Managing quality for quality outcomes

In today’s competitive climate it is increasingly important for an organisation to foster client confidence in the products and or services that they provide. It is no longer adequate for an organisation to rely solely on its past record or reputation. An organisation may demonstrate its commitment to ensuring client confidence through: (a) Implementation of a Quality Assurance Management System (QAMS) (b) Certification of that system to a relevant recognised standard, and (c) Subsequent management and monitoring of the system through formal documented procedures. This paper will briefly discuss the initial steps of a QAMS such as development, documentation and implementation. However, the main emphasis will be directed towards the on-going management of the system to achieve quality outcomes. A combination of formal and informal processes, including planning, auditing, observations and actions are employed to demonstrate compliance of the QAMS to the relevant standard. In addition, these processes verify that the documented procedures and processes are in place to deliver the quality goals desired by both organisation and client. Managing quality for quality outcomes is the essential element for realising optimum benefit to all sectors of the organisation, its business partners and client relationships.