Quality requires work and time to achieve

Claire Ford, CEO of Quality Scotland, writes for The Scotsman. Picture: Lisa Ferguson

Quality is one of those words that is used a lot and in many cases without any real weight or rigour behind it.

If quality is now seen as a mandatory requirement, a tick box exercise when people simply conform to a standard or prepare for an audit and is it really a true reflection of quality and excellence?

An organisation that is steeped in quality is about much more than conforming and is a true exemplar of business excellence.

At the recent European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) Awards the organisations recognised, such as BMW and Bosch, haven’t become excellent organisations overnight.

They have used the EFQM Excellence Model as a management tool to allow them to focus on the main priority areas for improvement and reinforce their strengths.

Understanding how to start the process of improvement is what we support organisations with every day.

This year we launched Equip, an online self-assessment tool making it simple and straightforward for organisations to critically look at themselves over a one-day facilitated session.

We can now offer our members a highly efficient and effective way of gathering the vital information that they need to drive forward.

Visit www.qualityscotland.co.uk for more information on how Quality Scotland can help you improve your business performance.

• Claire Ford is CEO, Quality Scotland