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Six thought leaders who changed the quality world forever
by QP Staff
CHANGE DOESN'T JUST happen out of the blue. It happens because someone comes along who challenges the status quo and gets people thinking differently. The quality world certainly has its gamechangers, and as part of its annual quality basics issue, QP is highlighting six individuals who indelibly altered the course of quality.
Whether you're reading about these men for the first time or simply refreshing your knowledge, it should be said that this is by no means a comprehensive list It takes a great many minds to revolutionize an entire field, and any attempt to include each and every person who had an impact on the quality world would take eight magazines rather than eight pages.
But don't let that stop the discussion. If there's someone whose contributions you feel should be brought to light, visit www.qualityprogress.com and use the comment tool on this article's webpage to let us know who's on your list of history's greatest quality thinkers and why.
Philip B. Crosby 1926-2001
Philip B. Crosby's initial foray into the quality field was in 1952, close on the heels of his military service in Korea. In the nearly five decades that followed, he became widely renowned in business circles as a guru of quality management. He stressed the importance of "doing it right the first time," laid out the road map to quality improvement in his 14-step approach and established the four absolutes of quality.
But among a lengthy list of accomplishments, Crosby is perhaps best known for promoting a standard of excellence based on nothing - the concept of zero defects (ZD).
Crosby initiated the idea at the Orlando, FL, plant of Martin Marietta (now known as Lockheed Martin) in 1962, and as the quality control manager of the Pershing missile program, he saw the concept reduce the overall rejection rate by 2590 and scrap costs by 30%. Eventually, Hie concept spread to other organizations.
"Everywhere it was presented, the defect rates dropped, morale improved, and there was a feeling of accomplishment," Crosby wrote. "Ideas for preventing problems emerged by the batch."1
The idea had its share of detractors who claimed the standard was unattainable and that the costs incurred...