Page 18 - Graypvine March 2021

Quality

with Trey Griffith
Director, Quality

We are customer and relationship driven: it’s Core
Value number two, but just as important as our other
company Core Values. I recently had the pleasure one
weekend of helping a family member by replacing their
dishwasher. In a previous life I did this for a living with
my father when I was in high school, as he taught me
how to work and most of the values that I have now.
So I have a little experience with installing these; it had
18 just been a while. As I started down this journey things The dishwasher came
with two drain hoses to
were going well. I removed the old dishwasher and snap together, potentially
creating a leak, and a
was prepping the new one to be installed when I hit clamp that didn't match
the stop button. What came to mind was “customer the one required in
installation instructions.
and relationship driven.” But you all know me; I’m
a little left field in my thinking. What drove me to
thinking about the Core Value was wondering what
the manufacturer was thinking when they made their
decisions. I don’t mean their customer – they had
them in mind in their commercials and when deciding
how quiet and well this dishwasher would run, but they
didn’t think of the installation contractor! Do you know
they made the drain hose come in two sections?! Why work. Our design teams have our Project Managers
create a potential leak? They did not supply the water and site team as customers that they deliver a product
line ELL connector to install the thing! They didn’t to. Our site teams have internal customers like trade
include all the necessary screws, and the clamps were partners, PM teams, and DM teams that they need to
the wrong type! What went through my mind was deliver to.
their lack of focus and not understanding who their If we keep customer and relationship driven in
customer is. the front of our minds and understand what we
What I’m driving at here is that we must have are producing for one another is our “product,” we
an understanding of our customers. At Gray we will achieve a much better product for our ultimate
understand who we are building our buildings for... customers. That’s the end user of the building we
much like this manufacturer understood what my produce together as we work as a team. But we can
family member wanted in a dishwasher. But they didn’t only do that through good internal relationships and
understand what their internal customer – the installer delivering the best product to our team member's
– and what they wanted or needed. Our Quality group internal customers as possible. More to come on this
is now focusing on a plan to understand internal subject soon.
customers and to understand their needs. What does P.S.: I got the dishwasher in, and you all know me
this mean? Well, as a Project Manager we have items well enough to realize that. I’m sending a note to the
that need to be done to provide a product for our site manufacturer as well, as we all need to continue to
teams to be successful, like contracts and scope of strive for top quality!