What it is the ANSI G1 Standard?
ASQ/ANSI G1:2021 provides “Guidelines for evaluating the quality of government operations and services.” It is an international standard that represents best-in-class management practice for government. It can be purchased from the American Society for Quality bookstore, The American Society for Quality bookstore. This new standard provides a baseline for testing the efficiency and effectiveness of government operations everywhere by providing process and system maturity models that apply to the workflows of every government program, unit and office. Their application allows anyone to evaluate whether managers and supervisors have best practice operational plans in place to guide their work. It also provides a maturity score that reflects the extent to which managers and supervisors use the proven practices of quality management. It’s system and process maturity models span the work of entire organizations and provide for uniform and objective scoring of the use of quality practices in every office and area. The premise of the new standard is that the use of quality practices is synonymous with good management overall, and that managers and supervisors should be held accountable for defining standard best practices, and having performance measures embedded in their work.
Process and system maturity models are based on the scoring of the use of well-known quality practices in everyday management. These include documenting the value-added outputs of every office, and defining objective and measurable requirements for their production. This of course creates a solid baseline for evaluation, and for performance measurement. Also important is having a defined series of process steps or milestones, on which that efficient and effective production depends. This in turn becomes the best known practice operational plan, and its development must be shown to include knowledge inputs from those most experienced in doing the work – the subject matter experts. The interim steps can also be mapped and measured, and their completion as defined is a leading measure of success, that does not wait for the measurement of waste and failed effort later on. The best practice plans of higher maturity also formally evaluate risk, and incorporate cycles of analysis and improvement, as another means of creating excellent work. Attention to defining the correct inputs to process completes the picture, and ensures a holistic approach to excellent management. The overall impact of these standards is to model excellent work in every part of government, and to make the development of these practices visible, and measurable.
Once the maturity models have been applied to the work of every manager and supervisor, a comprehensive and visible scorecard can be created, that will guide the attention and effort of everyone. A visible scorecard of this type ensures that the interest in quality practice and excellent operations will not be short-lived, but will define how the organization does business into the foreseeable future. It is a model that can broadly improve the efficiency and effectiveness of government everywhere.
ASQ/ANSI G1:2021 provides the uniform, objective standard by which government entities can develop and confirm the level of sustainable quality of their operations and services,” said Richard E. Mallory, the principal author of the standard and the immediate past Chair of The Center for Quality Standards in Government of the ASQ Government Division. “We believe that as the standard is broadly accepted and applied, it will provide a powerful tool for showing the relative efficiency and effectiveness of government entities through the sustained use of quality practices.
Become a Designated Examiner
The Designated Examiner certificate is awarded to those who complete ASQ Government Division approved training, and acknowledges that trainees know and can apply the ANSI G1 Standard. Those who successfully complete the training and pass a post-test become “Designated Examiners of the Quality of Government Operations and Services.”
Mallory Management can schedule WebEx or on-site training for organizations who wish to train groups, with a minimum class size of eight. Individuals seeking training can consult the ASQ Government Division web page, regarding future classes and online training options.
Mallory Management also offers related classes to strengthen quality practices and quality management skills. These include “Application of Structured System System Management,” and “Operational Excellence and Continuous Improvement.”