Joseph M. Juran wrote in his book the Quality Control Handbook, “It is most important that top management be quality-minded. In the absence of sincere manifestation of interest at the top, little will happen below. ”
Juran was one of the first to write about the cost of poor quality, and he developed an approach that became known as the Juran trilogy– quality planning, quality control, and quality improvement. Often called the “father of quality,” Juran reinvented the field of quality management through principles such as: determining the needs of customers and developing a product to meet those needs; optimizing production processes; and emphasizing quality control of products.
A highly regarded statistician and industrial engineering theorist, Juran released the Quality Control Handbook in 1951 and it continues to be the standard reference work for quality managers. He founded the Juran Institute in 1979, which continues to provide international training, certification, and consulting services in quality management and business process management.
By Jen Santisi
