Quality Management Program
MISSION, VALUES, AND BELIEFS
A supplier's Quality Management Program should establish a culture, an attitude, and an organization that strives to provide customers with a level of service that satisfies their needs and exceeds their expectations. Fundamentally, a corporate culture must be suffused with Quality as an overarching objective in every aspect of the company's operations. Each and every process which can touch the customer either directly or indirectly (and few processes fail this test) must be understood to have no acceptable failure rate. Only in an environment committed to an ethic of service to the customer can a Quality Management Program flourish.
QUALITY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM
A Quality Management Program (Figure 1) seeks to integrate all organizational functions (marketing, finance, design, engineering, information technology, customer service, etc.) to focus on meeting customer needs and organizational objectives.
The Quality Management Program views the organization as a continuum of processes with each process having its own service objective. The call to action, however, for each and every process is clear: Do the right things; right the first time, every time. Process activities as varied as the ones that follow are part and parcel of a comprehensive Quality Management Program.
- Commitment by senior management and all employees
- Meeting customer requirements
- Reducing delivery cycle times
- Just-in-time/demand flow configuration and services
- Improvement teams
- Reducing product and service costs
- Systems to facilitate improvement
- Line management ownership
- Employee involvement and empowerment
- Recognition and celebration
- Challenging quantified goals and benchmarking
- Focus on processes/improvement plans
- Specific incorporation in strategic planning
At TIS, we have made a commitment to meeting the needs of the customer with service excellence and, as a result, have imbued the entire organization with a corresponding mission, values, and beliefs.
EMPOWERMENT ON BEHALF OF THE CUSTOMER
The TIS commitment to excellence permeates the entire organization. There is ownership and accountability, not just of function, but of process, and each is focused on how best to exceed the customer's needs. This approach enables meaningful goal-setting and measurement. It also encourages critical thinking and rewards positive results.
The empowerment of the TIS human resource is arguably the organization's most potent competitive advantage. The positive results impact all work performed. The results are recognized by the customer via improved performance metrics and more cost-effective solutions.
Those employees meeting the TIS challenge of excellence find a workplace where achievements are commensurate with the challenges. The pursuit of excellence and the accountability for results are cornerstones of the TIS Quality Management Program.
QUALITY MANAGEMENT PROGRAM STRUCTURE
The three distinct and complementary segments that make up the TIS Quality Management Program are:
- QUALITY CONTROL
- QUALITY ASSURANCE
- CONTINUOUS PROCESS IMPROVEMENT
1] Quality Control
TIS Quality Control (Figure 2) is based on a repeatable processes that provide a road map for delivery of device configuration and field services. This approach increases the likelihood of project success while mitigating risk for both TIS and the customer. The reduction of risk allows TIS to provide customers with more efficient and more cost-effective services than would otherwise be possible.
Generally, a repeatable process consists of a series of tasks that are performed in sequence. Each task is performed by a specific organizational unit and produces a specific tangible result. The results are called deliverables. The tasks are grouped into phases. Each phase ends with a decision point for the customer and TIS to evaluate results before deciding to proceed to the next phase. This approach allows for the resetting of performance standards as well as making adjustments to process execution.
As a project progresses from phase to phase, it is essential that both the customer and TIS accomplish their assigned tasks and build a cooperative relationship that will result in an environment conducive to accomplishing their respective business objectives. Each phase is owned by a TIS organizational unit. The appropriate organization is then responsible for coordinating the activities of all phase participants and maintaining an appropriate pace that meets or surpasses the needs of the customer.
2] Quality Assurance
Quality Assurance (Figure 3) is the compliance arm of the TIS Quality Management Program. It provides the customer and TIS with the oversight necessary to ensure compliance of deliverables during project execution. Quality Assurance requires that processes be followed, that deliverables produced during the project execution meet the needs of the organization, and that management policy is being followed.
The TIS Quality Assurance Group is represented at the director level within the organization. But the real strength of this function is the understanding that Quality is everyone's business. There are a number of methods used to track and report Quality. They include project audits, end-of-phase reviews, event tracking, site inspections, standards, and templates.
The customer is an active part of Quality Assurance through effective issue escalation/resolution and participation in the feedback phase of the repeatable process. The feedback mechanism is essential to continuous process improvement and TIS' ability to exceed customer expectations.
3] Continuous Process Improvement
Since change is inevitable, we plan for it (Figure 4). Customer requirements, technology, devices, methods, procedures, and policies change over time. We expect the entire TIS organization to adapt to meeting the customer's needs better, faster, and more cost-effectively than not just our competition, but our own prior efforts.
Detecting change is facilitated by our "Dash Board" approach to monitoring metrics during the delivery process. Periodic reviews of process, procedures, financials, and policy are thoroughly conducted. Feedback from customers-as a part of the end-of-project reviews-provide major input to facilitate change management.
Our commitment to excellence doesn't end there. The entire TIS organization is involved and empowered to better every aspect of its work. Employees are recognized and rewarded for suggesting improvements. Line management has ownership of their area of the business and process enhancement is incorporated into strategic planning.
Adherence to process is both the customer's and TIS' best method of ensuring that policy is being followed. It provides the structure for implementing change throughout the organization on a consistent basis. It enables TIS to meet its goal of being the leader for service excellence in the industry.
Metrics of Service Delivery
TIS is committed to making quality of service the number one driving force behind all of its actions. Consequently, the tracking of performance against standards is vital. Monitoring whether a gap exists between the customer's expectations and our service delivery provides an accurate and honest account of our efforts to deliver on our promises. Therefore, the measurement of service delivery is comprehensive:
Pace Metrics track the availability of resources against customer demands. The pace required to meet demand is maintained by smoothing the peaks and valleys of demand. The better able we are to maintain this pace the more cost-effective we are on customer engagements.
Cost Driver Metrics are critical to maintaining project scope. A cost driver metric is any data point that directly impacts the cost of services. Maintaining the integrity of project scope prevents "scope creep." TIS' ability to minimize the gradual escalation of scope of work safeguards customer resources.
Performance Metrics are essential to causal analysis. Issues occur during a technology deployment. A major component of meeting customer expectations is the speed and flexibility of resolving issues. The effective administration of issue escalation and resolution is a focal point of metric tracking.
Benchmark Metrics represent milestones that are reviewed periodically during the execution of a customer project. They indicate the overall well-being of the project and potentially point out the need for corrective action by either TIS or the customer.
Total Customer Satisfaction: The Ultimate Measure Of Performance
The TIS standard of service excellence is simple yet ambitious.This standard (figure 5) is at the apex of the TIS Quality Management Program, which is set upon the Company's foundation of values and beliefs. This, in turn, establishes a culture of service conducive to the empowerment of employees to act on the customer's behalf. The policies that result are in place to ensure a comprehensive and organization-wide focus on processes and process metrics consistent with our overall stated mission: Total Customer Satisfaction.
For more information regarding TIS' Quality Management Program, please contact the Director of Engineering Management: 561-998-9847.