Let us upgrade from compliance to performance: World Quality Day today

P J Swamy

World Quality Day is observed every year on the second Thursday in November. This year, it falls on November 14. The purpose of this day is to raise quality awareness and provide support to individuals and organisations for the achievement of economic prosperity and the adoption of high-quality standards.

The theme for this year is Quality: From Compliance to Performance," which perfectly encapsulates the journey organizations are encouraged to embark on — transitioning from merely adhering to standards to achieving and exceeding performance goals.

This is about making sure that quality is more than just a tick on a checklist; it's about doing great work that stands out and makes a difference.

Though compliance and performance are usually used as synonyms, there is subtle difference that separates the ordinary from extraordinary.

Compliance involves meeting the minimum standards and regulations, either internal or external or regulatory.

Compliance indicates that everything that we do complies with everything we are required to do – asked to do- mandated to do.

Compliance alone will not make an organization great. If it were, to take the example of airline industry, while all airlines operated meeting strict compliances, many have gone into oblivion.

Why this? Because compliance is necessary but not sufficient condition. The condition that is necessary to excel, to be the best in what we do is performance.

A small example of my experience with the erstwhile government owned Air India would make it easy to understand what conformance is and what is performance.

In those days, Air India used to distribute a free plastic sandwich tray as soon as the flight starts cruising. An airhostess would go round the cabin with the sandwich trays and hand over to passengers even without looking at them, leave alone giving a smile.

Did she comply with the airline requirement of giving passengers sandwich tray? Yes. Did she perform? No.

Why: Because the way she would give the trays made the passengers feel looked down as if someone is doling out something.

The result: We all know.

Striving for performance means looking at how things can be done better, faster, and smarter. It's about listening to customers, using new tools and techniques, staying ahead of the game by doing more than the bare minimum and thinking about how we can go beyond compliance and perform and do awesome work.

Let's not just meet standards; let's set new ones that everyone else will want to follow. This is how we make sure our work today leaves a mark and keeps us on the path to success tomorrow.

Let us resolve to move ‘from compliance to performance’ and commit to not just meeting standards but exceeding them, transforming our approach from ticking boxes (compliance) to making a mark (performance).

(The writer is senior industrialist).