The importance of quality

objectives

Are you having a difficult time identifying quality objectives and goals for your organization? You're not alone. Larry Whittington explains the importance of getting them right.

According to ISO 9000:2005, a quality objective is something sought or aimed for, related to quality; these objectives must be measurable and consistent with the quality policy, which is in turn explained as a framework for establishing quality objectives. It also states that the policy must include a commitment to complying with requirements and continually improving the effectiveness of the quality management system.

So, using the quality policy as a framework, you would have a quality objective to measure the degree to which requirements are being met, as well as to measure the results of the quality management system.

Even with this clear guidance, some organizations still struggle with how to express meaningful quality objectives.

People need to remember that goals are not the same as objectives – they are conditions to be achieved in the future, consistent with your vision and mission, to guide your decisions and actions. However, they usually do not involve measurable results and, therefore, do not change as often as objectives.

Objectives are focused on critical issues and milestones. They describe the activities and targets to achieve your goals and even identify the dates for completing the activities. For example, a general goal might be to reduce waste. The related, specific objective might be to reduce waste from four per cent to three per cent by the end of 2008. They are measurable in terms of being achieved, or not.

Depending on your industry, you might consider quality objectives such as:

Some of these quality metrics would be expressed over a period of time, for example, complaints per customer per year. Also, the objectives don't have to be variable measures. You could include installation of a new document management system by the end of 2008 as a quality objective.

SMART objectives

Specific: Identify the expected result. Be precise about the desired outcome. All the concerned persons should know what is required.

Measurable: Quantify the result and ensure you have a reliable system for measuring it. You should know when you have achieved the objective.

Achievable: The objective should be realistic given the target and date. Resources must be available to deliver the result with reasonable effort.

Relevant: Links to business success should be clear so people are motivated to meet the objective. Ensure people can influence the outcome.

Timed: Establish a time frame for reaching the objective. Monitor progress against interim targets on the way to achieving the stated objective.

Be careful how you set these quality objectives and how you communicate them. You might find people actually manipulating processes to achieve the desired results, especially if the numbers are used to evaluate employee performance.

When handled poorly, performance targets result in internal competition and a lack of cooperation. In fact, a specific process objective can be optimized at the expense of overall system performance.

If a target is perceived as arbitrary and set beyond the capability of the process, it may lead to employee frustration, reduced morale and even lower performance. Individuals must feel they have some control over the outcome for an objective to actually promote improvement. The objectives should help monitor and control the processes, not the people.

Quality objectives should be based on comprehensive strategic planning. You should define measures to help identify necessary process improvements, not as evidence for employee appraisals.

About the author

Larry Whittington is president of Whittington & Associates, a training, consulting, and auditing company in Woodstock, Georgia, US. He is a certified RABQSA Lead QMS Auditor and IRCA Principal QMS Auditor. Larry can be contacted at Larry@WhittingtonAssociates.com

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