Wed, 05/21/2025 - 12:03
When we step into a complex organization—whether in manufacturing, healthcare, or finance—we often find ourselves navigating a sea of competing truths. Everyone seems certain they see the problem clearly. Yet somehow, solving it feels harder than it…
Thu, 04/17/2025 - 00:03
As director of quality at a manufacturing plant, James faced the reality of shift every day. As the plant embraced new technologies and adapted to changing global dynamics, he knew that quality management could no longer be reactive. The question…
Wed, 01/29/2025 - 00:03
Paul was sitting in his office staring at production numbers from the past quarter. Despite having a great team, strong customer demand, and state-of-the-art equipment, the factory’s performance wasn’t meeting expectations. There was a bottleneck in…
Wed, 01/22/2025 - 00:02
In the world of operations and quality management, the pressure to act quickly can feel overwhelming. Senior executives are constantly racing against time to meet customer demands, solve problems, and keep shareholders satisfied. In the rush to…
Wed, 12/18/2024 - 12:03
It was another busy morning at the monthly operations meeting. Lindsay, the operations manager at TechElectronics, a growing manufacturer of consumer electronics, called the meeting to order. As usual, they started with the routine updates—inventory…
Wed, 12/04/2024 - 12:03
In the ever-changing world of quality management, the intersection of innovation and standardization offers both exciting opportunities and tough challenges. Maria, a dedicated and certified quality professional, struggled with the concept of “…
Mon, 10/28/2024 - 12:03
A few days after returning from a speaking engagement at the Innovate for Excellence Summit in Chicago last September, I spoke to Susan, an old classmate. We chatted for a while, and naturally the conversation drifted toward innovation—something we’…
Wed, 08/14/2024 - 12:03
Maria took a moment to reflect on how much had changed in just over a year since she first explored ChatGPT with her informal innovation group. Back then it was more of a novelty, a fun challenge to see whether artificial intelligence could answer…
Thu, 01/18/2024 - 12:02
The first day of the conference was over, and most of us congregated for happy hour, relaxing, networking, and furthering our connections. We reminisced about the day, commenting about the good, the bad, and the ugly: events at work, travel,…
Tue, 06/20/2023 - 12:03
Maria stretched her arms, taking in a deep breath as she savored the lingering flavor of dark, rich black coffee. She waited for the system to log in and connect to her biweekly meeting with her informal innovation group, a bunch of semiretired…
