If you’ve read our previous blog posts, you’re probably used to seeing the word “Quality” pop up. That’s because it’s one of the cornerstones of how we work at SQL Systems, along with “Structure” and “Liability.” 

I started my internship at SQL Systems four weeks ago, and at the time I was completely baffled by the idea that data “needs” structure, quality, and reliability. I thought, “Please, don’t let anyone ask me about this right now,” because you want to be as well-prepared as possible, especially when you join a new company. To me, data was simply data—how could you add quality to it? 

So I started reading the existing blog posts, and a whole new world opened up to me—it gave me a whole new perspective! If you haven’t read the previous posts yet, I think that should be at the top of your to-do list! 

Here you can read about what data quality means, why it’s important, and how we at SQL Systems ensure data quality. 

But today I’m going to talk about how I perceive quality and what it means to me.

“Quality of life is more important than life itself”

“Quality of life is more important than life itself”—so goes the saying.

It is said that our quality of life is determined by what makes us happy. 

When it comes to the industrial world, we might want an object to perform as well as possible in the shortest possible time. Is that true for us, too? That our lives should contain as few “mistakes” as possible. There’s no one right way to live life, and that’s a good thing—so I won’t get too deep into that today. 

But I will try to describe quality as literally as possible. 

When people hear the word "quality," I think many associate it with something well-known that costs a little more. But a well-known brand isn't always synonymous with quality. Here, you can read about what quality means to me!

Does a well-known brand always mean good quality?

I’m going to give a few examples—all of them are based on real-life situations I’ve experienced—to explain what quality means. 

• I have a pair of sandals from a well-known brand. They’ve been very popular for many years and are supposed to be ergonomic. They’re also more expensive than other sandals. Perfect, I thought—they must be good quality, so I bought them. To my disappointment, I get severe blisters, and the sandals even break after my first trip when they get splashed with salt water. Now I’m angry instead and wonder, what kind of quality were they actually offering me? I could have saved a few hundred kronor or even bought more pairs of shoes for my vacation. 

• My second example takes place when I moved back home from Mallorca a few years ago. We had sold everything we owned, so coming home with nothing but clothes and memories made me realize that my shopping list was going to be very long. After a week or so, when everything had started to fall into place, I discovered to my horror that I hadn’t bought a vacuum cleaner. Once I was there to solve my vacuum cleaner problem, I saw that there were huge price differences between the various models. By this point, I was so tired of wasting money that I chose the cheapest option—believe me, I got off very cheaply. My plan was to buy this vacuum cleaner and, if I was lucky, it would last six months to a year, and then I could invest in a better one. Once again, I was surprised—but this time in a good way! I hadn’t learned anything from my shoe-buying experience: “it’s not always about the price.” Because this cheap vacuum cleaner turned out to be just as good as every other vacuum cleaner I’ve ever owned. If anyone asked me for a vacuum cleaner recommendation, I could genuinely recommend this one and actually say that if you buy it, you’re getting a quality vacuum cleaner. 

• For a change of pace, my final example will be a scenario related to quality in the workplace. About a year ago, I started studying and completely changed direction from what I had been doing before. A large part of the program consists of internships, so I began looking for one. Before I started studying, I had been employed at a company for a few years, and it had been a long time since I’d been to interviews. I was in an industry that was completely new to me and had a hard time knowing what would be expected of me. But once again, it turned out that my preconceived notion was completely wrong. I thought, “This is an internship, so I can’t expect too much.” To be completely honest, I’ve probably thought that way about “real” jobs too—that I can’t expect much from a job; you’re just supposed to enjoy what you do. But WOW, how SQL Systems has changed my attitude toward working life. Not only have I learned new things about marketing from Mirjam, but I’ve also gained new knowledge in data. On top of that—as if that weren’t enough—they’ve welcomed me just like any other employee, and I’ve never been treated better in my professional life. After my first interview, when I’d just found out I’d gotten the internship, I told a friend that this felt too good to be true—it couldn’t be that good! But yes, Julia, it could be. The way they’ve treated me and how they treat each other, how they’ve let me be involved and shown themselves to be extremely professional—that, to me, is quality if anything. It’s also the finest form of quality—namely, the kind that truly means something.

It is up to the user to decide what quality means.

The conclusion from my examples is that it’s up to each user to decide what quality means to them. But I think we can all agree that quality is something we want—and, moreover, something we need in our lives. Less so when it comes to certain things, and more so when it comes to others.

Having a pair of sandals that wear out sooner than expected or being lucky enough to save some money on a vacuum cleaner may not be the end of the world. But when we talk about quality in the workplace, it’s far more important to us. When it comes to how you treat your employees, your colleagues, and your customers. Quality lays the foundation for reliability; this is what keeps the gears turning. For me, SQL Systems is a master of quality—not just when it comes to taking care of employees, but also when it comes to data quality! Because even there, I’ve learned that it’s incredibly important to have quality-assured data, since it not only helps prevent operational errors but also helps increase the accuracy of an analysis, which in turn can lead to better business decisions that can boost sales!

Are you curious and want to talk more about document management and documentation? Maybe you have some questions about your own organization? We’d be happy to help and listen to your challenges! Send an email to nyfiken@sqlsystems.se. Follow us on LinkedIn to stay updated!