【正文】 nd on and on. The business managers speak money: sales, overhead, margin, and profit. There in lies the problem, and no wonder. No wonder it’s so difficult for the quality manager to get anything done – or even keep his or her job! As you will see, even the name Quality Cost is a problem. The Solution Collect information about cost, and report quality activity in management’s language. It’s that simple. But watch out, it can be dangerous. The Other Problem Report quality activity in terms of money! Sounds simple. Many quality types jump right in give it a try, only to end up emptyhanded or on the streets. This Clinic was created from personal success and failure! I personally tried to implement a quality cost program in two major corporations where I was the corporate director of quality. These corporations had lots of puters and information. I was unsuccessful, but I did learn about the Parkinson’s Law that says, “Delay is the deadliest form of denial.” Later, in another job where I reported to the Chairman of the Board, I had the clout the get a quality cost reporting program installed and working. Success! After doing it, I learned what it was all about. It’s a tricky game. You Need Clout So, the other problem with quality cost is getting the job done. If you find your controller smiles and keeps saying “Yes, but…” you have a clout problem: you have less clout that the controller. How To Get Clout To get clout, you need to get the blessing of the boss – the big boss. To get the big boss’ attention, you must scare him or her. You need to show how much money is being wasted because work is done wrong. If you do that, you can get a policy. If you talk about Cpk and AQL, you’ll put the boss to sleep. You need a policy for quality. If you have a real policy for quality (no motherhood), one line can state that cost data will be used to report quality activity. That’