Instead of monitoring the signs around us of quality failure, such as the worrying observation that since the early 1990’s the number of product recalls reported by consumer product safety commissioners around the world has increased by almost 5 times, let us turn quality into a valuable offensive tool.
As a quality professional, one has the unique perspective of the end-to-end processes, often with insights into procurement issues, the complexities required for manufacturing, risks in logistics and the evidence of customer feedback. Through the expanding of one’s view beyond compliance and successful inspections, to visualising the effects of quality on the whole end-to-end network, we are capable of influencing organisational strategic planning through adopting a “quality-conscience”.
By developing well-rounded quality professionals who have adapted to understanding situations from all sides (especially the customer’s), organisations will possess a vital tool that will positively affect the agenda of top management and their plans to tackle future challenges.