A Zero Defects Attitude is not just a concept for eliminating defects in a product or service; it is an attitude of the heart.  Similar to the “pride of workmanship,” it represents a desire to do things right, every time we take action.  It is not an attempt to achieve perfection but a commitment to make each customer’s experience as close to what was promised as possible.

The Zero Defects Attitude is an essential attribute of a Quality Manager.  And when we are empowered by this practical motivation, we can be trained to succeed in any endeavor.

This lesson describes the Eight Attributes of a Quality Manager and how they affect our leadership in real-life tasks.

This lesson is divided into three parts: 1. QM Methods, 2. QM Values and 3. Having Reasonable Discussions in a QM Environment.  The history and language of QM are described as well as the practical fundamentals of managing quality.

This lesson describes the guiding economic principles of Quality Management and how to achieve "complete profitability" in both business and nonprofit venues.

Vocational Certainty™ is a measure of our faithfulness to our career agenda. When we have been disciplined about developing our skills and talents, we can acquire the self-esteem and confidence that accompanies earned success.  Vocational Certainty™ challenges us to become equipped by education, training and experience to perform effectively and grow in leadership.

Many people, especially in nonprofit organizations, feel called to their work. This lesson shows that true Vocational Certainty™ requires specific attributes. (Includes the Value-Added Video: Knowing Where to Hit the Pipe.)

Success greatly depends upon a person's ability to perform with excellence.  In QM our goal is to make a reasonable promise to every customer based upon our ability to perform with excellence.   This lesson demonstrates how inspiration and planning can improve effectiveness.

Setting productivity standards should be guided by our knowledge of the people who are to perform on our behalf.  This lesson describes the three streams of QM motivation and how to establish and achieve reasonable standards for quality.

Performance is measured in money and human values, especially when things go wrong.  This lesson describes how to accurately calculate the cost of quality, improve customer satisfaction and recover lost profitability.

Personal Authenticity is a measure of our resolve to be consistent with our customers and coworkers.  There are indicators of consistency in leadership all around us.  They’re recognized by how we routinely depend upon products and services that support our personal or business lifestyle.  But somewhere an authentic leader is working diligently to make our experience feel normal.

Leadership is indicated by how we handle the weight of responsibility when routine business transactions or personnel matters spiral out of control.  This lesson describes three principles which can stabilize the legal and fiduciary responsibilities of managing people and processes.

Learning-Competency Objective: The Learner will gain specific knowledge for applying “due diligence” to workplace details and the leadership skills required to manage risks.

An essential element of leadership is "getting it right" on the decisions we make.  This lesson describes how to be certain that our information is reliable by applying a dependable decision matrix to our work life.

A common technique of professional counselors is to help people face the reality of their behaviors.  Finding and subjecting ourselves to sources of truth and reality can be very helpful in sorting through issues and providing a needed perspective.  This lesson describes some simple leadership reality checks.

Ethical Dependability is a measure of our trustworthiness in practical matters. It is clearly indicated in the ways we handle money and exercise our organizational authority.   It is also measured by whether or not people turn to us when they want things to work right, run on time, and be there when they are needed.  

A reliable communicator is guided by principles that are above self-interest and presents facts that can pass intense scrutiny.  This lesson describes the Five Attributes of Reliable Communicators and their beneficial effects on product and service processes as well as a person's leadership influence.

Every manager will face crunch-times when the commitments he or she has made are tested by the shortage of time, energy and money.  Successful leaders will avoid acting instinctively and instead apply due diligence and reliable principles to their problems.   This lesson describes some easy ways to avoid hard lessons.

Who among us has not said, "I wish I could do that all over again with what I now know."  Prudence is defined as the ability to make intelligent decisions in practical matters or to govern and discipline oneself by the use of reason.   When prudence is added to a manager’s Vocational Certainty™, it is a formula for very reliable leadership.  This lesson describes how to identify and avoid unreasonable risks.