Total Quality Management

Total Quality Management

Quality is the ability of a product or service to consistently meet or exceed customer expectations. The different dimensions of quality include safety, durability, and safety. The quality perspective is very important from the point of view of modern-day organizations. It is the fundamental aspect, which determines the meeting or exceeding expectation level of the customers. Of the many approaches towards quality maintenance, Total Quality Management (TQM) is in vogue today. This dissertation shall define TQM, and describe the impact of globalization on quality. Also, this dissertation shall compare and contrast traditional management styles with quality focused management styles and how TQM applies to this organization, JHTS.

TQM.

TQM is a strategy for improving business performance through the commitment and involvement of all employees to fully satisfying agreed customer requirements, at the optimum overall costs, through the continuous improvement of the products and services, business processes and people involved (Managers-Net, 2008). TQM is also unique because it is a system that is applicable across a wide variety of business sectors and functions. A major characteristic that will distinguish those organizations that are successful will be total product and service quality (Goal QPC Research Committee, 1990). This means that products/services do more than meet customer needs. It means that they are produced and/or provided in a continuously improving, more timely, cost-effective, and productive manner. From an international perspective, many organizations currently hold a significant lead over U.S. organizations in TQM development. This is reflected clearly in the indisputable economic success and strength of those businesses that promote and foster TQM as a standard mode of operation. The question for American organizations is not an argument over the merits of TQM, but rather how to implement it in a most effective and timely manner.

Globalization Impact

The impact of globalization on quality is just as important as when dealing with any supplier, in such a way that a customer needs assurance that the products of quality will be supplied. Therefore it is very important especially when customers and their suppliers are in differing countries. One method that is used in attaining quality assurance is the inspection of all incoming products; however this process is expensive and impractical. Another method which is more favorable is to have confidence in the quality systems of the suppliers. There are two ways to gain this confidence that is to for the customer to review each supplier’s system, which is costly and time consuming. The second and more practical method would be would be to insist that the supplier meet some standard that is acceptable to the customer.

Traditional Management and Total Quality (TQ) Focused Management Styles

TQ is moderately different from traditional management practices, requiring significant changes in organizational processes, beliefs and attitudes, and behaviors. Traditional management means the way things are usually done in most organizations in the absence of TQ focus (Thomson Learning, n.d.). JHTS is corporate owned and franchised owned, therefore some franchised own companies may utilize traditional management styles and some utilize TQ. This organization which I am employed, are corporate owned and strongly encourages TQ. The nature of TQ differs from common management practices in many respects. There are several key differences; however, this paper shall address management and leadership and strategic planning and management.

Management and Leadership. Traditional management views people as interchangeable commodities, developed to meet the perceived needs of the enterprise. People are passive contributors with little autonomy: doing what they are told and nothing more. TQ views people as the enterprise’s true competitive edge (Thomson