Quality Awards & Surveyors
by Prof. John Parker
Key words: Quality, Awards, Survey.
Abstract
1. Introduction
For sometime now many survey organisations have recognised the
benefits of a formal approach to quality. Some have sought
certification for QA through the ISO 9000 series, others have
implemented quality systems and embraced a total quality management
philosophy.
Many countries have a Quality Award or Prize which acknowledge
outstanding achievements in organisation-wide implementation of the
Quality culture and is designed to encourage organisations to pursue
internationally competitive levels of performance by identifying
organisations that do so and recognizing them as
"benchmarks" of performance.
How to achieve such an award is time consuming and can be costly,
though the end result is usually well worth while.
2. History
It is proposed that a Survey Quality Award should be considered as
a step towards the Quality Awards mentioned above. The whole process
could be a series of steps starting with:
- Acquiring an understanding of Quality - Level 1
- Starting to implement a quality plan - Level 2
- Implementation in detail - Level 3
- The Survey Quality Award - Level 4
- The Country/Region Quality Award/Prize - Level 5
The first 3 steps can be largely undertaken as a self assessment
based on nominated criteria and scores.
Any organisation undertaking a self assessment, at whatever stage
it may be at in its evolution, will benefit. Not only will it
highlight the positive aspects of the organisation, but it will show
up areas where improvement can occur to make the organization one that
will provide an ongoing quality service to its customers.
3. Conclusion
What is your organisation doing to respond to the accelerating rate
of change affecting every organisation around the world? What are you
doing to anticipate or influence what the market place will require of
your organisation in the future? How can you assess your organisation’s
performance?
Prof. John R Parker, Chair FIG Commission 1
Land Victoria
Department of Natural Resource & Environment
Level 2
456 Lonsdale Street
Melbourne
Australia
Email: john.parker@nre.vic.gov.au
or park106@dcsi.net.au
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