Total quality management (TQM)
First introduced by Armand Feigenbaum in the 1950s and then developed and refined by others (including Crosby, Deming, Ishikawa and Juran), TQM became defined as:
An effective system for integrating the quality development, quality maintenance and quality improvement efforts of the various groups in an organisation so to enable production and service at the most economical levels which allows for full customer satisfaction.
(Feigenbaum, 1986: 96)
The TQM philosophy stresses the following points:
● meeting the needs and expectations of customers;
● covering all the parts of the organisation;
● everyone in the organisation is included;
● investigating all costs related to quality (internal and external);
● getting things right by designing in quality;
● developing systems and procedures that support quality improvements; and
● developing a continuous process of improvement.
-------------------
● meeting the needs and expectations of customers;
Meeting expectations is difficult: as the quality level of products improves this, in turn, increases customer expectations.
Innovation in the ways to achieve what the customer expects in the combination of product and service provided is one way to gain sustainable advantage over your competition.
● everyone in the organisation is included;
For a TQM approach to be successful, all the staff in all departments have to be
involved. Quality is the responsibility of everyone and not some other manager or
department. Quality and employee improvements are, therefore, inextricably linked
and should be part of a continuous cycle. If a modest innovative and improvement
cycle continues, by embedding the approach in the culture of the organisation, the
long-term and total result may exceed that of a radical solution. The ‘knowledge’ of
the organisation has thereby increased. No organisation has the ability to recruit
and retain all the very best brains and operation managers need to recognise that
they need to exploit the skills and enthusiasm of all their people. The impact of
small, relatively easy to achieve, improvements can be very positive. Much of the
improvement in the reliability of cars over the past 20 years has been attributed to a
very large number of incremental improvements initiated by thousands of employees in all the car manufacturing companies and their suppliers.
TQM, with its continuous improvement, employee involvement and process ownership, has shown itself to be an effective policy in managing organisations, not least because of the enthusiastic implementation (team building).
Ref: Innovation Management by Paul Trott.
Core Principles of TQM (Another set)
Customer Focus: The customer reigns supreme. Organizations must consistently strive to understand and fulfill customer needs and expectations. This requires a commitment to listening to customers, gathering feedback, and using it to guide decision-making and improvement efforts.
Similar to ● meeting the needs and expectations of customers;
Leadership Involvement: Leaders are responsible for setting the tone, vision, and direction for quality, fostering an environment conducive to employee participation, and driving the organization towards continuous improvement. Leadership commitment is the catalyst for a successful TQM implementation.
Total Employee Involvement: TQM recognizes that every employee has a role in achieving quality objectives. Empowering and equipping employees through training and development, encouraging participation in problem-solving, and fostering a culture of teamwork are essential. This principle transforms every employee into an advocate for quality.
Similar to ● everyone in the organisation is included;
Process-Centric Approach: By focusing on processes rather than outcomes alone. Organizations must identify, document, and optimize critical processes to reduce variability, eliminate waste, and improve performance. This process-centric approach ensures that improvements are sustainable. TQM emphasizes efficiency and effectiveness.
Similar to ● getting things right by designing in quality [in the processes];
Continuous Improvement: “Kaizen,” continuous improvement is a relentless pursuit of perfection. TQM instills a mindset where processes are regularly evaluated and refined. This requires adopting methodologies like Six Sigma, Lean, and the PDCA (Plan-Do-Check-Act) cycle to systematically address inefficiencies.
Similar to ● developing systems and procedures that support quality improvements; and
● developing a continuous process of improvement.
Fact-Based Decision Making: In TQM, decisions are grounded in analysis rather than intuition. By leveraging tools such as statistical process control (SPC), organizations can make informed decisions, predict trends, and benchmark performance against objectives, ensuring that improvements are evidence-based.
Integrated Systems: TQM requires an organization-wide approach, where various functions and processes work in concert towards shared objectives. This necessitates the alignment of quality goals with business strategies and the integration of systems to ensure seamless communication and collaboration.
Similar to ● covering all the parts of the organisation;
