Many organisations develop what could be considered as a bolt on quality system, rather than integrated solution and are driven primarily by the need to satisfy the regulator that a compliant quality system is implemented. This means they miss the opportunity to benefit from the savings which arise from a truly effective Quality System. Even though such a bolt on arrangement often complies with the minimum of regulatory requirements, it usually falls far short of a system which is fully supportive of, and provides tangible benefits for, the organisation.
So who is responsible for quality in an organisation? One of the first answers is usually the Quality Manager. This partially true but is not correct – the Quality Manager is responsible for Quality Assurance but should not be responsible for Quality Control.
There are actually two correct answers. The legally correct answer is the Accountable Manager, who signs a statement to the effect that he or she accepts responsibility for the organisation to comply with not just quality but also with the need of the organisation to satisfy all safety requirements. However, the other is ‘we all are’, which means everyone has a shared responsibility to work within the organisation to ensure delivery of a quality product. This is an important message that must be communicated to the work force in a meaningful and effective way, a challenge that also highlights the need for effective communication throughout the organisation.
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