The Beginning of Quality

September 9, 2019 — Troy Corrente

Quality can be defined as the degree of excellence of something.  What brings about that degree of excellence when taken in terms of delivering products and services?  For a starting point to that answer, let’s ask another question.  Where does quality begin?

Some may believe that quality begins with a quality assurance team.  After all, the word quality is right there in the name.  Yet is that really where quality should begin?  Others would assert that quality begins with each individual, and that each individual has a part in the end result.  Who are those individuals?  Well, they are YOU.

YOU have a say in quality.  Why accept poor quality?  YOU can either own quality or YOU can pass the buck.  Either way YOU take part in the end result.  Our philosophy is to instill the ownership of quality with everyone we work with.  And while quality can be time consuming to achieve, the lasting effects of quality (or lack thereof) are obvious.  It is our philosophy that quality and longevity go hand in hand, and quality can turn a client/vendor relationship into a partnership relationship.

Has anyone ever regretted purchasing a quality product or service?  The answer may be yes in rare circumstances, but I would argue that the majority would answer no.  Most everyone appreciates quality, and quality brings longevity on many fronts.  Not only will a quality product/service deliver satisfaction for both client and vendor, but quality can also form bonding partnerships between those same parties that can last over a long period of time.  It is here where the true benefits of quality shine.  The time spent to find new trusted partners is expensive, but when ownership of quality is achieved from every partner, then time and expense can be minimized.

Quality is not a given.  All partners must constantly reinforce the values, dedication, and hard work that originally brought about solid quality.  Without constant inspection and reinforcement quality can, and likely will, slip over time.  Resting on one’s laurels is never a good formula for future success.

So, what are some specifics of what all partners can do to own and achieve quality.  Let’s take a simple example.  Let us assume there are 5 entities involved in a partnership.

A person seeking a good/service (Customer) – The Customer can own quality by being communicative and explicit in what the expectations are for the good/service desired.
A vendor who has capabilities to provide the good/service (Company) – The Company can own quality by empowering and enforcing that its employees settle for nothing less than the best quality.
A project manager that works for the company (PM) – The PM can own quality by demanding that all parties stay on task and actively communicate to overcome roadblocks along the way.
A programmer that works for the company (Dev) – The Dev can own quality by following proper standards of programming and not solely relying on QA to deliver quality.
A tester that works for the company (QA) – The QA can own quality by gaining full understanding of the product/service prior to any actual testing.

The processes in this example are obvious and overly simplistic, yet if any one of them is not followed, quality may be put in jeopardy.

Quality can be achieved in many ways.  Our belief is that everyone has a role in quality.  And consistent quality begins with YOU.  Holding each participant accountable to that end helps accomplish quality and longevity.  It is these principles that can lead to satisfaction of a job well done, excellence, and happiness for all involved.

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Troy Corrente

Senior QA Manager/GIS Consultants Manager

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