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17 Defining Quality
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THE NEW WAY: Quality is absolute.
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True innovation is something very different from one-upmanship. It does not sprout from new heights, it springs from new insights. That is why the new mandate for companies in the twenty-first century is quality innovation. |
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Success in quality innovation will be awarded to companies that can develop a sharp, and almost intuitive focus on and anticipation of customer needs. As such, the definition of high quality is determined by asking what is possible, not by looking at what competitors are doing. And because customers often do not know what they want until they see it, asking them what they need is very often wasted effort as well. (Product Innovation)
We must observe customers to serve customers. Only by watching how customers behave or operate, can we understand how our products and services should be designed, produced and provided. |
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Indeed, the very definition of competition changes when companies accept that quality is absolute. Consider for a moment the competition that exists for business travelers. It used to be all about various airline companies undercutting and out-doing one another. But then different kinds of companies began to look at the needs of business travelers. They developed an understanding of the problems these people faced, and offered an alternative that avoided them. These are the pioneering technology companies that empower business people to "meet" without travelling. This is possible with video teleconferencing. |
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All of a sudden, airline companies are facing a whole new breed of competitors — ones that cannot be beaten with the same old reactive strategies. In fact, it was the reactive posture of the airlines that totally blinded them to the threat of video teleconferencing in the first place. Their relative perspective on quality lead them to define their competitors, their customers and even their own products and services in familiar ways. No doubt, this was very comfortable and reassuring, because they did not have to learn anything. Unfortunately for the airlines though, technology companies were learning, and did redefine the entire competition. |
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Ascribing to a relativistic perspective on quality dooms an organization to a reactive stance and a peculiar blindness for opportunities and innovations alike. By assuming a more fundamental and even an absolute perspective on quality, tremendous insights become visible. This happens as we find ways to translate customer needs, desires and ideals, into products and services which perfectly satisfy every yearning they have, regardless of whether they have recognized them yet, or not. |
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The airline versus teleconferencing industry story illustrates the concept of discontinuous thinking — the application of new perspectives to old situations. In discontinuous thinking, the aim is not necessarily to fix problems, but rather to bypass them altogether — creating new possibilities. (Say's Law)
As such, discontinuous thinking represents the ultimate expression of quality innovation. It is not a process of answers, but rather of questions. Only by asking new, unorthodox and incisive questions can companies understand how to meet customer needs in ways that redefine the competitive playing field. It is this redefinition which brings competition to new heights, where adversaries are not beaten, but rather excluded. |
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Of course, companies will always face competition from organizations that are relatively similar to themselves. This is where the absolute perspective on quality is somewhat more familiar than discontinuous thinking. Here, companies do not just seek to undercut or out-do their competitors — they seek to leave them behind altogether. Innovations are driven by what is possible, not the lowest common denominator of what is necessary. The goal here is to be the best in the world, not merely the best in the neighbourhood. Ideally, every customer in your market would be made to recognize that your company provides world-class excellence of no equal. |
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To do this, companies must use the best subcontractors and suppliers they can find, and then develop a strong partnership with them to innovate and improve quality constantly. Purchase decisions based on price tag are a thing of the past, as are production quotas that force employees to produce quantity at the expense of quality. |
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Another approach that must be abandoned is the use of regulated production systems, such as continuous pace assembly lines. These approaches remove control from employees and reduce their flexibility. (Self Directed Work Teams) Moreover, such systems depersonalize working relationships and squash all hope of employee pride or commitment. These are the things which give employees the dreaded "I just work here" attitude. |
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Success in quality innovation is built on mutually beneficial relationships between suppliers and customers, and employers and employees. High quality products and services can only be made with high quality people and organizations. This is why "satisfactory" has become unsatisfactory. It is why quality must be absolute. |
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Only by asking new, unorthodox and incisive questions
can companies understand how to meet customer needs
in ways that redefine the competitive playing field.
For more information about our Quality Training Services, CLICK HERE.
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