Dear Boss 给老板的一封关于关注顾客方面的公开信

Dear CEO:
亲爱的总经理：
I'd like to thank you for the nice pizza party you threw at our ISO 9001 kickoff event. Everybody enjoyed it and appreciated your inspiring words. The joke you told about the elephant, the preacher and the procedure notebook was very amusing. Your sense of humor is exceptional, especially for a member of top management.
我要感谢您美好的匹萨聚会，在此您拉了我们ISO 9001的序幕。每个人都很喜欢这次聚会，感谢您鼓舞人心的讲话。您关于大象】传教士和过程记事本的笑话太逗了。您的幽默感出乎我们的意料，特别是作为最高管理层一员的您。
The purpose of my letter is to prepare you for the work we have ahead of us. I know how busy you are, and it's easy to get caught up in the day-to-day issues of running our organization. However our new quality management system (QMS) is the way we're going to run our organization, and you'll be a key to its success. Your engagement in this effort will determine whether we use our QMS to become more competitive and customer-focused, or if it will be only a piece of paper on the wall.
我写此信的目的是为您准备我们要做到工作。我知道您很忙，轻轻松松就可处理好经营我们公司的日常事务。但是，新的质量管理体系（QMS）是我们将要运作我们公司的方法，而您是取得成功的关键所在。您为此付出的努力决定了我们利用QMS成为一个更具有竞争力和顾客为关注焦点的企业，还是把QMS成为挂在墙上的一张纸。

Chief, we need a little strategic planning 头儿，我们需要点战略策划

As you know, identifying processes is a key step in implementing our management system. Let's make sure we identify at least one customer for every process. Whether it's an internal customer or an external customer doesn't matter. What matters is that the people working within every process understand that they serve someone outside of their own little kingdom. Right now, some of our processes operate as if they serve only themselves. We need to drive a customer focus from one end of this organization to the other, and our QMS will help us do it.
正如您所知，识别过程是实施我们管理体系的关键。让我们保证我们为每个过程识别至少一个顾客。无论他是内部顾客还是外部顾客都无所谓。有所谓的是在每个过程里工作的人都知道他们在为他们小王国以外的人服务。现在，我们某些过程的运行好像就为他们自己服务似的。我们需要从公司的这边到那边推行顾客为关注焦点，QMS可以帮助我们这样做。
One of the key processes is strategic planning. ISO 9001 doesn't require strategic planning, but it's the logical starting point for a lot of things that the standard does require. Everything we do demands the high-level guidance that strategic planning delivers. At least once a year you should assemble your best and most diverse advisors and scan our competitive environment. What do our customers require and desire? How are these requirements and desires changing? As an organization, how well are we positioned to address the changing market and our ever-evolving customers? We need to match ourselves against the realities of our environment, identify actions that will drive us forward and implement these actions with a clear plan. This is the essence of strategic planning. If our ISO 9001 system is disconnected from strategy, then we have a serious problem.
关键过程之一是战略策划。ISO 9001不需要做战略策划，但战略策划是逻辑上的起点，来完成许多标准要求的工作。我们所做的每件事都需要高层战略策划中所阐述的引导。每年至少一次，您应该召集您最优秀的各个领域的顾问来审视我们的竞争环境。我们的顾客都需要些什么以及希望什么？这些要求和希望有什么变化没有？作为一个公司，我们该把自己摆在什么样的位置上来应对变化的市场和不断变化的顾客？我们需要把我们自己与现实的环境相匹配，识别这些驱使我们向前的措施，用明确的计划实施这些措施。这就是战略策划的核心。如果ISO 9001体系与战略分离，那么我们就面临严重的问题。

Ditto for objectives 还需要点目标

Objectives flow directly from our strategic plan. They tell everyone what specific initiatives are important to our success. Please help us choose strategic, hard-hitting objectives. They should tie directly to our strategic plan, translating that document into simple metrics that everyone can understand. Because our strategic plan will be focused on better serving our customers, our objectives will also be tied to customers. Each process will have objectives that directly relate to the customers it serves.
战略策划直接产生目标。这些目标告诉每个人什么样的主动性对我们的成功来说是重要的。请帮助我们选择战略的富有挑战性的目标。这些目标应该与我们的战略策划直接挂钩，将这些目标文件翻译成每个人都懂的简单标准。因为我们的战略策划关注于更好的服务顾客，我们的目标也将与顾客密不可分。每个过程都有与其服务的顾客相联系的目标。
Resist the temptation to have two sets of objectives, one for the sake of ISO 9001 and the other for "really" running the business. We only need one set of objectives that everyone understands. Don't bother to call them "quality objectives" because that will only cloud the issue. Somebody might hear the term "quality" and try to narrowly define what the objectives may address. Our objectives should address how we drive success, period.
要抵制建立两套目标的诱惑，一套为ISO 9001，另一套用于实际操作。我们只需要一组大家都理解的目标。别为将这些目标称其为“质量目标”所困扰，因为这将混淆视听。某些人听到“质量”一词，就试图把目标确定的范围缩小。我们的目标引导我们如何走向成功。句号。
As chief executive, you are uniquely qualified to communicate our objectives and their significance. This message could come from somebody else in the organization, but it's much more effective coming from you. Explain to everyone how each of our objectives affects our long-term success, and ensure that all employees know exactly how they contribute to achieving objectives. Above all, make sure that we all know how we affect our customers in our everyday actions.
作为总裁，您是唯一适合宣传目标及其重要性的人。讲演稿可出自公司的其他人，但最有效的是您亲自写。向每个人解释我们每个目标如何影响我们的长期成就，并保证所有员工明确了解他们该如何为目标的达成做出贡献。总之，让我们所有人知道我们的日常工作行为如何影响顾客的

Which brings me to management review 管理评审

You should strive to make management review your forum for reviewing data and making decisions. We're not doing it for the sake of ISO 9001; we're doing it to ensure our success. Management review should occur regularly and rely on timely information. If we already have top-level meetings for reviewing our organization's progress, then let's just turn these into our management review. It doesn't matter how we do it; the only requirements are that the review is your event, and we must cover the specified inputs and outputs. We can get as creative as we want. Management review should never be done just to satisfy an ISO 9001 requirement. The point is to review data, make decisions and become a more successful organization over the long term.
您应该尽力开好管理评审会议，评审数据和制定决策。我们不是为了ISO 9001而进行管理评审，而是为了保证我们的成功。管理评审应该定期召开，并且依据实时信息。如果我们已经有了高层会议评审我们公司的进展得很，那么让我们把这些会议转变为管理评审。我们怎么做无关紧要，唯一的要求是评审是您的工作，我们必须涵盖特定的输入和输出。我们也可以进行我们想要的创新。管理评审不仅仅是为了满足ISO 9001的要求。其要点是评审数据、做出决策并成为长期成功的企业。
Communicate broadly about all aspects of our QMS. We have a wide range of communication media; it's just a matter of using them. Take every opportunity to talk honestly to our organization about what we're doing and where we're going. Try to connect your message to the things we're doing in the QMS and how they affect our customers. Don't assume that we'll immediately understand. Be very explicit in your communication, and don't forget to allow room for us to respond.
广泛宣传QMS的所有方面。我们拥有多种多样的宣传媒介。只要动用这些媒介就可以了。利用每个机会真诚地宣告我们公司正在做什么和我们的前景目标。把您的致辞与我们正在做的QMS联系起来并宣传这样做是如何影响顾客。不要假设我们会马上理解。在您宣传中要清晰易懂，不要忘记给我们做出反应的空间。

You rule customer feedback 您掌控着顾客反馈

Customer feedback is another key aspect of our QMS, possibly the most important. It's certainly the most critical data we receive. It communicates even more than our financials, which tell us only what has already happened and are poor predictors of the future. Not only can customer feedback predict our future, it's our gateway to long-term success.
顾客反馈是QMS另一个关键方面，也许是最重要的。当然也是我们收到最带有火药味的数据。这些数据传达的信息远超于财务方面，告诉我们什么事情已经发生了，是未来不详之兆。顾客反馈不仅仅预言我们未来，它也是我们走向长期成功的一扇大门。
As our chief executive, you need to obsess about customer feedback. You should thirst for every bit of feedback we collect--positive or negative. Collect it we must because we can't sit around and wait for customers to call us. We need simple, concise tools for capturing feedback proactively. To collect feedback, let's use existing customer interactions instead of inventing new ones. Our organization already has multiple contacts with customers day in and day out, and these interactions can easily be leveraged to gather feedback.
作为总裁，您需要不断地关注顾客反馈。你应该如饥似渴地想知道我们收集的反馈信息的每个细节，正面的或是负面的。我们得去收集因为我们坐等顾客给我们打电话。我们需要简明的前期获取反馈信息的工具。要收集反馈信息，让我们利用现有的顾客交流渠道，而不是发明什么新方法。我们已经有多种多样天天使用的交流方式，这些方法可以很容易地被用于收集反馈信息。
When customers complain, you should take it personally, mobilizing all of our resources to take corrective action. Not everyone realizes how critical customer complaints are, so you must remind them. Make it easy for customers to complain, and make it easy for us to fix their complaints. When customer feedback indicates something positive, find out what's causing the satisfaction. Share what you learn with everyone, and make it our new standard. If you're constantly asking about customer feedback, everyone will understand how important it is.
当顾客抱怨时，您应该个人动员我们全部的资源采取纠正措施。并不是每个人都了解顾客抱怨的重要性，所以您得提醒他们。创造条件让顾客抱怨更容易，让我们解决这些抱怨更容易。当顾客反馈对我们做出了肯定，那就找到是什么让顾客满意。把您知道的与每个人分享，使之成为我们新的标准。如果不断地询问顾客反馈，这样每个人就知道反馈信息有多重要了。

Can you fix this? 您能解决这个问题吗？

Another thing to keep on your radar is our corrective and preventive action system. I suspect we're going to have difficulty motivating people to use these processes. Nobody likes extra work, and very often that's what these appear to be. Investigating and solving problems aren't extracurricular activities--they're a key job function for everyone. When problems come up or customers complain, you should say, "Let's open a corrective action." When a potential problem is revealed, you need to say, "Let's initiate a preventive action." In both cases, make sure that adequate resources are applied and that we follow through to completion.
另一件事是关注纠正和预防措施。我怀疑我们在让人们使用这些过程时会有麻烦。没人喜欢额外的工作，这是司空见惯的。研究问题和解决问题并不是额外的工作，对每个人来说是他们关键的工作职能。当问题出现了或有顾客抱怨了，您该说：“让我们启动纠正措施吧”。当发现了潜在问题时，您该说“让我们启动预防措施吧”。要保证有足够的资源以及我们坚持到底直至成功。
Very few of us have had training on problem-solving techniques. Can you fix that? Getting everyone up to speed on problem solving will be a huge step in our development as an organization. It will prepare us to take part in the corrective and preventive action process. You should participate in the training, too. You're busy, but you're not too busy to become a better problem solver. Your presence would also underline the significance of this training. If you're agreeable, I'll have a purchase order on your desk tomorrow for problem-solving training. Becoming better problem solvers is one of the best investments we can make. The better we are at problem solving, the better we will be at addressing the changing needs of customers.
我们很少有人受过问题解决技术方面的培训。您能解决这个问题吗？让每个人加速解决问题是我们的巨大进步。这将让我们准备好进行纠正和预防措施。您也该参加培训。您忙，但再忙也不如成为更好的解决问题专家。您的出席也强调了培训重要性。如您同意，明天我就把问题解决培训教程的购买单放您桌子上。成为问题解决专家说我们可以做的最佳投资之一。我们在解决问题方面表现的越好，我们在面对日益变化的顾客需求方面做的就越好。

One word: training 一个字：培训

That brings me to training in general. Training is one of our key processes for preventing problems in the first place. It's not optional. We don't have to spend piles of money and weeks of time, but we do have to train our people. I've worked for too many organizations where training was considered good to do if time and circumstances allowed. Once we got busy, training was abandoned. "Hey, we've got work to do!" everyone shouted. "Who's got time for training?" Then they wondered why customer complaints skyrocketed. It's simple cause and effect: Neglect training, and people will make mistakes.
让我概要说下培训。首先培训是我们预防问题的关键过程。不是可有可无。我们不用花很多的钱和投入数周的时间，但是我们不得不培训员工。我在太多的公司干过，只要时间和条件允许培训都做的不错。一旦我们忙起来了，培训就中止了。“嘿，我们得干活”每个人都这样叫道，“谁有时间培训呀？”然后他们就顾客抱怨为什么那么多。这只是个因果关系：忽视培训，员工将出错。
Here's a deal for you: We'll strive to keep the training lean, concise and relevant. In return, you'll frequently ask managers and supervisors how their training programs are going. Maybe you could periodically drop in on training to remind trainers and trainees alike of how important this process is to our success. You should keep yourself in a constant state of learning, too. Nobody needs training more than you, given the huge responsibilities that you face.
这儿有个交易：我们努力进行培训，简洁而又与工作相关。作为回报，你可以经常问问各级经理和主管他们的培训进行的如何。你也可以阶段性地检查培训工作，以提醒培训师和受训人员培训对我们取得成功有多么重要。您也应该把培训作为日常工作。如果您面对更大的挑战时，没有人比您更需要培训的了。

Let's work smart on internal auditing 内审

Internal auditing is a process you'll be involved with in the near future. You may never actually perform an audit (although it would be great if you did), but you'll certainly be an essential part of the process. A key role you'll play is making sure that audits are properly resourced. Insist that smart, insightful personnel are selected as auditors. Don't let auditor selection become an exercise in "who can we spare?" Invest the process with smart people, and the results will drive improvements. When audits reveal opportunities, ensure that we take corrective and preventive action. Our audits should focus on important, strategic issues. Ask how the audits are helping us become a better organization. Ask why our customers should care that we're doing audits. Help us keep our eyes on the things that matter, and audits will produce strong results.
内审您将参与的一个过程。你也许从不实际参与审核（尽管如果您能亲自参与那就太好不过了），但您将理所当然地是内审过程的基石。您起的关键作用是保证内审员得到相应的资源。坚持把聪明的富有洞察力的人选为内审员。不要让内审员选举成为“我们能分享给谁呢？的游戏。把聪明的人放在内审的岗位上，内审的结果就会推动改进工作。但内审发现了改进机会，要保证我们进行纠正和预防措施。内审侧重于重要的具有战略意义的问题。问问内审如何帮助我们成为更好的企业，问问为什么顾客关心内审。帮助我们专心于内审，其结果将产生好的结果。

Boss, are you listening? 您还在听吗？老板？

One of the final topics I'd like to talk about is trust. Please trust me when I recommend that we do something to improve our organization. It's your prerogative to disagree with me, of course, but at least trust that I have our organization's best interests in mind. Just because I'm an employee doesn't mean I can't have good ideas. Too many business leaders fall into the trap of thinking that great ideas have to come from outside the company, especially from someone with a briefcase and a business card with the word "consultant" printed on it. The answers to most problems lie right here within our organization; we just have to listen to them. The title CEO should be changed to CLO, for Chief Listening Officer. You'll listen to data, listen to customers, listen to competitors, listen to suppliers and, of course, listen to us, the employees. All this listening, combined with wise action, will ensure that we do the right things.
最后一个话题之一是信任。请相信我所建议的改善公司所要做的事。当然，您有特权不同意我，但至少相信我将告诉最大利益放在心上。仅仅是因为我是员工，并不意味着我不能有好主意。太多的商业领袖陷入认为好点子来自公司外的怪圈之中，特别是那些手拿文件箱，名片上印着”顾问“字样的人士。大多数问题的答案就在企业内部，只有我们聆听。您聆听数据、顾客、竞争对手、供应商，以及我们。所有这些聆听，加上明智的行动，就保证我们做正确的事。

You hold the key您掌控着钥匙

Finally, be aware that our QMS is a bellwether of our success. A failing management system is a predictor of much larger failure. If we let our QMS decay, become bureaucratic or too inwardly focused, we'll seal our doom. We must use our system to look outward and see where the market and our customers are moving. Your interest, involvement and leadership are the only ways that our QMS will remain viable and improve. If a piece of our system serves no purpose, have it removed. If we're not following our procedures, find out why. If something we do doesn't make sense, investigate further. The words "why" and "I'm listening" are your best friends. You have the power, through these words and your own innate wisdom, to keep us customer-focused and always improving. You hold the key.
最后，要知道QMS我们走向成功的领头羊。一个失效的管理体系就是更大失效的前兆。如果我们让QMS衰退成为官僚机构或只注意向内看，那么我们必死无疑。我们必须向外看，看市场和顾客往哪里走。您的关注、参与和领导是唯一使QMS保持可行性和改进的方法。如果管理体系未按要求进行，就改了它。如果我们未能按过程要求做，就问问为什么。如果我们不知道，就深查严究。“为什么”和“我在听”是您最好的朋友。通过使用这些词和您天生的才华，您有权力使得我们时刻关注顾客并常常改进。您掌控着钥匙。

From Craig Cochran