals, the objectives and priorities.

And the middle of the house represents the organizational content – the human beings who are collaborating and communicating and coordinating with each other… and are doing so in a way that’s guided by the foundation and in service to the roof.  [3]

It is vital to design processes in the context of all the dimensions of the organization (mapped out in our Eight Dimensions below).

It is useful to view organizations as webs of relationships and processes in order to understand, shape and effectively work with them. Remarkably, most organizations attempt to control, restrict, or manage information and knowledge (of such relationships). Controlling information flows may appear possible when organizations are viewed mechanistically, as linear causal chains. But when viewed as complex networks (like the Internet) the only conclusion to be reached is that information is uncontrollable and necessary for the health of the system.

When an organization shares information and knowledge about the challenges it faces, the people within the organization are able to hold meaningful dialogues about these challenges, increasing their understanding of themselves and their roles. This understanding can then become the basis of a shared culture that can effectively evolve in response to challenges.

Professor Bidhan Parmar gives business leaders useful tips for implementing change. He explains the importance of organizational context and the “ecosystem” in which these changes might take place.

Understating the organizational context is an on-going activity. The organizations who aspire sustained success embed this process establishes, maintains and continually improve this process, since the organizational context forms one of the vital inputs to its quest for sustained success.

[N.B. – Detailed note on The Organizational Context can be read / downloaded by clicking on the hyper link.]

We will now turn to our regular sections:

In the series the Organizational Culture, we have attempted to look at ‘Organizational Culture  and Organizational Leadership. We have briefly explored the subject, and in the process, laying foundation for linking it up with their relationship with the sustained success later in the series.

We now watch ASQ TV, wherein we look at a few relevant videos from the past:

• • Change Management – Change is one thing organizations can count on. Learn how to lead, implement and sustain changes successfully.
  • Effective 21st Century Quality Leadership – Mike Turner, Managing Partner, Oakland Consulting, discusses the business challenges of the 21st century, and how quality professionals should respond in order to meet them.

Jim L. Smith’s Jim’s Gems posting for February 2020 –

• • Predictability – If you want to know what’s in store for your future, consider your current thoughts…What do you consistently think about? What do your thoughts dwell on and visualize for your future? What do you expect to happen? What do you believe you can cause to happen?.. The point is that it is your present thoughts that, to a reasonable extent, determine your future…The point is that although you can’t always control what happens in the outside world, you can control your inner world – your thoughts…When you do that, you unleash significant energy which translates into a tremendous drive. All that’s required is to start thinking positively. Henry Ford’s quote, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t, you’re right” still holds true.
  • Build Better Customer Relationships – A good experience is key to customer advocacy – Customers can tell you what they value about your core products and the surrounding support services. Combining external measures from your customers with internal quality metrics has the potential to improve business performance and continuously outpace your competitors…To be successful, companies must commit to turn satisfied customers into loyal customers and turn loyal customers into advocates…Even before prospects (stage 1) become customers (stage 2), you need to start addressing their expectations. Once they become customers, your goal is to deliver what you promised and ensure that they’re satisfied (stage 3). Beyond satisfaction, you must strive to ensure that you deliver consistently positive experiences and build a strong relationship that develops loyal customers (stage 4) and, ultimately, advocates (stage 5)… It means delivering a positive experience each time the customer interacts with your organizations. On the rare occasions where customer experiences don’t go as planned, your organization must do whatever it takes to quickly make it right. ..Delivering positive customer experiences involves everybody in the organization. It’s the reason your business exists.

I look forward to your views / comments / inputs to further enrich the subjects of Basics of Quality and Organizational Culture and their role in Creating and Maintaining Sustained Success.

Note: The images depicted here above are through courtesy of respective websites who have the copyrights for the respective images.

[1] Organization and its context

[2] The Essential Impact Of Context On Organizational Behaviour – Gary Johns,

[3] Context vs. Content, Part 3 of 3

Quality Management Articles and Blogs – February 2020

Welcome to February 2020 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

For the year 2020, we have chosen the core subject of Revisiting Basic Quality Concepts w.r.t. the sustained success of the organization We picked up

• History of Quality in January 2020

We will now take up the second dimension of the subject – The Sustained Success of Organization.

The concept of sustainable organization can keep dynamically evolving if the four fundamental questions that Sam Palimsano, former CEO of IBM has sop pointedly raised[1] –

• Why would someone work for you?
• Why would someone invest their money with you?
• Why would someone spend their money with you—what is unique about you?
• Why would society allow you to operate in their region?

In  few basic steps, The Voyage of Sustained Success (for Businesses) maps the path to the sustained success –

In The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership, authors Jim Dethmer, Diana Chapman, and Kaley Warner Klemp share what the four most important predictors of success are[2].

• Self-Awareness
• Learning Agility
• Communication
• Influence

Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies – James C Collins and Jerry L Porras – uncovers timeless fundamentals that enable organizations to endure and thrive. These are[3]:

• Make the company the ultimate product – seeing products and market opportunities as vehicles for building a great company, not the other way around.
• Build your company around a core ideology (core values and a sense of purpose beyond just making money) – A deeply held core ideology gives a company both a strong sense of identity and a thread of continuity that holds the organization together in the face of change.
• Build a cult-like culture – around the core ideology If someone does not accept that ideology, then he/she does not belong to that culture, howsoever valuable he / she may be.
• Home grow your management – as great companies grow up, we see continuity and order in management tenure and succession. Insiders preserve the core values, understanding them on a gut level in a way that outsiders usually cannot. Yet insiders can also be change agents, building on the core values while moving the company in exciting new directions.
• Stimulate progress through BHAGs (Big Hairy Animal Goals), experimentation and continuous improvement – need to counterbalance its fixed core ideology with a relentless drive for progress. While core ideology provides continuity, stability, and cohesion, the drive for progress promotes change, improvement, innovation, and renewal.
• Embrace ‘The Genius of The And’ – Truly visionary company embraces both ends of a continuum: continuity and change, conservatism and progressiveness, stability and revolution, predictability and chaos, heritage and renewal, fundamentals and And, and, and.

In The Idea of Ideas, Bob Galvin, former CEO of Motorola, wrote: “Change unto itself is essential. But, taken alone: it is limited. Yes, renewal is change. It calls for ‘do differently.’ It is willing to replace and redo. But it also cherishes the proven basics.”

Here’s a rapid-fire summary of Jim Collins’ famous first book, ‘Built to Last’ – How to Create Sustained Success” :

The linkage of the Sustained Success with the first part dimension of our present series – The Basic Concepts of Quality – is ISO 9004: 2018 – Quality management — Quality of an organization — Guidance to achieve sustained success.

ISO 9004 addresses the needs and expectations of all relevant interested parties and provides guidance for the systematic and continual improvement of the organization’s overall performance. This standard focuses on an organization’s sustained success, which is achieved if an organization[4]:

• Meets the needs and expectations of its customers.
• Has a balanced consideration of the needs of all its interested parties.
• Effectively manages all its processes.
• Is aware of its environment.
• Learns.
• Improves and/or innovates.

We will take up these basic concepts and see how they can be of help in the pursuit of the Sustained Success (of the organization).

[N.B. – Detailed note on The Sustained Success of an Organization can be read / downloaded by clicking on the hyper link.]

We will now turn to our regular sections:

In the series the Organizational Culture, we have attempted to look at ‘Organizational Culture – What It IS Not?’. We have briefly lined up differences of the Organizational Culture with terms – Organizational climate[5], organizational environment[6], employee engagement[7], national culture[8], societal culture[9], corporate culture[10], organizational context[11] etc. – which are used as synonyms in the common parlance

We now watch ASQ TV, wherein we look at a few relevant videos:

1. The Standards Check In – A check in on the status of general standards revisions, plus new standards being published in 2020.

Jim L. Smith’s Jim’s Gems posting for January, 2020 is:

1. Quality Responsibility – Just who is responsible for quality? – Quality is not a grass roots methodology. Dr. W. Edwards Deming, a noted quality guru, said, “Quality starts in the boardroom.”… Dr. Feigenbaum’s “Quality is everybody’s job,” has been taken out of context because his message is purposely incomplete. What many don’t realize is that Feigenbaum intended his concept to be about establishing accountability for quality. Because quality is everybody’s job, it may become nobody’s job! The idea is that quality must be actively managed and have visibility at the highest levels of management…According to former U.S. Admiral Hyman G. Rickover, “Responsibility is a unique concept; it can only reside within a single individual. You may delegate it, but it is still with you. You may share it with others, but your portion is not diminished. You may disclaim it, but you cannot divest yourself of it. Even if you do not recognize it or admit its presence, you cannot escape it. If the responsibility is rightfully yours, no evasion or ignorance or passing the blame can shift the burden to someone else.”
2. Discovery – Just because working through the obstacle might be a challenge doesn’t mean it’s impossible. If you’re serious and committed, you’ll find a way, to absolutely make it happen…You were born to discover your own unique way through life’s endless possibilities. Your rewards for your efforts await, so what’s stopping you.

I look forward to your views / comments / inputs to further enrich the subjects of Basics of Quality and Organizational Culture and their role in Creating and Maintaining Sustained Success.

Note: The images depicted here above are through courtesy of respective websites who have the copyrights for the respective images.

[1] A New Definition of Sustainable Success – Rick Miller

[2] The 4 Great Predictors of Sustained Success – J D Meier

[3] Building Companies to Last  – James C Collins

[4] ISO 9004: Managing for the Sustained Success of an Organization

^[5] Difference between Organisation Climate and Organisation Culture

[6] What is an Organizational Environment? – Definition & Theory

[7] Improving Company Culture Is Not About Providing Free Snacks

[8] National Cultures, Organizational Cultures, and the Role of Management

[9] Organizational Culture and Societal Culture

[10] Is There a Difference Between Organizational & Corporate Culture?

[11] Organizational Context = Culture

Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs – January 2020

Welcome to January 2020 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

The Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs enters 8^th year.

We have tested different formats to explore the world of quality profession. For 2020, we plan to focus on Revisiting Basic Quality Concepts. Our aim is to re-understand their inherent meaning and amplify their importance with reference to the sustained success of the organization.

We will pick up one topic every month. On this platform, we will remain quite brief and will take a quick peep at the reference material. Parallelly, I will, offline, prepare a more detailed briefing note, which shall be available for reading downloading at the click on a given hyperlink. For a complete reading of the relevant article / blogpost, one can continue to visit the blog as has been our past practice.

Our first call this month in this pursuit of Revisiting Basic Quality Concepts is History of Quality.

The History of Quality – Timeline

Civilizations that supported the arts and crafts allowed clients to choose goods meeting higher quality standards rather than normal goods. In societies where arts and crafts are the responsibility of master craftsmen or artists, these masters would lead their studios and train and supervise others.

‘The pillory for selling bad fish [1382] – recorded @ “Chaucer’s World” Chapter I – London Life, pp. 22 -– Compiled by Edith Sickert, first published in 1948 –   is, perhaps, one of the earliest recorded case of redressal of a quality complaint by the aggrieved customer(s).

Craftsmen themselves often placed a second mark on the goods they produced. At first this mark was used to track the origin of faulty items. But over time the mark came to represent a craftsman’s good reputation. Inspection marks and master craftsmen marks served as proof of quality for customers throughout medieval Europe. This approach to manufacturing quality was dominant until the Industrial Revolution in the early 19th century.[1]

But by the 1920s, the focus had shifted from quantity to quality because of increases in demand. Emphasis was also added to ensuring quality was consistent from shipment to shipment. Throughout the century, it quickly became clear that working harder and for longer periods of time was not increasing efficiency. The realization demonstrated that working smarter and employing quality control measures was the way to ultimately yield the most profits.[2]

The Factory System and The Taylor System also remain documented as two major milestones in the history of quality.[3]

The beginning of the 20th century marked the inclusion of “processes” in quality practices. Walter Shewhart began to focus on controlling processes in the mid-1920s, making quality relevant not only for the finished product but for the processes that created it.[4]

Edwards Deming took this one step further. Management, he said, can lead by understanding what he called his “System of Profound Knowledge (SoPK)”.[5] Dr. Deming’s holistic approach to leadership and management ties together seminal theories in four interrelated areas: appreciation for a system, knowledge of variation, theory of knowledgeand psychology. The System of Profound Knowledge promotes transformation through an essential outside “lens” which can benefit anyone and any organization.[6] As well as his System of Profound Knowledge, Deming also presented 14 management principles that he believed could improve efficiency in business, encouraging a holistic approach that encompasses not only business ideas, but concepts centering on how humans operate as well.[7]

Quality management development stages, trends and its main focus and context changes – Juozas Ruzevicius

The quality systems and approach to the quality have further matured during these first two decades of 21^st century. We’re seeing a few big shifts:

• • Integration: Technology now makes it possible for companies to break down barriers between departments, which has long been a foundational principle of quality management.
  • Big Data: Today’s QMS captures more data than ever, allowing companies to leverage sophisticated reporting and business intelligence tools to build a competitive advantage.
  • Risk Management: Companies are realizing that risk management and quality are inseparably linked, as reflected in the risk-based approaches now being leveraged in recent iterations of ISO 9001.

We’ve come a long way in improving quality. Now the question is how to build on that success. [8]

To end, the present discussion we will take look at – Where is quality headed from here? – A Brief History of Quality – This webinar will provide quality practitioners with a chronological history of quality from its earliest beginnings in mass manufacturing and the need for standardization and efficiency to the present day and the proliferation of national and international quality standards.

[N.B. – Detailed note on History of Quality can be read / downloaded by clicking on the hyper link.]

We will now turn to our regular sections:

For the year 2020, we plan to look at the Organizational Culture, as one of the enablers of the sustained success. We will take up one aspect for quick study. Presently, we have taken up – The Organizational Culture – What Is It? – Organizational culture is a system of shared assumptions, values, and beliefs, which governs how people behave in organizations… At its worst, corporate culture can be a drag on productivity and performance. At its best, it is an emotional energizer…Organizational culture is like an iceberg, with most of its weight and bulk below the surface. Don’t leave the organizational iceberg unattended! ..And let’s forget that the culture of any organization is shaped by leadership.

We pause here for a moment  to take note of a series of articles, posted by Tanmay Vora @QAspire on Active Garage during 2009. that touches upon some of the most critical aspects of building a quality-centric organization culture.

We now watch ASQ TV, wherein we look at a few relevant videos:

• ASQ TV Episode 2: Culture of Quality – This episode of ASQ TV explores the culture of quality. Brien Palmer, author of Making Change Work, gives us an overview of the components of a culture of quality and its importance. Monroe Clinics culture change leads to a leaner healthcare facility. And Kaizen plays an important role in a quality culture.

Jean Harvey article: http://asq.org/quality-progress/2012/05/change-management/make-the-leap.html

• Culture Of Quality – The episode digs deeper into transforming the organizational culture into a culture of quality.

Jim L. Smith’s Jim’s Gems posting for December 2019 is:

• Sustained Effort – Attention to details and focused follow up typically means the difference between success and failure….We need the confidence to envision bold goals, and the humility to get our hands dirty in order to reach them. We need to keep the big picture firmly in our minds, while giving our attention to all the little details that will get us there…We need clear direction to our efforts and give sustained effort to our visions…It is persistence that helps us succeed at what we strive to accomplish, and success seems to be largely a matter of hanging on after everyone else has let go…Vince Lombardi, the NFL football legend once said, “If you really want something, you can have it if you are willing to pay the price. And the price means that you have to work better and harder than the next guy.”
• Quality is Secondary – Countless industries had worked for decades to create once awe-inspiring excellence. But faster cycle times and globalization have been able to replace that standard of excellence with a much lower quality and performance level…Partially to blame, as cited by several economists, is something that’s been called the Walmart Effect: driving prices as low as possible and then squeezing out a few more cents from suppliers every few months. .. To compete solely on price, it’s easier to embrace mediocrity…along with their competitors. However, these reduced prices don’t show up in the pockets of associates or customers. ,,, It seems you can find enough people, anyplace in the world, to buy anything—no matter how poor the quality as long as the price is right….Alas, so unfortunately….
• Adapt – For those who lived through the 90’s there was a realization that decade was a time of rapid change. And for those who believed the 21st century would be no different, were definitely correct…One of the secrets to success and happiness in these changing times is the ability to be flexible – the power to adapt…The Alcoholics Anonymous “serenity” prayer says: Change what you can, accept what you can’t, and cultivate the wisdom to know the difference. To these profound words, one would suggest adding, “believe wholeheartedly in your ability to do both!”

I look forward to your views / comments / inputs to further enrich the subjects of Basics of Quality and Organizational Culture and their role in Creating and Maintaining Sustained Success.

Note: The images depicted here above are through courtesy of respective websites who have the copyrights for the respective images.

[1] Quality in the Medieval Guilds of Europe

[2] A Brief History of Quality Control

[3] Quality Management in the Industrial Revolution

[4] Quality Management in the 20th Century

[5] History of Quality & the Evolution of the Modern Leader

[6] The Deming System of Profound Knowledge® (SoPK)

[7] W. Edwards Deming: From Profound Knowledge to 14 Points for Management – Dr. Joseph A DeFeo

[8] The History of Quality Management – by Rachel Beavins Tracy

Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs – December 2019

Welcome to December 2019 edition of Carnival of Quality Management Articles and Blogs.

Our core subject of Quality Management – Road Ahead to Digital Transformation during the year 2019, we have covered The Basics of Digitization, Digitalization and Digital Transformation, The foundation of the Digital Quality Management, Quality 4.0 and Industry 4.0 technologies Big Data Analytics, Cloud computing, Robotics, Augmented Reality, Simulation, Additive Manufacturing, Industrial Internet of Things  and Horizontal and Vertical System Integration.

We will now take up last of the nine disruptive technologies of Industry 4.0 –– Cybersecurity.

Cybersecurity is the practice of protecting systems, networks, and programs from digital attacks. These cyberattacks are usually aimed at accessing, changing, or destroying sensitive information; extorting money from users; or interrupting normal business processes…A successful cybersecurity approach has multiple layers of protection spread across the computers, networks, programs, or data that one intends to keep safe. In an organization, the people, processes, and technology must all complement one another to create an effective defense from cyber-attacks.[1]

Cybersecurity in Industry 4.0 has an immediate effect on CPS, the Internet of Things (IoT) and the Internet of Services (IoS).

Industry 4.0 and its connection with Internet and Information and Communication Technologies. (Source: Germany Trade & Invest. 2013)-

Each brings its own range of threats, vulnerabilities and possible challenges/safeguards with regard to cybersecurity. Below, a number of these are outlined:

Cybersecurity must therefore be thought of as a protective mechanism, but also, especially, as a basic requirement in order for business to continue.[2] That is where the quality management core principles come into the play and so-called traditional quality people need to learn these new concepts so as to help build good practices, work groups and reference architectures.

The seven steps of a cyber-attack, which can lead to dire consequences. To prepare oneself against such an attack and to reduce the attack vector, one should design a six-step approach.

The three-pillar approach to cyber security consists of people, process, and data and information.

The first pillar is people. People are an easy target to pick the bite of the phishing bait, Through frequent exposure and regular training, your organization will develop a culture of cyber security awareness. The second of the three pillars is process. The process pillar is made up of multiple parts: management systems, governance, policies and procedures and managing third parties. All of these parts must be addressed for the process pillar to be effective.

When all is said and done about Industry 4.0 or Quality 4.0 in these sets of episodes, the message that very clearly seems to come out is that Quality 4.0 Takes More Than Technology – To effectively implement Quality 4.0—the technological as well as the non-technological aspects—companies should take a structured approach that includes the following elements:

• • Prioritize pain points to address first on the basis of potential to unlock value and reduce risk;
  • Identify, test and scale up use cases. Begin implementation with proof-of-concept (PoC) pilots that focus on high-value use cases.;
  • Develop a vision and road-m which articulates how Quality 4.0 promotes the company’s overall business strategy and how it contributes to creating a sustainable competitive advantage.
  • Establish technology and data enablers of Quality 4.0, including the IoT infrastructure and data architecture;
  • Build the required skills – whether by upskilling or retraining the current workforce or by recruiting digital specialists;
  • Manage the changes across the enterprise, including the implementation of a comprehensive digital strategy;
  • Foster a quality culture through an across-the-organization involvement in the necessary changes to the context in which people work, addressing topics such as metrics and incentives, role mandates, and organizational structures.

We will now turn to our regular sections:

For the present episode we have picked up article, Digitizing Culture: Are You Doing It Wrong? on Insights and Analysis From Gallup column of Management Matters Network ….

• • • It’s crucial for companies to create an effective digital workplace culture
    • Digital culture is even harder to get right than in-person culture
    • Culture tools are only as good as the way they’re used

We also have one more article  that deals with the process of (digital) transformation – Thawing the frozen middle – As businesses put trillions of dollars into digital transformations, they need a plan to ensure that middle management is helping make the most of the investment… Transformation failures are not caused by one person or one single issue. By understanding the psyche of the middle management layer, CEOs can identify the levers that will work and unlock the benefits of transformation. It’s a matter of focusing on human capital and valuing the skills that their people have and can develop. They can then redeploy their creative, resilient, upskilled people to tackle more problems and create more value. Technology fundamentally changes the role of middle managers, but it simultaneously makes them even more important.

We now watch ASQ TV, wherein we look at a few relevant videos:

• • Cybersecurity in Retail – What is cybersecurity? Learn what it is, why it’s important and how it can make or break your business.
  • Protect Your Organization From Cyber Attacks – Dave Nelson, Founder, Pratum, offers practical suggestions to protect your organization from cyber-attacks. Nelson suggests using gap analysis and process mapping to make sure you have adequate security and, in case of an attack, have sound processes in place to mitigate the damage.

Jim L. Smith’s Jim’s Gems posting for November 2019 is:

• • Excuses – It’s a safe bet that everyone has used excuses to avoid doing something or to delay the inevitable… It is much easier to give in to the excuses. However, when you do give in all you’re left with is regret…Rather than take the easier path by using the excuses, it is more difficult to do those things you know you’re capable of doing. From that difficulty, however, comes the golden experience of the life you were meant to experience… All you have to lose are those excuses and a lot of regret but there is so much more to be gained.
  • Growth – In some way, personal growth is almost always uncomfortable. However, refusing to grow is often, in the long run, much more uncomfortable… To grow, it requires that we admit where we’re weak and then work to strengthen those aspects of our life – personal and professional… Whatever is going on in our life this very moment offers valuable opportunities for us to grow stronger, more effective, and more positively directed toward real fulfillment…. Embrace these opportunities even though they may seem a little uncomfortable… And as we grow, the positive possibilities will grow even more superlative in our world.

This brings us to the end of our journeys to the Carnival of Blogs on Quality Management for the year 2019. Till we meet to resume our journey in 2020, with a fresh look on the fundamentals, I wish you all a great year-end that provides a strong jumping board to more challenging, more fulfilling and more satisfying 2020.

Note: The images depicted here above are through courtesy of respective websites who have the copyrights for the respective images.

[1] What Is Cybersecurity?

[2] Cybersecurity in Industry 4.0

P.S. – All episodes of Quality Blog Carnival 2019 edition can be viewed / downloaded in a unified file by clicking the hyper link.