Polk is committed to achieving an environment of continuous improvement through people, processes and technology.

Our efforts to assure quality include:

Achieving CMMI Level II Accreditation
Polk’s innovative approach to product development and quality was validated by the Software Engineering Institute (SEI), whose assessment team awarded the company a Level II Capability Maturity Model Integrated (CMMI) rating. The SEI is a joint venture between the U.S. Government and Carnegie-Mellon University. The CMMI rating is their global standard reserved for those companies that exhibit world-class product development capabilities.

The SEI Assessment team reviewed and analyzed over 1,300 different attributes of projects and processes and concluded that R. L. Polk & Co. was performing at CMMI Level II and was well on its way to CMMI Level III.

The results have been higher quality products that are developed faster and at a lower cost.

Applying for ISO 9001:2000 Certification
In late 2004, Polk embarked on the journey to achieve ISO 9001:2000 Certification. ISO 9001:2000 is the most accepted quality system standard in the world. It describes the minimum requirements for an effective quality management system.

A quality management system is defined as the processes, procedures, records and forms in place to provide products that meet customers’ requirements and enhances customer satisfaction through continual improvement.

ISO 9001:2000 is a common sense approach to conducting business which challenges companies to:

• Say what you do
• Do what you say
• Prove it
• Improve it

Adherence to the Six Sigma Methodology
One of the cornerstones of Polk’s continual improvement is the adherence to Six Sigma Methodology. This methodology:

• Encourages a common direction and purpose shared by all project stakeholders
• Produces metrics to identify the degree of improvement attained and ensures this level is maintained on an ongoing basis
• Combines aggressive goals with a set of proven tools
• Promotes teamwork to drive success

As a result of employing Six Sigma Methodology, Polk has achieved the following:

• Reduced cycle time by 75% in load and matching within our commercial vehicle process
• Reduced cycle time to load custom geography files by 50%
• Developed a single set of quality assurance best practices and implemented across a group of related applications.

If you have any feedback regarding the quality of Polk’s solutions or services, please contact your Polk representative.