Autograph your work with quality, even in tough times

There are some conventional wisdoms that we’ve all been taught – things like don’t put your elbows on the table or look both ways before crossing the street. These ideas have been drilled into our minds but when we’re reminded about how important they are, they get reinforced yet again.  Today’s subject – quality — is a lot like that. I shared the following message with Plante & Moran staff  to reinforce how important quality is for the firm , especially during busy season.

How’s this for something you’ve heard before? “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right.” My parents used to say it all the time, I’ve said it to my own kids, and it was one of Frank Moran’s favorite sayings.

Plante & Moran has always been about doing things right and not taking shortcuts. We’ve built our 86-year reputation on the quality of the professional services we provide and integrity in everything we do.

We recently celebrated Martin Luther King Day and I am reminded of his quote, “The time is always right to do what is right.”

During these difficult economic times, we’ve put a lot of emphasis on efficiency and profitability. These are good things, but let’s be clear. We’re not interested in trading quality for efficiency and profitability – they aren’t mutually exclusive.

Efficiency is about doing the right things, the right way – providing quality services while eliminating waste or excess.

When faced with a choice between profitability on one hand – and our compliance with professional standards — quality — on the other – we’ve always chosen quality. It’s the right thing to do. It’s who we are.

We have great systems to insure a quality product every time: rigorous quality control processes, our open door policy, colleaguing, and the ability to ask questions at any point in the process.

These systems enable us to do the right things because it’s the right thing to do and because our clients and the public depend on us for it.

Many of you know Greg Coursen, our Director of Professional Standards. You might call Greg a quality control bulldog because of the passion he brings to his role. Greg has a poster in his office that says, “Every job is the self portrait of the person who did it. Autograph your work with quality.”

That’s a message for all of us as we work to uphold the highest standards for Plante & Moran, no matter what our role is.

Let’s make every job an excellent self portrait. Here’s to…autographing your work with quality. Thank you and have a great day!