Ode to Quality Control

Beans of coffee, freshly ground by master baristas, will astound. 

Sun ripe fruits with flawless skin, challenge us to taste and win. 

Wines so fragrant on the nose, deliver what we presuppose. 

Taste buds, colour, touch and smell, teach us how to judge 'things' well. 

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With goods and products, all of us, know quality. It's obvious. 

But how is service judged, tell me, with respect to quality? 

Are there systems we should follow, to keep us on the straight and narrow? 

What should we follow at our core, to keep the bailiff from our door? 

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Quality control's our plus, it's how we think, it's part of us. 

Not just a separate add-on tool, for us to wheel out like a fool. 

Unread manuals, systems, forms, to fend off auditors' thunderstorms. 

QC through the working day, means our client is here to stay. 

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First then comes the client's request, then our promise to do our best. 

Clarify the scope of work, and costing, so no doubts can lurk.

Once our offer is agreed, the contract's sealed, a marriage deed.

As happy wife means happy life, then happy client means no more strife.

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When the work we have to start, that's where systems play their part.

Standardise the things we do, and staff will have more than a clue.

How to do things right and well, avoid mistakes, so we excel.

Systems keep us all on track, checklists help, that's a fact.

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Keep it simple, keep it short, if it's complex don't abort. 

Simplify the application and you'll stop procrastination. 

Break it down to standard parts, all with use of forms and charts. 

You will very soon agree, quality systems are the key. 

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Keep the client up to speed, with our progress as agreed. 

Ask for feedback over drinks, let him tell us what he thinks. 

If it seems he's less than friends, make sure we can make amends. 

Happy clients we want, and then, they'll pay their bills and come again. 

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This little ditty was originally written (wearing my QA/QC hat) as a prod for consulting engineers to think and operate smarter, and to use established quality assurance and quality control procedures. Sadly many try to forget the perceived 'distractions' of project management, in their thirst for the unobtainable analytical purity. Hopefully, this poem may also be of interest to others working or playing in a wider forum, or at least draw the occasional knowing smile. 😉

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Ken Boddie is an enthusiastic photographer, rarely leisure-travelling without his Canon.  He loves to interact with other like-minded photographers and people with an artistic background.

Ken's three day work week (part time commitment) as a consulting engineer allows him to follow his photography interests, and to plan trips to an ever increasing list of countries and places of scenic beauty and cultural diversity.

When not analysing consulting issues or writing posts,  Ken chases his creative side, the results of which can be seen as selected photographs of his travels on his website at:

http://ken-boddie.squarespace.com