Think Beyond Quality for Quality’s Sake

Authored by:

Mario J. Maltese, Director Emeritus

The Association for Quality in Audio Visual

Mario J. Maltese, Director Emeritus

The Association for Quality in Audio Visual

Did you ever notice that you can sense the energy level of a company in just a few minutes? Consider these two hypothetical AV companies:

Compare that with “AOK AV”. There is excitement when they turn over a new system with no defects, on time, and all functions perform as expected. In fact, better than expected, and the customer is also excited to experience what he was hoping for after investing decent capital in the new technologies. AOK’s employees provide satisfactory answers to customers’ questions, and the response time is impressive. Employees seem well-informed, experienced, and obviously well-equipped with the latest tools and instrumentation that impresses the observer. They appear to have ALL the resources required to do their job. They follow checklists. The AV system starts playing background music through the system almost as it is being installed. They make things look easy. They smile and make groan-worthy dad jokes that disclose their confidence.

There are TWO overarching reasons that make all the difference in the cultures of these two companies. They are:

A Quality Management System, or QMS. That is, a system of processes that a company defines and follows to ensure that every customer gets the system installed on time, defect-free, and performing to expectations. Consistency, repeatability, and traceability are built in with every delivery. AQAV’s AV9000 standard provides powerful, effective checklists that a company can integrate into its Quality Management System to achieve these attributes when followed.

But the differences between “ABC” and AOK” go beyond the QMS. “Management” applies to material things, i.e., financial management, facilities management, documentation management, procedures management, and so on. But the observer ALSO sees the difference in the PEOPLE, the employees. Communications with people isn’t Management.

Thp=-o-/e second overarching reason for the cultural difference is Leadership.

What the AOK people also have is a Quality Leadership System, or QLS. That difference is all about the “human systems” that are designing and installing the “AV systems”. Given the complexity of the audiovisual technology, you can see that the leadership required to interact in a positive way with AV employees is also more complex and challenging. Every leader in the company has as their primary activity (1) clarifying goals, (2) giving feedback on employee performance through appreciation and recognition. A leader must communicate clearly and without ambiguity. They must communicate transparently and dispassionately, even when it is uncomfortable to do so. Admittedly, not everyone has the emotional maturity to lead. Those who go defensive when challenged may not have the emotional strength to help others grow, and keeping them in those positions has a cancerous effect on the whole company.

The ISO9000 International Standard for quality management systems is the optimal model to follow, with the AV9000 Standard as its metrics for the AV industry. The model for a quality leadership system will also come from outside the industry. In the United States, we have the Malcolm Baldrige Criteria for Excellence, and other countries have similar models. The Malcolm Baldrige Award is given each year in several categories and can be used as a basis for a QLS, as it includes a series of audits to rate a company, making it a perfect model to strive for.

If the Malcom Baldrige Criteria is the destination, the journey may require other resources. The criteria address ALL the stakeholders involved with a corporation: the stockholders, the employees, the customers, the vendors, the communities in which the company operates, the governments, and the environment. An effective QLS should address all three personas inside of each employee: the mind, the heart, and the hand. Most so-called “clever” leaders who only focus on revenue volume completely overlook the potential that exists in each employee that they are already paying for.

“Fine art is that in which the hand, the head, and the heart of man go together.” (John Ruskin). For AV work, it’s a balance of craftsmanship, intellect, and passion. Aligning those three entities in every employee is the goal of a Quality Leadership System, which I will define as a system of policies, processes, and activities that is imbued into a leadership cadre of a company to ensure a culture of head, heart, and hand alignment with the company’s stated goals. The system is intertwined with the Quality Management System such that they mutually reinforce each other.

The Quality Leadership System Described

Together, this is a culture characterized and includes the following:

•          A documented policy that addresses the company’s position on Quality AND effective Leadership and defines what the company stands for.

•          A culture of error tolerance, fostering learning of new skills, trying new innovative approaches, and personal growth. When defects are identified, the reaction is not to fix blame, but to fix the system, to ensure similar defects cannot occur.

•          An upside-down organization chart. That is, individuals in direct contact with the customer are at the top of the chart. Leaders come below them, supporting them with the necessary resources to satisfy the customer.

•          A culture where everyone, both operational and support/administrative personnel are united into the QMS.

•          A culture where the supervisor cadre receives additional periodic developmental training focused on the effectiveness of the QLS, and includes leadership criteria-based training and exercises.

•          A culture where every employee participates in two-way performance reviews, where individual goals are shared with their supervisors, seeking alignment with the company’s goals, and feedback on the results, both employee performance and the supervisor’s leadership performance.

•          A culture where criteria-based training is applied throughout each company’s training module. Getting a grade of 80% is nice, but did the instructor verify through performance observations that the employee had acquired the skill?

•          A company where its leadership accepts responsibility for addressing the training, the morale, and the health of every employee.

•          A company that takes advantage of positive Group Dynamics, recognizing that an official leader gives way when appropriate to an “unofficial” leader in a particular situation, the individual with the needed technical, team-centric, or experience expertise that produces the solution. Some call this the “herd instinct”. This occurs when everyone is aligned with what the company stands for.

•          A company where every employee participates in internal audits, corrective and preventive actions, and can exert some control in their jobs.

•          A company engaged in its community’s charities, STEM programs in local schools, athletic team uniform sponsorships (even “mathletes”), and other outreach programs. It is interesting to note that I once served on the technical team for InfoComm’s job force initiative program supporting the national “Skills USA” competition. The program was abandoned after drawing the conclusion that for it to be successful, it must take place at the local level.

•          A company with employees willing to follow not because of fear, but because they feel that doing so is in their best interest, since the leadership has proven themselves to “have their backs”.

The intelligence behind these characteristics is self-evident, and there are sound receipts that back them up.

Summary

When an employee arrives at work, is mentally, emotionally, and physically fit, is motivated to get the work done, has all the information to do the job, has all the training and resources to fulfill the task, has all the proper tools and instrumentation for it as well, it ceases being “work” and becomes a labor of love. The employee has pride and satisfaction. There is confidence, and yes, corny jokes. The head, the heart, and the hand are united in mindful work. There is little turnover, nonexistent legal issues regarding employment, nonexistent inventory shrinkage, and high morale. To reach this objective requires both Quality Management and Quality Leadership, and requires defined systems that are applied throughout the company.

This stands in stark contrast to an era of private equity and of so-called clever billionaires who can’t even recognize the genius in their employees. It also departs from small businesses that focus only on revenue growth for the owners and see customers and employees as adversaries. These people essentially destroy the goose laying the golden eggs out of pure ignorance. Cleverness is good, necessary, and helpful in dealing with competition and revenue growth. But intelligence with cleverness is even better.

I have experienced the effects of having a QMS and QLS in place. It works. It’s fun. It’s profitable. I wish more companies could experience it.

Which of the two companies described above would YOU prefer to join?