This presentation is mostly compiled from ASQ Future of quality studies 2008 and Quality Progress articles. I have also added my thoughts on implications and enhanced skills slides.

1. The Future of Quality
Professionals
April 2011 Joint Bay Area Section Dinner Meeting
Compiled by Govind Ramu, P. Eng., ASQ Fellow

2. History of ASQ’s futures study
• ASQ undertook its first futures study in 1995
under the leadership of then ASQ President,
David Luther.
• This study is aimed at provoking questions
rather than providing answers.
• The value of the study was such that ASQ has
repeated one every three years since.
• Last study was published in 2008.
• New study is due 2011-2012.

3. Quote from ASQ Executive Director
“…and critically important, use of the study—
its use to the individual. Anyone wondering
where careers may go, what skills will be in
demand, or where opportunity may lie will
find in this study valuable pointers and hints”.
Paul E. Borawski, CAE
ASQ Executive Director & Chief Strategic Officer

4. Changes in ASQ Futures studies

5. 2008 – Forces in Future study
• Globalization.
• Social Responsibility.
• New dimensions of Quality.
• Aging population
• Healthcare
• Environmental concerns
• 21st century Technology.
Reference: http://asq.org/knowledge-center/2008-futures-study/future-study-presentation/index.html#video

6. What it means?
• Globalization- Global economy, global supplier networks , standardization, global
consumerism, competiveness, resource availability, trade policy and trading partners.
Example: Supply Chain efficiency, anticipating global customer needs,
• Social Responsibility- legal, ethical, local community support, good governance, corporate
citizenship, Ethics, transparency, social behavior, and environment, “triple bottom line” of
people, planet, and profit.
• New dimensions of Quality – Innovation (innovation without quality is a non-starter),
Creativity, change management, agility.
• Aging population – knowledge & experience void, re-entering job market, products &
services to cater this segment.
• Healthcare- Waste elimination , innovation, efficiency, technology development- need for
new quality sciences.
• Environmental concerns- concepts, tools, techniques, standards, Energy management,
design for environment, recycling and reuse.
• 21st century Technology- Advancements in Biotechnology, Nano technology, clean energy,
Social networking, etc – opportunity for Quality.
Reference: http://asq.org/knowledge-center/2008-futures-study/future-study-presentation/index.html#video

7. Implications for Quality Profession
• Get ready for increased multi-cultural work settings, and for approaches that are
open enough to benefit from cultural differences.
• Quality professionals will have to be more aware of international issues. Dealing
with suppliers, colleagues, and customers from all over the globe will be the norm.
• The traditional quality professional’s skills of control and improvement need to
expand to include innovation, creative change, value creation, systems thinking,
and execution.
• Begin expanding the traditional measures of performance to include social
implications in balanced scorecards.
• New technologies and smaller products will demand new approaches to quality,
including measurement and inspection technologies. Simplified quality making its
application more reachable for less technical sectors of the economy (e.g. manage
relationships with distributors and resellers.).
• Quality’s contribution to “foreseeable” results— new product introductions, R&D
payback results, better sooner.

8. ISO 9001 Future Concepts
Reference: Quality Progress March 2011 Behind the scenes of the next version of ISO 9001, by Sandford Liebesman

9. Four Paradigms

10. Enhanced Skills for Quality Professionals
• Financial Knowledge- Interpret Balance Sheet, P & L statement, IRR,
NPV, RONA, COPQ link to improvements.
• International business management, cross cultural learning*, virtual
team management.
• Competency / Talent management.
• Knowledge Management. Tacit knowledge, Shift from information
gathering to developing intelligence)
• Outsourcing management (Social Responsibility embedded)
• Change Management- Change agent skills, Facilitation, negotiation.
• System thinking, Business Process Integration- Baldrige approach.
• Risk Management, Life cycle management.
• Innovation management.
* Also consider developing working knowledge of languages in outsource destinations
Govind Ramu

11. References
• ASQ Future study- Team of Quality Professionals.
• Quality Progress April 2010- Past is Prologue- Mr. Everard van
Kemenade
• Quality Progress March 2011 Behind the scenes of the next version
of ISO 9001, by Mr. Sandford Liebesman.
• ASQ Knowledge center Video- Mr. Paul Borawski, ASQ's Executive
Director and Chief Strategic Officer
Acknowledgement:
Ms. Noel Wilson- Knowledge center Editor, ASQ for guidance on
references.