I don't know many of us in the quality profession who started out with that aim in mind. Like some of you, I suppose, I "fell" into the field of quality. My first experience was as a microbiologist working for a small pharmaceutical company, and then I was re-introduced to it when I was working as a technical writer and editor for a very large aerospace company. I had a great boss who became interested in Total Quality Management in its early days. He believed in giving his subordinates opportunities, so I soon was falling under the spell of W. Edwards Deming, Joseph Juran, Phil Crosby, and others. In no time at all, I was smitten -- no, not with these gurus of quality themselves but with the whole amazing scope of influence quality has within organizations. Not long after that, I was introduced to the Baldrige Program, and my fate was sealed. Quality had become my lifelong passion.
The reason I'm writing about this in my blog is that I began to wonder why quality as a career isn't something that more kids don't consider while they're growing up. It has so many elements that ought to appeal to them -- brainstorming, investigating, problem solving, critical thinking, and many, many more. I believe a big contributor to this phenomenon is a lack of explicit education in quality in many of our K-12 educational institutions. Yes, there are some stellar examples that incorporate quality tools and principles into their classrooms, most notably some of the Baldrige Award recipients. However, it's not yet widespread or even expected.
So, I'm very excited about a recent offering from ASQ's Quality Press, Clare Anne and the Talking Hat by Barbara A. Cleary. This is ASQ's first book offering aimed specifically at grade school children. It's an well-illustrated, engaging book that shows how quality tools can promote student learning while making learning fun. If there is a child in your life that you'd like to introduce to your world of quality, I encourage you to check this out.
Okay Kay, I’m weighing in. This is my first ever blog post. As I’ve travelled the world for ASQ I know that Quality for Life is an impassioned topic often spoken about in the quality community. Everywhere. Yet as impassioned as people are all would agree that everywhere we look there are opportunities to improve life through quality. Whether through saved lives, improved education, more efficient and effective government services, more productive social sector efforts, and of late even global issues. Where is quality playing a role in global warming, in aged care, in improved educational outcomes? I suspect many in the quality community are involved yet we have little ability, at present, to make their involvement and the success of that involvement known. It time, I think, for the quality community to be more visible and both stakes its claim and bring attention to its success in making the world a better place. Talk about unsung heros…
Posted by: Paul Borawski | January 16, 2009 8:39 AM