Why your company needs to adopt a corporate product safety policy

If your company manufactures, imports or simply offers a product or service for sale to the consuming public, your company needs a corporate-wide product safety policy.

After all, if your organization takes pride in the products or the services it offers, that pride should be made known to all. Take the time to write down those principles which are important to your company. Once completed, post those principles where both your employees and your customers can see them. If you believe in something admirable, and you work hard toward attaining it, shouldn't everyone know it? Make your commitment known.

In addition, take the time and communicate this policy with all your vendors who supply component parts or product material to your company. Indicate that your company feels so strongly about the importance of achieving the most in terms of product quality and safety, that they are being asked to sign off on the policy or to adopt one of their own. Ask that they post a copy of the policy as well in a prominent place to their own employees. If a certain supplier is unwilling to sign and commit to quality and to safety, doesn't that tell you something about how it runs its business? If so, do you really want to continue to do business with that supplier? It takes a shared commitment to product safety to produce and market goods of the highest quality.

Don't forget to let every retailer of your product know of your commitment as well. Remember, this is a group effort.

Significantly, inform your insurance carrier of all the steps you have taken to assure high quality, safe products. Properly documented, those steps can save your company big money with insurance premiums renewals. Try it!

Finally, make sure that government regulators know of your commitment to product safety. It is important that every regulator appreciate your efforts and know that you and your employees take their responsibilities seriously.

So, sit down now and begin to clearly articulate your beliefs, and your goals, as to product safety. Keep it simple and direct! Confer with legal counsel before you post the policy, but don't let it get laden down with "legalese." A corporate product safety policy is simply good business and responsible corporate citizenship!