As the Quality Certification Alliance (QCA) reaches its 10-year anniversary on July 10, the organization and its board of directors are recognizing Denise Fenton, executive director of compliance, for her role in establishing and maintaining its accreditation program.

At QCA, she administers all compliance aspects for QCA and is responsible for the ongoing evolution of the QCA Accreditation Program.

For more than 20 years, Fenton has worked in international manufacture-for-export. Prior to joining QCA, she spent three years as director of corporate compliance for Walmart, where in early 2000, she oversaw the design and implementation of the Wal-Mart Factory Compliance system, a program focused on identifying and addressing root causes of non-compliance through operations-based solutions. She brought those skills, her experience working with organizations based in Taiwan, Sri Lanka and China, and her fluency in Mandarin, to QCA.

Current QCA president, David Clifton says, “[Fenton is] the glue that has held QCA together over the last decade. Her expertise, leadership and continuity have provided the foundation for QCA’s success and contribution to our overall industry.”

Clifton’s predecessor, Larry Whitney, adds, “Dee Fenton’s hire by QCA in 2008 was critical to the successes of the organization. Her unparalleled knowledge in compliance matters, from her time at Wal-Mart, and from living in China, have been key to the development of QCA’s rigorous audit program. While the founding companies supported QCA financially in the beginning, it was Dee’s hard work over the past ten years that has helped QCA thrive.”