Every organization faces risks that could impact its objectives. Organizations that have identified risks and committed to the effective management of those risks will be better prepared to deal with them. This handbook, published jointly by ISO and UNIDO, provides valuable insights into the implementation of ISO 31000 Risk management – Guidelines.Read the full article … [Read more...] about ISO 31000:2018-Risk Management: A Practical Guide
Becoming a Quality Engineer – Roles, Qualifications, Salary and Career Paths
What is a Quality Engineer?The term ‘quality engineer’ has been used in different ways by various industries, but some common definitions include:1) A person who inspects or tests materials, components, equipment, or parts, including checking for defects, measuring dimensions and tolerances, and performing tests on samples.2) An individual employed by an organization whose … [Read more...] about Becoming a Quality Engineer – Roles, Qualifications, Salary and Career Paths
What is a management system? A brief explanation and introduction
Management systems distinguish professional companies from those in which things happen randomly and on-demand.Different motives underlie the introduction of management systems:Business causes: Companies want to improve their performance and efficiency.Competitive causes: Companies want to be certified to a management system (e.g., ISO 9001:2015).Regulatory … [Read more...] about What is a management system? A brief explanation and introduction
How Smart Leaders Spot Ideas No-One Else Does
Most disruptive ideas arise outside an industry. Leaders need a more open mindset to see early signals of change and respond to disruption.Today’s post is by Kurt Matzler, co-author of Open Strategy: Mastering Disruption from Outside the C-Suite (CLICK HERE to get your copy).In 1938, MIT student Claude Shannon solved one of the most complex problems of … [Read more...] about How Smart Leaders Spot Ideas No-One Else Does
Fortify Your Business: Five Practices for Stellar Cybersecurity
The human element remains the weakest link in cybersecurity, as an annual report reveals that 85 percent of all data breaches are in one way or another caused by an employee. As digital technologies become essential in modern organizations, no industry is safe from cybercriminals exploiting their weak spots.“Identifying where the risks lie is a good start,” … [Read more...] about Fortify Your Business: Five Practices for Stellar Cybersecurity
How Small Manufacturers Can Develop Risk Management Strategies for Supply Chains
The COVID-19 pandemic brought to light a stark reality about current supply chains. As Nissan Motor Co.’s Chief Operating Officer Ashwani Gupta points out, “The just-in-time model is designed for supply-chain efficiencies and economies of scale. The repercussions of an unprecedented crisis like COVID highlight the fragility of our supply-chain model.”The U.S. supply chain has … [Read more...] about How Small Manufacturers Can Develop Risk Management Strategies for Supply Chains
Fusing High Performance and Manufacturability with SDfM
Simulation technology is continually advancing to model increasingly real-world product behavior; however, many companies lag in its adoption.A recent survey found that only 37 percent of respondents said they applied manufacturing simulation during the product design phase. The vast majority were checking product manufacturability only once the design was … [Read more...] about Fusing High Performance and Manufacturability with SDfM
Big Data Analytics in Manufacturing Industry
Manufacturing is one of the most important industries in the world’s economy. It accounts for ~16% of global GDP in 2019 and has generated an output of 13.9 trillion globally. US and China are the leading manufacturers globally, accounting for 4 trillion and 2.5 trillion manufacturing output respectively in 2019. India stands at 5th position with 0.42 trillion output, … [Read more...] about Big Data Analytics in Manufacturing Industry
Remove Error From Your Business Operations Using a Pareto Chart (How to Create a Pareto Chart in 10 Steps)
The Pareto Chart is a powerful tool that maintains the quality of services and products. Decision making is steered in the right direction, meaning efforts are streamlined to maximize output quality.When implemented properly, Pareto analysis – via the Pareto chart – will identify major pitfalls in any business process in order to improve quality. This analysis uses the Pareto … [Read more...] about Remove Error From Your Business Operations Using a Pareto Chart (How to Create a Pareto Chart in 10 Steps)
Why the growth of climate and ESG inside boardrooms gives me hope
There has been a plethora of reports or surveys this year about the ESG and climate competencies of boards of directors around the world. This is definitely a good thing.Tensie Whelan from the NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business set the tone in January with a new study examining ESG competencies in boardrooms. According to the report, U.S. Corporate Boards Suffer … [Read more...] about Why the growth of climate and ESG inside boardrooms gives me hope
How ESG is changing talent needs
As more companies take note of the ESG trend, I’ve been fielding client questions about how ESG is changing talent needsIn my view, ESG is having an impact in three key ways: It’s changing how we talk about the role of business in social and environmental issues, it’s catalyzing big new investments and it’s creating a demand for talent that the market is not yet ready to … [Read more...] about How ESG is changing talent needs
Risk-Based Thinking (RBT) in ISO 9001:2015
Risk-based thinking is an approach to managing quality that focuses on identifying potential problems before they occur. It involves taking a systematic look at how products or services are produced and then considering what could go wrong and what steps can be taken to reduce the likelihood of this happening.By implementing risk-based thinking into your Quality Management … [Read more...] about Risk-Based Thinking (RBT) in ISO 9001:2015
Lean lessons for the climate crisis
FROM COMPETITIVENESS TO SURVIVALWe live in very different times than when we first discovered lean over 30 years ago. We are in the midst of a climate crisis that threatens our very existence on this planet, and it is obvious this calls for a very different response than what we have done until now. Indeed, it is no longer about competitiveness, but about … [Read more...] about Lean lessons for the climate crisis
Women Leaders in Manufacturing and Performance-Improvement Initiatives
Just this past week, Shannon Karels and Kathy Miller published a very important book that describes the transformation they led to converting operations from traditional manufacturing to a Lean enterprise. It is entitled Steel Toes and Stilettos: A True Story of Women Manufacturing Leaders and Lean Transformation Success, and their story provides a … [Read more...] about Women Leaders in Manufacturing and Performance-Improvement Initiatives
What is ISO 19011: 2018 -Auditing Management Systems
ISO 19011 is defined as the standard that sets forth guidelines for auditing management systems. The standard contains guidance on managing an audit program, the principles of auditing, and the evaluation of individuals responsible for managing the audit programs. An audit program consists of the arrangements made to complete all of the individual audits needed to … [Read more...] about What is ISO 19011: 2018 -Auditing Management Systems
Beyond Compliance: Meaningful Benefits of ISO 9001 for Small Businesses
Increasingly, business owners recognize the benefits of ISO 9001 for small businesses. In a 2020 ISO 9001 user survey, 38% of companies implementing ISO 9001 had fewer than 50 employees.ISO 9001 can have a transformational impact – especially for a small business – when combined with a digital quality management system (QMS).Increased adoption of ISO 9001 by SMEsAccording … [Read more...] about Beyond Compliance: Meaningful Benefits of ISO 9001 for Small Businesses
Quality Control and Quality Assurance: What’s the Difference?
Many people get confused about what constitutes quality control (QC) and quality assurance (QA). It’s important to understand the differences and how they both play vital but distinct roles in helping an enterprise achieve the highest quality standards.QA and QC work together as part of an overall quality management system (QMS) and both are essential for achieving and … [Read more...] about Quality Control and Quality Assurance: What’s the Difference?
How Employees Can Become Better Organizational Citizens
Food Co., a pseudonym for a large food processing plant in the U.S. Northeast, had been operating successfully for several years when the plant manager realized he had a problem he couldn’t solve alone.The employees did their jobs well, but they didn’t seem to care much about taking care of each other. Workers were reluctant to call out unsafe practices when they witnessed them … [Read more...] about How Employees Can Become Better Organizational Citizens
Garvin’s 8 Dimensions of Quality
In 1987 David Garvin suggested that there are eight dimensions to quality.These eight dimensions are performance, features, reliability, conformance, durability, serviceability, aesthetics, and perceived quality. They are the things that make it stand out from its competitors and give it value. These are the things that differentiate your business from others in the … [Read more...] about Garvin’s 8 Dimensions of Quality