From sharing quality stories and anticipating the nature of quality efforts in the future, to ordering celebration kits with magnets and bumper stickers, the annual celebration of World Quality Month in November offers a variety of ways to recognize important quality contributors and advancements throughout the world.
The American Society for Quality (ASQ) sponsors the event as a way of recognizing the Global Quality Community and acknowledging the worldwide application of quality principles. ASQ calls it “… a time to celebrate — a time to showcase the advancements and valuable quality contributions in businesses, communities, and institutions.”
PQ Systems offers its own focus on quality, through its blogs and website with quality quotes from all over and articles that support an understanding of quality efforts throughout the world. Tools for data analysis and improvement are available, as well as special webinars and other events that support quality improvement efforts. Quality eline, a monthly subscription newsletter, frequently advances the management principles of W. Edwards Deming, who, along with Joseph Juran, is credited with initiating a professional approach to quality improvement. Watch for special prizes when you sign up for Quality eLine.
World Quality Month 2015 represents the sixth annual celebration sponsored by ASQ. The Union of Japanese Scientists and Engineers (JUSE) has been celebrating World Quality Month in Japan since 1960, organizing events in collaboration with Japanese Standards Association (JSA), Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), Nippon Hoso Kyokai (NHK), The Japanese Society for Quality Control (JSQC), The Japan Productivity Center (JPC), JCA, Quality Engineering Society (QES), QC, Keidanren.
Many organizations in Europe have likewise marked “Quality Week” for 20 years, including European Organization for Quality (EOQ), World Alliance for Quality (WAQ), Vlaams Centrum voor Kwaliteitszorg (VCK).
Whether you respond to an online quality trivia quiz, mount a World Quality Month banner outside your organization’s offices, or just quietly place a World Quality Month magnet on your refrigerator, you will have lots of options for recognizing the place of quality in everyday life. Celebrate in your own way, but don’t forget to celebrate!