All Features
Leif Nyström
Management by objectives isn’t just a way to set direction for an organization. It’s a prerequisite for creating sustainable development and a culture of continuous improvement.
True success, however, comes not just from setting goals, but from ensuring they are actually achieved. Or, to…
Paul Hanaphy
Regular inspection is absolutely vital with industrial transmission systems. Just like the gearbox in an everyday car, components are prone to wear, misalignment, and fatigue—issues that can lead to machinery failure. This isn’t just a matter of downtime but operator safety, too.
Traditionally,…
Akhilesh Gulati
I’ve had this conversation countless times—sometimes with a frustrated client, often with a colleague, and occasionally with my own reflection.
We hear familiar calls for help:• “We need better communication.”• “People need to collaborate more.”• “We’ve lost our culture.”
These observations show…
Adam Grabowski
What’s truly holding your discrete manufacturing shop back from reaching its full potential? It’s often not the commonly cited culprits like labor shortages, razor-thin margins, or fierce competition. It’s more often paper: the unseen, insidious enemy.
Imagine your shop floor: stacks of traveler…
Gleb Tsipursky
The conversation about generative AI (gen AI) is unavoidable in today’s business landscape. It’s disruptive, transformative, and packed with potential—both thrilling and intimidating.
As organizations adopt gen AI to streamline operations, develop products, or enhance customer interactions, the…
Mike Figliuolo
Staff meetings can be incredibly productive. Or unproductive—and more often the latter. If your staff meetings are terrible, it’s your fault because you’re not structuring them well.
One of the most surreal business experiences I’ve ever had relates to a staff meeting. I’d joined a new team, and…
Bryan Christiansen
From manufacturing and mining to hospitality and healthcare, computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS) have become all but essential. Wherever there are assets to maintain, a CMMS plays a critical role in reducing downtime, controlling costs, and keeping operations running smoothly.
But…
Robert Turner
Your social media profile headline is nothing more than a phrase on a screen—a concise summary of your skills and expertise. But although that blurb gets you noticed, the real headline for executives is in how they lead.
What story is your leadership telling? As an executive, you know that staying…
ISO
In 2021, container ships idled for weeks outside the Port of Los Angeles, a stark visual reminder of just how fragile modern supply-chain reliability had become. The backlog sent shockwaves across industries. Factories stalled, shelves emptied, and businesses scrambled for alternatives. It was a…
Elizabeth Weddle
The quality systems most medtech teams are stuck with aren’t built for how they work today. 21 CFR Part 820 was authorized by the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of 1978, long before the software industry even existed. And while the regulations themselves aren’t going anywhere, the world they…
Adam Zewe
A robot searching for workers trapped in a partially collapsed mine shaft must rapidly generate a map of the scene and identify its location within that scene as it navigates the treacherous terrain.
Researchers have recently started building powerful machine-learning models to perform this…
Stephanie Ojeda
Implementing a new quality management system (QMS) is no small task, especially for life science companies faced with stringent regulatory requirements and a high validation burden. Entrenched legacy systems compound the problem as organizational inertia and complacency lead companies to make do…
David Schwinn
I’ve been in and around the quality profession for decades. When I first started, we were most concerned about products failing in our customers’ hands... too often and too soon. I worked at General Motors in those days, in the Frigidaire division when Frigidaire was part of General Motors. We made…
Mike Figliuolo
Have you ever been in line for a promotion or a transfer to a new role only to find out your boss was quashing your efforts to make that leap? Here are some tips on how to deal with a boss sabotaging your career.
Many of us have been there—you hear about a cool new role somewhere else in the…
Creaform
Your company works hard to bring quality products to market, but your current inefficient development process slows you down. Your engineers rely on traditional tools like measuring tapes, calipers, verniers, or photos to gather dimensions and document how to shorten time to market and lower…
James Glover
Your facility has detailed standard operating procedures (SOPs), ISO certifications, and quality management systems that would impress any auditor. But operators still skip calibration checks when production is behind, modify machine settings without authorization during shift changes, and forget…
Nimax
The global coding- and marking-equipment market is on a clear growth path. As shown in a recent Grand View Research report, the market was worth $17,528 million worldwide by the end of 2024.
Furthermore, GVR’s projections estimate the market value will reach $24,927 million by 2030, with a…
David Matalon
The term return to office (RTO) has dominated headlines for the past year. But despite the noise, data tell a different story: Full-time office life isn’t coming back—at least not in the same way.
According to 2025 research, 85% of organizations now stipulate an attendance policy, but only 37%…
Adam Grabowski
To stay profitable as a manufacturer, you have to run a tight ship. I’ve been lucky enough to visit with owners and key people at thousands of manufacturers all over the world. My main goal during these visits is to listen and learn what makes them so good at what they do.
It turns out that the…
Gleb Tsipursky
Reshaping industries, automating routine tasks, and unlocking new realms of creativity—welcome to the world of generative artificial intelligence (gen AI).
However, the technology’s potential can only be fully realized when employees actively engage in learning how to use it effectively.…
Akhilesh Gulati
Meritocracy—the idea that individuals should advance based on their talent and hard work—appeals to our sense of fairness. However, despite its noble intentions, meritocracy often fails in practice.
Emilio J. Castilla’s The Meritocracy Paradox (Columbia University Press, 2025) highlights how…
Jeff Dewar
I’m thrilled to announce something we’ve been working on for a year and a half—a project that took us 30,000 miles across America and into the heart of industries that most people never see. On Nov. 12, 2025, Quality Digest will premiere the first episode of The Quality Digest Roadshow, a 12-…
Kate Zabriskie
When most people think about work, fun probably isn’t the first word that comes to mind. Deadlines, meetings, and spreadsheets? Sure. But laughter, camaraderie, and a little silliness? That often feels like a luxury, not a priority.
Here’s the truth: Fun at work isn’t just about blowing off steam…
Chris Kuntz
What once seemed like the future of work is fast becoming present-time reality on factory floors worldwide as artificial intelligence (AI) evolves from experimental technology to practical tools that directly affect daily operations. While algorithms can predict when a bearing will fail or when a…
Creaform
In motorsport, performance isn’t defined by a single factor. It’s the sum of countless details, each playing a decisive role when pushing speeds up to 200 mph (320 km/h). From how a driver sits in the car to how the bodywork complies with strict regulations, accuracy can mean the difference between…