Ford Motor Co. has 65 major plants and facilities on six continents. How does a big company like Ford ensure all the stakeholders are invested in making sure excellence is a habit, not a series of one-off events? Achieving excellence is not something we do once and then pat ourselves on the back; it’s something we do every day, like brushing our teeth.

At Ford, we develop our habit of excellence by following a standardized quality operating system, which includes standardized information flow, infrastructure, time and data management, and processes and tools. When everyone is looking at the standardized charts and metrics, there is less room for error and more time to solve problems. When everyone is speaking the same language of the standardized quality operating system, there are fewer interpretations, and you can find many issues before they ever get to the customer.

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