Chapter 5: Quality Standards, Accreditation and Self-Evaluation Models

Standard, Standardization and Quality Standards

Quality is described as;

• an organization-wide process.
• what the customer says it is.
• a way of managing.
• an ethic.
• the most cost effective, least capital intensive route to productivity.
• implemented as a total system connected to both customers and suppliers.

A standard is a set of policies, rules, directives, and procedures set by management for all major transactions to guide employees to successfully perform their jobs. Standardization is the process of setting and applying certain rules with the contribution and cooperation of all parties. In standardization applications, the basic document is the standards. Quality standards are the predetermined criteria that will ensure the production of a good or service at a level that meets the expectations of demanders. The main benefits of quality standards are:

• Ensuring productivity in production and increasing profitability,
• Increasing employee motivation,
• Yielding stronger competitive power in national / international sectors,
• Helping to achieve sustainability,
• Facilitating the increase of market share by increasing trade volume,
• Strengthening the perception of reputation for goods or services,
• Helping to increase the level of quality and reliability.

National and International Quality Standardization and Applications

National Standardization

A national standard is a sector-specific standard that is published by the relevant organization of a country. In Turkey, the Turkish Standards Institute (TSE) is authorized to prepare such standards. e Turkish Standards Institute was established in 1960 in order to bring standards for all kinds of materials, products, procedures, and services. e Turkish Standards Institute is a full member of some international standard organizations which are:

• ISO (International Organization for
• Standardization since 1956),
• IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission since 1956)
• SMIIC (Standards and Metrology Institute for the Islamic Countries since 2010)
• CEN (European Committee for Standardization since 2012)
• CENELEC (European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization since 2012)

The standards prepared by the TSE are prepared with the participation of all relevant stakeholders in line with the international standards preparation principles. ese stakeholders include the private sector, SMEs, universities, public organizations, and the non-governmental organizations such as associations and unions. In this respect, the standards are the product of a joint work of all relevant stakeholders. Turkish standards are prepared by the Technical Committees within the framework of the work programs prepared in the relevant activity periods and accepted by the TSE Technical Board. Another standardization activity of the TSE is to ensure that current standards are regularly updated. As per the international systematic review principles, the TSE systematically reviews and evaluates the standards every five (5) years for revision, amendment, repeal or acceptance.

International Standardization

International standards are the standards published by international organizations with the participation of member countries including different sector standards and open to the use of all countries. e organizations which the TSE is also a full member of are:

• The European Committee for Standardization (CEN) is a regional standard organization established in 1961 by the members of the European Economic Community (EEC) and EFTA (European Free Trade Area).
• The European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization (CENELEC) is a regional standard organization that prepares the European Standard for electrical and electrotechnical issues. It is responsible for standardization activities in the field of electrotechnics.
• The International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) is a non-profit, international, and non-governmental organization established in 1906 in accordance with Swiss Laws. It develops international standards and operates conformity assessment systems in the field of electro- technology.
• International Standardization Organization (ISO), which develops and publishes international standards and to which Turkey also belongs as a member, is a non-profit organization with members from 164 countries.

Accreditation and Accreditation Institutions

Accreditation is the process whereby an independent accreditation body evaluates an institution or organization according to a set of field-specific standards and/or criteria and formally recognizes or rejects this institution or organization for a certain period depending on the positive or negative decision made at the end of the process. Accreditation is an ongoing process that guarantees the competence of accredited bodies performing conformity assessment services such as:

• Certification of management systems
• Certification of products, processes, and services
• Certification of persons
• Inspections
• Verifications
• Calibrations
• Medical examinations
• Laboratory tests

Accreditation practices vary according to the structure, culture and needs of the institutions and organizations owned by the countries with the following benefits:

• helps to establish quality assurance,
• inspires trust,
• improves the quality of work by developing standards or criteria,
• encourages the continuous development of the work done with a systematic approach,
• provides accountability,
• provides transparency,
• as a result of globalization, it renders institutions and organizations comparable with similar organizations in other countries,
• ensures that the document or report received from the conformity assessment body of any country is recognized by another country, i.e. mutual recognition,
• facilitates international trade,
• prevents conducting conformity assessment in different countries by different qualifications,
• ensures that the organizations engaged in conformity assessment activities operate according to common technical principles and operating procedures,
• prevents testing and certification from posing technical barriers to trade,
• increases productivity,
• reduces control

Self-Evaluation and Self-Evaluation Models

Self-evaluation is a review based on systematic concrete data that allows an organization to identify strengths and areas for improvement and to periodically measure progress. Self-evaluation provides a comprehensive, systematic and regular review of the organization’s activities and business results based on a management model. Countries that adopt a corporate excellence perspective in line with today’s developing quality and management approaches promote this contemporary approach through various national/international models. Deming in Japan, Malcolm Baldrige in the US, and EFQM in Europe are the most commonly recognized and widely used self-evaluation models to create corporate excellence. These models are:

Deming Model

Deming Model is self-evaluation model was developed after the World War II by the US professor Dr. William Edwards Deming, who made significant contributions to the development of quality control in Japan. e basic foundation of the Deming model is an organization’s analysis of its own subjective situation well to determine its own goals and to develop itself in accordance with these goals. is model is considered as a real tool for change and transformation for the organization. There are many benefits to be gained by the organizations by implementing the Deming model. These include consistency in product quality, continuous improvement in product quality, increase in productivity, decrease in costs, increase in sales, increase in profitability, full implementation of management and business plans, realization of vision, improvement of employees’ level of participation in decisions, increasing standardization, increasing motivation, increasing morale strength of employees, and the introduction of different management systems.

Malcolm Baldrige Model

This model aims to raise the quality level of American organizations, to set the criteria both to guide and evaluate the quality improvement e orts of individual institutions, to identify the organizations that will set an example for quality improvement, and, if these organizations receive the Malcolm Baldrige quality award, to share this knowledge with the business world and thus contribute to the quality improvement e orts in the USA. Underlying the basis of this model are three important criteria: The effectiveness of the quality improvement approach, the quality management system, and customer satisfaction. Malcolm Baldrige Model’s self-evaluation criteria include the following criteria:

1. Leadership
2. Strategic Planning
3. Customer and Market Focus
4. Measurement, Analysis and Knowledge Management
5. Human Resource Focus
6. Process Management
7. Business Results

The EFQM (The European Foundation for Quality Management) Model

EFQM Model, a globally recognized framework that supports organizations in managing change and improving performance, has experienced a number of improvement cycles over the years to make sure that it not only remains relevant but continues to set the management agenda for any organization wanting a long term, sustainable future.

The EFQM Model structure is based on the simple but powerful logic of asking three questions:

1. “Why” does this organization exist? What Purpose does it fulfil? Why this particular strategy? (DIRECTION)
2. “How” does it intend to deliver on its Purpose and Strategy? (EXECUTION) “What has it actually achieved to date?
3. “What” does it intend to achieve tomorrow? (RESULTS

RADAR is the acronym of the measurement tool developed by EFQM Model to help organizations contribute to a better management of the current way of working, identifying the existing strengths and opportunities for improvement.

RADAR logic requires the organization to focus on the following from a top-down perspective:

• Determining the results (RESULTS) to perform as part of the strategy
• Having approaches (APPROACHES) that will ensure the realization of present and future results
• Applying these approaches appropriately (DEPLOY)
• Evaluating and improving di use approaches to learn and improve (ASSESS AND REFINE)