ASQ InfVoice - Moving Quality Beyond Product

Paul Borawski (ASQ CEO) arose the June topic for ASQ Influential Voice entitled “Moving Quality Beyond Product”. The idea was come from the article named “Answering The Conference Board CEO Challenge 2012” in which stated that “For some organizations, quality remains simply a set of tools and techniques associated with quality control. For others, quality has evolved into a strategic partner, aligned with the business model and business strategy execution.” Moreover, it indicated what CEO / C-suite concerned recently challenges such as innovation, human capital, global political/economic risk, government regulation, global expansion, cost optimization, customer relationship, sustainability, corporate brand and reputation, and investor relations.

In order to response Paul's topic, I would like to separate my article into two parts. The first part is to introduce the optimization of existing Product and Service Quality through Asia Network for Quality (ANQ) Way and briefed the idea of the coming Congress theme. The second part is to share my experience based on the recommendations to maximize the impact of quality across the organization.

“Striving for Excellence through Product and Service Quality” (優化品質 , 邁向卓越) is theme for ANQ Congress 2012 which was voted by HKSQ committee members and the background philosophy was explained by Prof. Frankie Pun (HKSQ-USA representative) below.

Quality is multidimensional and is one main source of competitive differentiation among organizations of different nature in Asia and around the world. Managing product and service quality includes a wide spread of activities, ranging from the time that there is a new idea for a product/service to eventually providing ongoing support and contributions to improvement of human life and living. Product and service quality, people satisfaction, and organization profitability and prosperity are intimately connected. The complete “product/service offering” is what the people (customer/user) looks for and evaluates in line with the ANQ Way. When an organization gets it right, they are successful at every level. When things go wrong, then it is disastrous for the bottom line. Striving for excellence through product and service quality is thus a strategic focus in the Asian economies for this decade.

The ANQ Congress 2012 Hong Kong will bring together quality professional and academicians from around the Asian region and the world to showcase best practices and successes, and share philosophies, theories, methodologies and applications of proven tools in fostering the ANQ Way and the “Power” of product and service quality.

In Hong Kong, some organizations define quality more narrowly as “quality assurance” or some set of tools and techniques for quality control. Most organizations will considered as the way to achieve certification such as ISO 9001 in which aims to enhance marketing benefit, company image and legal requirement. I am now trying to enhance the quality impact across the Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks (HKSTP) using the following actions which match some recommendations of The Conference Board Quality Council.

1. Leverage and define quality at the organizational macro level. (Align quality objectives to corporate key performance indicators (KPIs))
2. Enhance business analytics at the enterprise level to include strategy accomplishment. (We employ customer survey annually and identified the most key items of our service are knowledge sharing and service quality. Then we have “Way Forward” strategy meeting to define the new direction for our development.)
3. Maintain “quality practices” capabilities and expect them to be included in development plans. (We maintain our ISO9001, ISO/IEC 17025, ISO/IEC 27001, OHSAS 18001 capabilities and extend our service scope into different areas for our development plan.)

Eventhough we can't employ all recommendations, I (as quality manager) have responsibility to position the quality concept into strategical level for the top management. I believe what the council believes that quality must be viewed from an enterprise-wide, end-to-end, and holistic level (simply TQM) rather than viewed as just a set of statistical tools and techniques to be successful.

Reference:

ANQ Congress 2012 – www.anq2012.org

Asia Network for Quality – www.anforq.org

Established in 2003, The ANQ WAY states

“Various regions of Asia form Asian Network for Quality with the goal of contributing to creativity, integration, prosperity and quality of human life in Asia through a strategy based on constancy of purpose, knowledge creation, voluntary spirit and system approach to improvement; living the Asian way of harmony in diversity, mutual respect and austerity; following core values based on honesty, flexibility and self-control.”