The Value of Quality in Marketing terms

It is incumbent upon the marketing function to both understand and provide a holistic view of how the market defines the value of quality. This requires expanding the view of how value is created and delivered throughout the entire delivery system of the organization. It is essential to understand that value at the point of production does not necessarily translate into value at the point of consumption. Issues of product support, parts availability, service, warranty and so forth all figure prominently into how customers and markets define and evaluate the value offerings of competing suppliers. Consequently, the value information collected and provided by marketing must identify those factors that are critical to quality (CTQ) throughout the organization’s value stream.

            The marketing role also should include linking value information from the marketplace to internal processes throughout the organization that create and deliver value. This is the process so critical to the identification of Six Sigma projects, linking the organization’s processes (inputs) to competitive performance criteria associated with the CTQs (outputs). The tools used to identify the linkages must allow the organization to set project priorities.

            Once Six Sigma projects are under way, an important function in the analysis of information is the development of appropriate tracking metrics to monitor market-perceived changes in value based on changes brought about through Six Sigma projects.