Page 59 - FoodFocusThailand No.143_February 2018

SAFETY ALERT

“Quality Mind” จึงเป็นเรื่องส�าคัญที่จะช่วยให้ลดปัญหาในการผลิตได้ ผู้ประกอบวิชาชีพ ได้ตระหนักถึงผู้บริโภคก่อนมากกว่าผลประกอบการ
เราคงไม่อยากได้ยินข่าวสินค้าของเราที่ด้อยคุณภาพออกไปสู่ท้องตลาด จะเป็นการสร้างความยั่งยืนอย่างแท้จริง
ไม่อยากได้ยินว่าสินค้าของเราไม่ใส่ใจผู้บริโภค และยิ่งในปัจจุบันโซเชียล เรามาเปลี่ยนแปลงแนวคิดกันใหม่ให้สมกับที่เราจะเป็นครัวของโลก
มีเดียมาเร็วและแรงมากกว่าที่คิด เพียงครู่เดียวข่าวคราวในด้านลบมักไปเร็ว ที่ปลอดภัยอย่างแท้จริง และจะเป็นการตอกย�้าว่าเราจะนึกถึงประโยคนี้
และกระทบอย่างรุนแรงเสมอ หากในวงการทั้งผู้ประกอบการ เจ้าหน้าที่รัฐ ตลอดไป… “ขอให้ค�านึงถึงผู้บริโภคเทียบเท่าตัวเรา”…

Put Ourselves

in our Customers’ Shoes

The arrest of the meat producer -- on the allegation of forging documents and
selling poor-quality meat, and contaminated, adulterated and under-specification
products -- not only made big international news, but also had a direct impact
on the consumers. It unavoidably jeopardized the consumers’ confidence
toward both the producers and the countries of origin. Already, there have been
sanctions against the imports of meat from that particular producer.

There are several questions that we, as food producers, need to 3. Make Organizational KPI (Key Performance Index) on
find answers to -- what should we do to prevent this scenario from Quality Issues: Employees need to truly put their minds together
happening, and how extensive is our scope of responsibility? Apart and focus more on the whole organization KPI, rather than
from legal responsibilities and penalties posted by law, ethically and individual ones. Overly safeguarding one’s own KPI can lead to
pragmatically, who and which department of a company should be the ignorance over the whole organization’s performance.
responsible? Which codes of conducts and ethics have to be kept, 4. “Quality” before “Productivity”: Most of the time,
not crossed? To answer these questions, we need to put ourselves promoting “Productivity” is seen as a quicker mean toward
in our customers’ shoes. In the end, the most important question we company’s profit, and hence all efforts are channeled
need to address ourselves is whether we would be prepared to buy correspondingly. As a result, “Quality” is unavoidably overlooked
such poor-quality products if the role is reversed. Definitely “no”. So, -- of which the bad impact might not yet be apparent, but it certainly
it’s not only about making products true to their specifications, but is there. Hence, promoting “Quality Mind” is crucial in solving and
also about instilling within every personnel the loyalty and honesty reducing production problems.
towards the customers: to always make sure that the products are No producer would want to hear bad comments on its products
safe and healthy. quality, or the comment that the company lacks responsibility
towards its customers. With the super-fast social media trend of
How do we Start? today, in just a flash, negative news can turn into a publicity
1. Stick to the Rules and Regulations: When faced with nightmare with phenomenal impacts. It needs to be a collaboration
troublesome issues over the quality of any products, an employee from everyone involved -- from business owner, to governmental
should rightly notify his supervisor and quarantine such products personnel, to all employees in the industry -- to always put
without hesitation. consumers well-being before companies’ profit. Only this right
2. Build Unified Quality Awareness within the Organization: mindset can steer our industry toward the right and sustainable
Heads of the companies need to be role models for the whole direction.
staff in having and living a “Quality Mind”. It is essential to emphasize Let ’s us change our way of thinking to make Thailand a true
that “Quality” is not just a word of propaganda but a true motivation and safe kitchen of the world, and to always “Put Ourselves in
for the whole company. Training is one way to build such quality our Customers’ Shoes”.
mind, but to make it an organizational culture; it has to be made
with earnestness and determination. The development will be felt by
both the employees and the consumers; which is in a way every one
of us.

FEB 2018 FOOD FOCUS THAILAND 59