Phil´s Journal
PHILIP CROSBY

I think everyone should resolve to improve during the upcoming year. However, for those satisfied with themselves as a product right now, a lot of effort can be spared. No improvement is required. There is no need for shining up that which is already shiny.

Reading or seeing ads for various products can give us the idea that the products are already exactly what they should be. The ad always indicates that what we see is complete, and we should accept it as such. But last year's advertisements also made the same claims.

Styles are circular. As soon as my closet was filled with pants without cuffs, cuffs returned. The tailors probably believe that I should begin an improvement program by buying all new pants with the proper cuffs. The question is, should I launch such an effort because someone else thinks I should? Much of what people do in every profession--as well as in life--they do because others think it's a good idea. Do we want to live like that? Do we need to respond to needs others create for us?

Organizations should dedicate themselves to improving quality when their financial measurements show that it needs improving. When an organization suffers from too much waste, reprocessing, bad customer service, excess warranty costs and such, it should change the way it does business. But when those costs, which I call the price of monconformance (PONC), are low or extinct, then the organization need do no more than to keep the status quo. At the same time, the organization must continue to examine the results of its processes in order to understand its position.

The key is knowing what the PONC is and using that information to improve processes. When an organization discovers that customers are returning products due to incomplete information, for instance, it can devote time and resources to eliminating that problem. When an organization knows how much doing something wrong costs, it must commit to eliminating those costs.

At Philip Crosby Associates, we found that many of our clients didn't understand PONC, how to calculate it or how to use it. So we created an interactive CD to help them teach themselves. Quality professionals have found it provides valuable, eye-opening information. And PONC is first in line when management sits down to go over the monthly financial results.

Those who want to spend money on something must divulge the PONC in their area. When that cost is reduced, money becomes available for improved processes and resources. I see this as a great leap of progress. This is the quickest way for quality professionals to move up to the head table. It worked for me at ITT, but I had to do it the harder way--there were no CDs on PONC then.

My New Year's resolution is to tell all the professionals I speak with this year about this CD and encourage them to use it to advance their cause as well as themselves. Respect and authority in an organization flow to those who have useful, accurate information. PONC is an action tool, not some historical application.

About the author

Philip B. Crosby, a popular speaker and founder of Philip Crosby Associates--now PCA II--is also the author of several books, including Quality Is Still Free (McGraw-Hill, 1995) and The Absolutes of Leadership (Jossey-Bass, 1996). Visit his Web site at www.philipcrosby.com .