2025-APRIL F2F ASQ O E (Section-701) Monthly Meeting

When designing and monitoring business or industrial processes, we sometimes must find new data to better describe the outcomes. Often those data sources are outside the organization. Acquiring them can be both political delicate and technically challenging. And then integrating the outcome data with our existing process data can be a greater challenge.

We will first look at issues you must consider when either creating new data (often tedious) or importing external data which is new to your organization & culture. We will look at some of the most common pitfalls when importing data, and how you can ensure quality in that effort.

Then, we will look at the logical challenges of integration data sources where the architecture is different. Architecture includes codes, identifiers, periods of time covered, the meaning of data elements, and the internal structure. Data integration is for grown-ups. Sobriety is also recommended.

Michael Scofield, M.B.A. is an Assistant Professor at Loma Linda University. He has spent most of his career in systems development, data management, and information quality. He has lectured to over 410 professional audiences around the U.S., Canada, and in the U.K. and Australia. He has over 27 published articles in data management, particularly in data quality assessment. Recently, his more popular topics include understanding sources of organizational complexity, data quality assessment, semantic data integration, and data visualization. He is currently creating a series of videos on data literacy for a non-technical audience. He also lectures widely to general audiences on topics of travel, history, interpreting satellite imagery, and civics..

The Foods we eat, and the food industry has evolved over the century and so have been the changes in regulations. The reflection on food processing and the evolution of regulations as food safety and quality needs evolved. Going through examples from the speaker’s experiences. Since the formation of Food Drug and Cosmetics Act 1938 to the Food Safety & Modernization Act (FSMA) in 2011 to the future of food as the Smarter era of food safety.

Sumita is an enthusiastic experienced Food Safety and Quality professional with career journey on the foundation of Master of Science in Dairy Manufacturing, Master of Science in Dairy Chemistry and Dairy & Microbiology and Bachelor’s in Food Technology.

She is an expert to prepare food companies for challenges in food safety, build Quality Management Systems, lead problem solving, meeting compliance and empowering employees with Quality coaching. Her certifications include Six Sigma Green Belt, Certified HACCP Auditor, CQIA and Lead Instructor on FSMA regulations such as Food Safety and Preventative Controls Alliance for Human Food 2.0: Foreign and Supplier Verification Plan (FSVP). Expertise in Food Contact Packaging HACCP, specializing in Aseptic Processing & Packaging of foods, Low acid canned foods, Pasteurized Milk Ordinance (PMO) and several standards such as ISO 9001,13485 & 17025 to name a few.

Currently, Sumita is the Chair-elect of the Food Drug & Cosmetic Division - ASQ and has been Senior member actively involved with ASQ initiatives and volunteer with ASQ for 18 plus years. Sumita has been the founding member leader for FD&C – Centre for Excellence – Food. Serving as a Committee member in Southern California Institute of Food Technologists (SCIFTs)

Sumita’s work experience has evolved through the Food, beverage and Dairy products industry where she designed and led for several Fortune 500 companies such as Danone North America, Kraft Foods Co. and Campbell Co. Sumita consults with small to mid -size companies including chemical industry, Dietary Supplements - Human and Animal Nutrition products.

A skilled technical and regulatory leader, with experience improving business procedures, utilizing training and process improvements in meeting operational goals. Expertise designing Quality Management Systems integrated with business objectives leading programmatic improvements throughout organization.

Career has evolved through experiences in company acquisitions, mergers, and as change agent and coach. Strategically involved in building Quality competency within the organization, standardize work processes, consolidated multiple certifications, developed and implemented various Quality Management Systems across multiple manufacturing units, co-lead the team that designed and implemented a new enterprise resource planning (ERP) wide product recall system. Executed cost saving projects by strategically utilizing test methods and instrumentation techniques. Instrumental in establishing new analytical and microbiology laboratories.

Sumita is a Food Safety Consultant, Food Safety Lead Instructor and Auditor

Contact: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sumitasomfoodsafetyqlty.

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