The CQI policy on quality and quality management research

In an increasingly competitive global market many organizations are looking at ways to reduce waste, improve performance and take a more innovative approach to managing risk and developing new product and service value chains. Although there is an extensive existing range of quality approaches to achieve this, organizations are always looking for new and better ways to stay ahead of the competition, and the CQI advocates that a planned and coordinated approach to research into quality and quality management practices is of national interest.

The issues

1. The UK's current approach to research into quality and quality management is being fragmented due to limited research funding from end users being available to the disparate academic and research organizations involved
2. There is an opportunity for government to promote the need for quality and quality management research and to encourage and fund such research
3. Limited coordinated work has been done to identify user needs for new quality and quality management approaches to reducing waste, improving performance or developing innovative approaches to managing risk and developing new product and service value chains
4. Research over the last 30 years has focused upon the effectiveness of existing quality approaches and developing the interpretation and application of existing tools and techniques over a wider range of disciplines and sectors rather than upon ground-breaking research to develop new approaches, indeed some of the new approaches now evident have been developed by the end-user community.

The CQI advocates that

Government:

• Accepts and actively promotes the need for research into quality and quality management approaches based on user requirements and contributes to the funding of research initiatives

Users of quality tools, techniques and approaches:

• Engage with the CQI's research working group to identify those areas of need in which research should be carried out

Academic establishments and research organizations:

• Engage with the CQI's research working group to coordinate and publish current and up-coming UK research activity, to publish the results of research and network with other researchers, end users and interested quality professionals.

Quality professionals and consultants:

• Engage with the CQI's research working group to provide ideas for research, keep up-to-date with current UK research and network with researchers, end users and other interested quality professionals

The CQI

Will work with government, users of quality tools, techniques and approaches and academic establishments and research organizations to:

• Periodically review and update this policy
• Encourage the effective implementation of this policy
• Periodically report on the implementation of this policy to all stakeholders

CQI Policy

T: +44 (0)20 7245 6722
F: +44 (0)20 7245 6788
E: cbithell@thecqi.org
CQI: www.thecqi.org
IRCA: www.irca.org