Quality Assurance & Child Rearing
I am a Quality Assurance (QA) specialist in quality management systems (QMS) such as ISO 9001: 2015. I’m a parent with two children. I love drawing parallels different aspects of my life, and so here’s a parallel about my role in quality assurance and child rearing.
A QA Parent – Does That Really Exist?
(And I know that Lawnmower, Helicopter, Attachment, Tiger, and Free-range parents exist).
Yes. The journey of raising a child, from infancy to the transition into independence is similar to the nurturing needed as a QA specialist. As a parent guides their child, QA demands meticulous care, steadfast risk management, and unceasing commitment to continuous improvement. I have attempted to establish a sturdy foundation for my children’s growth by laying the groundwork through well-structured processes, meticulous standards and have encouraged values. Similarly, QA imparts the core principles of quality, consistency, and the essence of continuous improvement.
When managing a teenager, the QA parent needs to encourage the teen to explore, learn and guide their child through various phases. Similarly, QA leads processes through an array of stages, all while adhering to comprehensive risk management strategies, and undertaking rigorous testing and refinement in parenting style.
Resonating with the concept of management reviews, where parents assume the managerial role, QA specialists ensure that processes are regularly scrutinised and refined. This constant assessment parallels a parent’s watchful eye, ensuring that no stone is left unturned in nurturing both a child’s growth and the evolution of QA processes.
As the child prepares to leave the nest and embrace independence, QA culminates in the same goal. Like a child standing tall on their own, QA processes mature, adapt, and contribute autonomously to an organisation’s triumph. Just as parents teach knowledge and values, QA specialists promote quality principles, fostering a legacy of operational excellence.
Raising Standards in Children and in Quality Assurance
In summary, both child-rearing and QA is transformative from its infancy to an independent force of quality, shaped by unceasing commitment to continuous improvement, risk management, and the watchful eyes of meticulous management reviews.
