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#QUALITYtweet, Book 01 140 Bite PDF
#QUALITYtweet, Book 01 140 Bite PDF
By Tanmay Vora
Foreword by Dr. Pankaj Jalote
Copyright © 2009 by Tanmay Vora
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All terms mentioned in this book that are known to be
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capitalized. Happy About® and its imprint, THINKaha™,
cannot attest to the accuracy of this information. Use of a
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Contents
Foreword by Dr. Pankaj Jalote 9
Chapter I
People & Quality 11
Chapter II
Process & Quality 39
Chapter III
Management, Leadership, & Quality 65
Foreword by
Dr. Pankaj Jalote
‘#QUALITYtweet’ is a brilliant
compilation of practical ideas
that ignites thought processes
to improve and excel.
Dr. Pankaj Jalote
Director, Indraprastha Institute of
Information Technology, Delhi, India
Professor, Indian Institute of Technology,
Delhi, India
Author of several books on
software quality and management
Past editorial board member, IEEE
Transactions on Software Eng.
Visit him at:
http://www.cse.iitd.ernet.in/~jalote/
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
#QUALITYtweet 11
Chapter I
People & Quality
Organizations are comprised of
people. The “human factor” can
become your biggest obstacle
on the journey to quality if not
managed carefully. The attitudes
of your people and their alignment
to your vision are the two most
important factors for organizational
success. This chapter offers
practical “twinsights” on the “people
aspect” and how such perceptions
can impact the improvement,
initiative, and overall quality of
experience your organization
delivers to its customers.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
Great quality is a
by-product of good
people passionately
working towards an
organization’s goals.
#QUALITYtweet 13
2
The recipe for great
quality = the right people following
the right processes, employing the
right tools at the right time.
3
If your internal customers
(people) are not happy, how
can you delight your external
customers (clients)?
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
4
Mediocre people will rarely
produce great quality, even with
world-class processes.
5
Don’t reward heroic efforts for fixing
problems that should have been
avoided in the first place.
#QUALITYtweet 15
7
No certification will save
the project if you staff it
with poor resources.
8
In a “quality aware” team,
people know that quality is
everybody’s responsibility.
#QUALITYtweet 17
If quality improvement
isn’t anybody’s job, it
is not surprising that it
doesn’t get done.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
10
Process challenge
#1: to ensure that
processes are not used
as excuses for not
getting a job done.
#QUALITYtweet 19
11
Top two reasons for poor quality:
people don’t know how to do it, or
they lack the resolve to get it done.
12
Implementing a change is far
easier when people are involved
in defining the change.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
13
You increase the
probability of quality
output by assigning
the right job to the
right person. Leverage
the strengths
of your people.
#QUALITYtweet 21
14
The attitudes and behaviors of
your executives play a huge role in
determining the quality
of your service.
15
It is easier for you to generate
quality outputs consistently if
you really love what you do.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
17
The quality of your work as a
professional is also an assessment
of your confidence, integrity,
thinking, and self-worth.
#QUALITYtweet 23
18
19
20
Your team is more likely to produce
quality when the purpose of your
product excites them.
21
People who are uncomfortable
with the “status quo” are the best
candidates for your
process-improvement team.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
23
If you don’t periodically review the
progress of your quality initiative
with your team, you are giving them a
reason to slow down.
#QUALITYtweet 27
24
With a “carrot and stick” approach
people will comply dispassionately.
For passionate involvement, they
need to be self-motivated.
25
Implementing change means
providing the freedom to make
mistakes. Change can never happen
when there is fear within.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
“TEAM INTERACTION”
#QUALITYtweet 29
26
Q: Want to feel
the pulse of any
organization?
A: Just observe how
well its teams interact
with each other.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
27
A good process
delights the people
who use it, enhances
their ability to do
more, and
creates value for
the organization.
#QUALITYtweet 31
28
People who let their quality speak
make a profound statement.
29
Critical question: how does this
improved process improve my
team’s ability to perform?
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
30
31
Everything we do is a process that
can always be improved.
32
The key to process improvement:
realize that people need time and
encouragement to change.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
33
To deliver quality is to SERVE (in a
way your customer expects).
34
Improving the quality of
communication with your teams
and customers directly improves the
quality of the customers’ experience.
#QUALITYtweet 35
35
36
Two great wastes in any
organization: not speaking and
not listening.
37
The quality you produce is
a reflection of your body of
knowledge, depth of experience,
and ability to execute.
#QUALITYtweet 37
38
You can cope with a lack of
ABILITY, but not with
a lack of INTENT.
39
How NOT to deliver total quality:
focus on quality of product without
focusing on quality of relationship
and communication.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
40
Chapter II
Process & Quality
41
“Quality product” is an
assessment your customers will
make. Not you.
42
The secret of generating excellent
quality is to get it right the first
time at every stage of the process.
#QUALITYtweet 41
43
44
Having a process and not
following it is no better than
having no process at all.
45
The ultimate fantasy: expecting
quality from a team without
communicating your
expectations on quality.
#QUALITYtweet 43
46
Measure your process because
you cannot control what you
cannot measure.
47
Don’t just deploy processes; ingrain
them in your culture.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
48
Critical question: does your quality
system REALLY help you build
quality in your products?
49
Common-sense quality metric: how
many hours does your team spend
correcting errors?
#QUALITYtweet 45
50
Quality 101: the rate of your process
innovation should always be greater
than the rate of change in a client’s
quality expectations.
51
Process improvement cycle:
define > refine > train > implement >
monitor > improve.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
#QUALITYtweet 47
52
53
Critical question: when did you
last assess how your customers,
suppliers, and people perceive you?
54
Effective processes are not only
about “plan and control.” It is also
“culture and behavior” that helps
build quality.
#QUALITYtweet 49
55
The most difficult aspects of creating
a process culture are: engagement,
communication, collaboration, trust,
teamwork, and motivation.
56
Never let your processes come in
the way of solving your customer’s
immediate problems.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
57
“Cure” precedes
“prevention.” You can
think of prevention
after you have learned
how to cure the
immediate problems
of your customers.
#QUALITYtweet 51
58
Early wins in
initial phase = great momentum for
rest of your improvement journey.
59
The tools you use for automating
your processes are like grease.
They help a great deal in a
“smooth” implementation.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
60
It is easier to spend time improving
quality than justifying poor quality.
61
Process improvement =
simplification + clarity.
#QUALITYtweet 53
62
All improvement
is incremental,
never a single shot
to perfection.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
63
Improvement is more
about lessons applied than
lessons learned.
64
Organizations have a poor
memory. Lessons learned are
soon forgotten if they are not
formulated into a process.
#QUALITYtweet 55
65
Garnish the recipe of your processes
with ingredients like trust,
collaboration, controls, measures,
and incentives.
66
Formal inspections can be
a huge waste of resources
if you have not invested in
getting it right the first time.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
67
EASY: to invent a
work-around
to the problem.
DIFFICULT: to address
the root cause
of the problem.
#QUALITYtweet 57
68
Want to add complexity? Get
obsessed with a solution without
focusing on the real problem.
69
A complex solution to a
simple problem adds more
complex problems as a
by-product of that solution.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
70
71
72
You reduce waste not by
improving things, but by
improving the “right” things.
73
In a seemingly “messy”
conflict lies an opportunity
to improve something.
#QUALITYtweet 61
74
A well-defined
problem is already
half solved.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
75
No process will deliver results
if your expectations of the
process are unreasonable.
76
The only problems you can SOLVE
are the ones you can SPOT.
#QUALITYtweet 63
77
The three Es of a good process:
efficient, effective, and enjoyable.
78
The best practices are contextual
– they worked well for someone in a
given context. Are you applying them
in the right context?
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
79
Critical improvement goal:
reduce the time spent on re-work
and inspections.
80
EASY: improving
what exists.
DIFFICULT: identifying
what is missing.
#QUALITYtweet 65
Chapter III
Management, Leadership,
& Quality
No organizational or cultural
improvement is possible without
management commitment.
Leaders play a pivotal role in
“aligning” the organizational
values, processes, and people to
a common vision. Commitment
to quality begins at the top and
trickles down in an organization.
This chapter addresses the “soft”
aspect (but often a “hard” one) of
what is required of management
and leadership to drive excellence.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
81
The core of a quality
system is having
confident managers
who realize that
caring management
does not mean
weak management.
#QUALITYtweet 67
82
Quality101: deliver better
quality than you would expect
as a customer.
83
Quality improvement is like a
high-jump; after each success,
the bar is raised further.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
85
Mutual trust and commitment to
improve form the soil in which the
seeds of quality are sown.
#QUALITYtweet 69
86
Quality is not
“something extra”
that you do. It is a
MUST for long-term
differentiation.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
87
88
Culture breeds quality. The key is to
create a culture of collaboration and
trust to foster innovation.
89
Most principles of quality
management are nothing but the
application of common sense.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
Compliance to process
90
becomes a huge burden when
you acquire certification only to
increase your sales.
91
Quality is not “desirable and
stated” any more. It is “essential
and intended.”
#QUALITYtweet 73
92
93
Quality is never a short-term goal. It
is a long-term differentiator.
94
Planning and building quality in
your product is even more crucial
when your budgets or schedules
are constrained.
#QUALITYtweet 75
95
Critical question:
does your process
make it easy for your
customers to do
business with you?
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
96
Tracking productivity
without tracking the
quality of output is like
tracking the speed of a
train without validating
its direction.
#QUALITYtweet 77
97
The quality of relationships, trust,
and communication determines the
quality of results!
98
Depending on luck for quality is
ignorance. Quality needs planning.
A lot of planning, actually.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
99
Total quality equates to operational
improvements which ultimately
result in cultural improvements.
100
Improve your managerial
culture and you are already
half way to improving your
organizational culture.
#QUALITYtweet 79
101
Middle management
is the glue that
joins long-term
organizational goals
with short-term
improvement actions.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
102
Critical question:
knowing that people
will change only if they
want to, how do you
make sure that they
“want” to change?
#QUALITYtweet 81
103
A simple formula for knowing
what needs improvement:
observe, ask, and listen.
104
Motivating people for change
requires leaders to know when to
lead and when to manage.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
105
“Permission” to change (from top
management) precedes your desire
and ability to change.
106
You have built a right culture
when people show up and say,
“Here is what I can do,” rather
than asking, “What can I do?”
#QUALITYtweet 83
107
Quality culture
improvement is
an elephant which
needs to be eaten
one bite at a time.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
108
Building quality up front is a
much smarter strategy than
verifying quality later.
109
If successful improvement initiatives
are not building a customer-oriented
organization, your bus is moving too
fast in the wrong lane!
#QUALITYtweet 85
110
Your quality
improvement initiative
must improve (1)
management behavior,
(2) employee
attitudes, and (3)
innovation capacity.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
112
Remember, if you perceive that
you don’t need to improve, you
won’t improve.
#QUALITYtweet 87
113
If you take a 35,000-ft. view of your
organization, you will ALWAYS find
something that needs improvement.
114
The day you start rating yourself
“excellent” in all departments is the
day you stop improving
as an organization.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
115
Caution: there is a
steep road ahead for
your business if you
are delivering average
quality at a high price.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
116
“Beauty is in eye of the
beholder,” and, yes, “Quality is
in the mind of the customer.”
117
Your ability to change within
an ever-changing marketplace
is a critical driver of your
quality improvement initiative.
#QUALITYtweet 91
118
Look for and keep excellent
customers, for they will drive
your process excellence.
119
You can settle for good enough OR
you can strive for excellence. The
choice is yours.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
120
Critical question:
you have taken your
customer’s feedback;
have you REALLY
acted upon it?
#QUALITYtweet 93
121
The trust you build is directly
proportional to the consistency of
quality you deliver.
122
Did you know? Your customer can
be your strongest partner in quality
improvement initiative.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
“TRUST IS A CURRENCY”
#QUALITYtweet 95
123
Deal with
your customers
with a currency
called “TRUST.”
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
124
If you want the best quality, you
need to give the best attention.
125
A great sales pitch won’t be able to
save a mediocre product.
#QUALITYtweet 97
126
Trying to improve
culture without
changing habits is
like walking on a
treadmill – it doesn’t
take you anywhere.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
127
128
Challenge #1: Focus on your
leadership actions to set the right
examples. Leaders model behaviors.
129
Quality enemy #1:
micromanagement.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
130
Your workers watch you more
than they listen to you. Action
sets precedence.
131
There are no short cuts in quality,
just like there are none in life!
#QUALITYtweet 101
132
134
QUALITY = HARD + SOFT.
Hard = data, statistics, and
information. Soft = human attitudes,
beliefs, and motivations.
#QUALITYtweet 103
135
“REMARKABLE!”
#QUALITYtweet 105
136
To become BIG,
you first have to be
REMARKABLE.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
137
138
Humility to accept that
something is wrong is the first
step to improvement.
139
A lack of empowerment, education,
and empathy can be your biggest
roadblock to improvement.
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in Every Project
140
For a quality
improvement initiative,
good news and bad
news are ALWAYS
better than no news.
#QUALITYtweet 109
‘#QUALITYtweet’
140 Bite-Sized Ideas to Deliver Quality in
Every Project
Superior quality is one of the many ways to differentiate in a
competitive marketplace. The essence of ‘#QUALITYtweet’ is
to offer practical and relevant insights on a seemingly complex
subject of quality. ‘#QUALITYtweet’ offers fresh perspectives on
core of a quality systems, i.e., people, processes, and management
culture.