“RE-DEFINING QUALITY” by Mike Hutchins
Quality Leadership through a new lens
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THE CHALLENGE
The Quality profession is at a watershed. The role of Quality Professionals has never before been so
blurred. Change is unprecedented. How ready are you to embrace the future? This short paper focuses on
what competencies are needed to succeed in this new, challenging environment.
The whole manner in which business is conducted is changing. It is not just Quality that is being impacted.
Finance, HR, IT and every other function is facing similar challenges.
The table below summarizes some of the changes facing all organisations and in particular the Quality
Profession:
PAST
PRESENT AND FUTURE
Centralized Quality Dept. lead improvement efforts
Quality integrated into business systems and culture
Local, vertical control of supply chain
Worldwide sourcing
Product quality seen as a differentiator
Perfect product quality assumed
Focus on control and defect reduction
Re-invention, reduced cycle times
Predictable, loyal customers
Worldwide customer engagement
Key Questions:
1. What competencies are needed in the future for the Quality Professional?
2. Where do you need to grow personally to become a Leader in Quality?
3. What does a credible career development plan look like for an aspirant Quality Leader?
I have outlined a future vision of the key attributes of a Quality Leader, through the lens of three
“archetypes” – the “Steward”, the “Strategist” and the “Leader”. To be truly effective in any organization,
strengths in all three areas is required.
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QUALITY LEADERSHIP COMPETENCIES
The Competency Wheel depicted below is a blueprint for anyone in
Quality aspiring to be in a leadership position.
The Wheel starts with the Quality Leader, or “Chief Quality Officer”
(CQO). As you peel back each layer, so there is more detail around
what competencies are required to be successful in that particular
archetype. So for example we see the Quality Strategist as requiring
expertise in “Strategy”, made up of “Systems Thinking”,
“Organisational Design” and “Hoshin Kanri”. Below is a description of
the competencies within Hoshin Kanri, or Strategy Deployment:
Competency
Definition: Skills,
behaviors and
knowledge.
Competency Description
Hoshin
Kanri
1. Develop mechanisms for translating strategic goals into meaningful,
measurable operational metrics.
2.
Create a culture of continuous performance improvement and a system
of feedback loops throughout the organisation.
DHI Competency Wheel ™: An Assessment tool to identify key strengths for Quality Professionals.
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THE THREE ARCHETYPES
A) THE STEWARD
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B) THE STRATEGIST
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C) THE LEADER
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SOME IDEAS FOR CAREER DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING
INDIVIDUALS:
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Become a Chartered Quality Professional. All of the Steward competencies are covered here. A
strong focus on technical skills, tested through examinations and assignments, ensures a solid grasp
of the theory and application of quality tools and methods
Read more about the Competencies in the Competency Wheel (www.hutchins.co.uk)
Complete a Leadership Assessment tool such as the Leadership Circle Profile, Emotional
Intelligence 2.0 (http://psychology.about.com/library/quiz/bl_eq_quiz.htm) or the Trusted Advisor
Assessment (free: http://trustsuite.trustedadvisor.com). Identify your strengths and weaknesses
(simple assessments with the book “Strengths Finder”)
Find yourself a Coach or Mentor to work with you in developing your career
Request you attend a Leadership Program within your organisation
Spend more time outside your functional area and comfort zone, request internal transfers,
secondments and different projects
ORGANIZATIONS
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Build mechanisms within your Talent Management process to identify emerging Quality Leaders
Develop internal Leadership Programs, or send Emerging Leaders on such programs
Incorporate 360 Leadership and Quality Assessment tools into performance appraisals
Formalize a Coaching and Mentoring Program
Incentivize staff rotation programs
CONCLUSIONS
Through use of these three archetypes, the Steward, Strategist and Leader, my intention is for you to start
reflecting on where you are? What are your natural strengths? What is your default style? What areas do
you see yourself needing to grow? By re-defining what it means to be a Quality Leader, accepting the
challenging new realities that are facing the Quality Function, so you have to target to aim towards.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Mike Hutchins
Mike is son of David Hutchins, the International thought leader and influencer in
quality management. Mike started his career with PricewaterhouseCoopers, where
he trained as a Chartered Accountant. He has 15 years of experience in Management
Consulting, also working with KPMG and IBM. His expertise is in Program and Change
Management; Process Re-engineering, Strategy and Leadership Development.
Mike is Lean Six Sigma Black Belt certified and Executive Coach.
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