Joseph M. Juran, 1904-2008
A pioneering architect of the science of managing for quality, Joseph M. Juran, passed away February 28 at the age of 103. Known as the “father” of quality, he said, “It is most important that top management be quality-minded. In the absence of sincere manifestation of interest at the top, little will happen below.”
Dr. Joseph M. Juran passed away on February 28, 2008 of natural causes. He was 103 years old and was physically and mentally active until his death. Although Dr Juran had retired from the Juran Institute in 1994 he will be missed by all of his family, friends and employees for the guidance and support.
Dr. Juran was referred to as the father of modern day Quality Management. He had many accomplishments in his life. He named the Pareto Principle; he provided a roadmap to improve organization-wide quality; he traveled the world to teach others how to improve quality; and he founded the Juran Institute Inc (JII) in 1979 at the age of 75.
JII initially focused on providing training to improve enterprise quality. It grew over the years to provide clients and society with a full compliment of tools and techniques to improve business results. Many of Dr. Juran’s techniques to improve business performance are still in use today in as the Lean and Six Sigma, tools and principles used all around the world.
More detail is available where ASQ Remembers Dr. Juran.