In recent years, the Regional Government has been “outlining a wide range of coherent and coordinated measures in order to foster a culture of quality in the Azores" said the Regional Secretary for the Economy in Ponta Delgada today.

Luísa Schanderl participated in the opening session of the seminar "The Future standard recommendations on project management" on behalf of the President of the Government. The government official highlighted some tools created by the Government, including "the Regional Strategy for Quality," for which an integrated plan of action was created to standardise quality practices. In turn, these quality practices underlie the creation of planning tools and are also envisaged in the implementation of regional policies. A culture of quality should be a requirement for our development,” stated the government official.

According to Luísa Schanderl, "we need to be more productive and competitive." In this context, "the investment in quality management systems may provide a decisive contribute to the accomplishment of this goal."

For the government official, "investing in the qualification of human resources, in the quality of goods and services as well as in effective management and innovation systems is crucial to boost the competitiveness of companies and foster the development of the Azores."

"In times of difficulty, with an adverse macroeconomic scenario and difficult access to bank credit, these premises become even more important. For this reason, companies should pay special attention to the dynamics of competitiveness in order to facilitate the adaptation to higher levels of internal and external competition as well as to the adjustment to new specialisation profiles."

"The promotion of quality must be regarded by our companies as a fundamental requirement for success and survival in the markets because quality, as a management tool, is a driving force for the competitiveness of organisations," concluded the Regional Secretary for the Economy.