This is a post from Laurel Nelson-Rowe, ASQ managing director.
In November, I attended the Dubai Quality Group Annual Quality and Business Excellence Conference, held as part of World Quality Month celebrations in Dubai. Conference attendees represented finance, trade, government, utilities, energy and hospitality organizations, and ASQ leaders. Future ASQ Chair Stephen Hacker spoke on transformational science, which he characterized as “an emerging science within quality.” For Hacker, transformation aims for “breakthrough change…a different idea, a jump—not incremental improvement of what exists.” He also contrasted problem-solving thinking versus transformational thinking.
Stephen Hacker and Saleh Janeeh, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Dubai Quality Group.
The five elements Hacker highlighted in transformational approaches were:
- Cast a transformative view (a revelation; an idea that shocks).
- Expose the burning platform.
- Create a robust performance measurement system (from current state to transformation).
- Address culture directly, including leadership.
- Develop a plan to close the gap between current and transformative state, including the near-term actions achieved in six months.
Just after Hacker’s keynote, Ahmed H. Bahrozyan, CEO of Dubai Roads and Transport Authority Licensing Agency, delivered remarks on how his organization works in transformative times. The RTA organization and his business, which handles all transportation-related licensing processes, procedures, products and services (350 services in all), is just seven years old. The business started with a service quality framework from day one.
Bahrozyan said the organization is the largest government entity in terms of online payment service. His agency’s roadmap for improvement for 2011-2014 includes “just six” elements, yet they are a substantial six: infrastructure improvement, common portal (including single sign-on for all services), improved e-services, innovation, website compliance to industry standards, and marketing.
Dubai Quality Group Annual Quality and Business Excellence Conference
So, it left me wondering: What are your burning platform, as you look ahead into 2013? Can transformational science tools help you put any fires out? And if you have a roadmap for improvement 2013-2015, what do the road signs say?
