PPB January 2017

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60 | JANUARY 2017 |
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addressing risk. With risk,
a business may choose to
eliminate it in the product or the
process, reduce it, avoid it (leave
a category or even the industry)
or live with it. Standards allow
us to define what constitutes an
undue risk and the appropriate
corrective action. At QCA, this is
what we work on every day with
applicants and accredited firms.
PPAI’s Product Responsibility
Advisory Group (PRAG) includes
a number of past and current
members from QCA-accredited
firms and many of the best
practices shared by PRAG come
directly from their company
programs. These have been
shared freely for the betterment
of the industry as a whole.
QCA’s Compliance Accreditation
Programaddresses generally
accepted definitions of risk,
for whichQCA applicants and
accredited firms develop practicable
processes for ensuring adherence to
compliance standards.Third-party
validation of compliancewith the
letter of the lawand customers’
preferences protects the industry,
itsmembers, end buyers and end
users of our products. Finally,
improving a company’s processes
to adapt to a changing environment
for business is appropriate
for an industry of any size.
In an industry where product
safety is paramount to buyer
satisfaction, QCA helps protect
company brands and reputations
by offering compliance with the
highest process standards in
the marketplace.
D E Fenton is the executive
director – compliance for the
Quality Certification Alliance
(QCA). Additionally, she has held
positions managing overseas
manufacturing operations,
offshore buying offices and
directing corporate compliance for
the major U.S. retailer, Walmart.
Tim Brown, MAS, is executive
director – operations for QCA.
Brown has spent the past decade
in the promotional products
industry. Most recently, he
was product responsibility
manager at PPAI. Prior to that,
he owned his own compliance
consulting firm and was the
supplier relationship manager
at Cintas Branded Apparel &
Promotional Products.
Improving
a company’s
processes to adapt
to a changing
environment
for business is
appropriate
for an industry
of any size.
ASI: 73871 SAGE: 67367 PPAI: 255687 UPIC: NEXTPRO
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