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Introduction
TQ M is the w ay of m anaging for the future, and is far w ider in its application than just assuring product or
service quality it is a w ay of m anaging people and business processes to ensure com plete custom er
satisfaction at every stage, internally and externally. TQ M , com bined w ith effective leadership, results in an
organisation doing the right things right, rst tim e.
The core of TQ M is the customer-supplier interfaces, both externally and internally, and at each interface
lie a num ber of processes. This core m ust be surrounded by commitment to quality, communicationof
the quality m essage, and recognition of the need to change the cultureof the organisation to create total
quality. These are the foundations of TQ M , and they are supported by the key m anagem ent functions of
people, processes and systems in the organisation.
This section discusses each of these elem ents that, together, can m ake a total quality organisation. O ther
sections explain people, processes and system s in greater detail, all having the essential them es of
com m itm ent, culture and com m unication running through them .
Total Quality Management (TQM)
Customer
Supplier
Culture
Commitment
Communication
Systems
People
Processes
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What is quality?
A frequently used de nition of quality is D elighting the custom er by fully m eeting their needs and
expectations. These m ay include perform ance, appearance, availability, delivery, reliability, m aintainability,
cost effectiveness and price. It is, therefore, im perative that the organisation know s w hat these needs and
expectations are. In addition, having identi ed them , the organisation m ust understand them , and m easure
its ow n ability to m eet them .
Q uality starts w ith m arket research to establish the true requirem ents for the product or service and the
true needs of the custom ers. H ow ever, for an organisation to be really effective, quality m ust span all
functions, all people, all departm ents and all activities and be a com m on language for im provem ent. The
cooperation of everyone at every interface is necessary to achieve a total quality organisation, in the sam e
w ay that the Japanese achieve this w ith com pany w ide quality control.
Customers and suppliers
There exists in each departm ent, each of ce, each hom e, a series of custom ers, suppliers and custom er-
supplier interfaces. These are the quality chains, and they can be broken at any point by one person or
one piece of equipm ent not m eeting the requirem ents of the custom er, internal or external. The failure
usually nds its w ay to the interface betw een the organisation and its external custom er, or in the w orst
case, actually to the external custom er.
Failure to m eet the requirem ents in any part of a quality chain has a w ay of m ultiplying, and failure in one
part of the system creates problem s elsew here, leading to yet m ore failure and problem s, and so the
situation is exacerbated.The ability to m eet custom ers(external and internal) requirem ents is vital. To
achieve quality throughout an organisation, every person in the quality chain m ust be trained to ask the
follow ing questions about every custom er-supplier interface:
Customers (internal and external)
W ho are m y custom ers?
W hat are their true needs and expectations?
H ow do, or can, I nd out w hat these are?
H ow can I m easure m y ability to m eet their needs and expectations?
D o I have the capability to m eet their needs and expectations?
(If not, w hat m ust I do to im prove this capability?)
D o I continually m eet their needs and expectations?
(If not, w hat prevents this from happening w hen the capability exists?)
H ow do I m onitor changes in their needs and expectations?
Suppliers (internal and external)
W ho are m y internal suppliers?
W hat are m y true needs and expectations?
H ow do I com m unicate m y needs and expectations to m y suppliers?
D o m y suppliers have the capability to m easure and m eet these needs and expectations?
H ow do I inform them of changes in m y needs and expectations?
A s w ell as being fully aw are of custom ersneeds and expectations, each person m ust respect the needs
and expectations of their suppliers. The ideal situation is an open partnership style relationship, w here both
parties share and bene t.
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Poor practices
To be able to becom e a total quality organisation, som e of the bad practices m ust be recognised and
corrected. These m ay include:
Leaders not giving clear direction
N ot understanding, or ignoring com petitive positioning
Each departm ent w orking only for itself
Trying to control people through system s
C onfusing quality w ith grade
A ccepting that a level of defects or errors is inevitable
Fire ghting, reactive behaviour
The Its not m y problem attitude
H ow m any of these behaviours do you recognise in your organisation?
The essential components of TQM commitment & leadership
TQ M is an approach to im proving the com petitiveness, effectiveness and exibility of an organisation for
the bene t of all stakeholders. It is a w ay of planning, organising and understanding each activity, and of
rem oving all the w asted effort and energy that is routinely spent in organisations. It ensures the leaders
adopt a strategic overview of quality and focus on prevention not detection of problem s.
W hilst it m ust involve everyone, to be successful, it m ust start at the top w ith the leaders of the
organisation.
A ll senior m anagers m ust dem onstrate their seriousness and com m itm ent to quality, and m iddle m anagers
m ust, as w ell as dem onstrating their com m itm ent, ensure they com m unicate the principles, strategies and
bene ts to the people for w hom they have responsibility. O nly then w ill the right attitudes spread
throughout the organisation.
A fundam ental requirem ent is a sound quality policy, supported by plans and facilities to im plem ent it.
Leaders m ust take responsibility for preparing, review ing and m onitoring the policy, plus take part in regular
im provem ents of it and ensure it is understood at all levels of the organisation.
Effective leadership starts w ith the developm ent of a m ission statem ent, follow ed by a strategy, w hich is
translated into action plans dow n through the organisation. These, com bined w ith a TQ M approach, should
result in a quality organisation, w ith satis ed custom ers and good business results. The 5 requirem ents for
effective leadership are:
D eveloping and publishing corporate beliefs, values and objectives, often as a m ission statem ent
Personal involvem ent and acting as role m odels for a culture of total quality
D eveloping clear and effective strategies and supporting plans for achieving the m ission and
objectives
R eview ing and im proving the m anagem ent system
C om m unicating, m otivating and supporting people and encouraging effective em ployee participation
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The task of im plem enting TQ M can be daunting. The follow ing is a list of points that leaders should
consider; they are a distillation of the various beliefs of som e of the quality gurus:
The organisation needs a long-term commitment to continuous im provem ent.
A dopt the philosophy of zero errors/defects to change the culture to right rst tim e
Train people to understand the customer/supplier relationships
D o not buy products or services on price alone look at the total cost
R ecognise that im provem ent of the systems m ust be m anaged
A dopt m odern m ethods of supervising and training elim inate fear
Elim inate barriers betw een departm ents by m anaging the process im prove communications
and teamwork
Elim inate goals w ithout m ethods, standards based only on num bers, barriers to pride of
w orkm anship and ction get f acts by studying processes
C onstantly educate and retrain develop experts in the organisation
D evelop a systematic approach to m anage the im plem entation of TQ M
Culture change
The failure to address the culture of an organisation is frequently the reason for m any m anagem ent
initiatives either having lim ited success or failing altogether. U nderstanding the culture of an organisation,
and using that know ledge to successfully m ap the steps needed to accom plish a successful change, is an
im portant part of the quality journey.
The culture in any organisation is form ed by the beliefs, behaviours, norm s, dom inant values, rules and the
clim ate. A culture change, e.g, from one of acceptance of a certain level of errors or defects to one of
right rst tim e, every tim e, needs tw o key elem ents:
C om m itm ent from the leaders
Involvem ent of all of the organisations people
There is w idespread recognition that m ajor change initiatives w ill not be successful w ithout a culture of
good team w ork and cooperation at all levels in an organisation, as discussed in the section on People.
The building blocks of TQM: processes, people, management systems and performance
measurement
Everything w e do is a Process, w hich is the transform ation of a set of inputs, w hich can include action,
m ethods and operations, into the desired outputs, w hich satisfy the custom ersneeds and expectations.
In each area or function w ithin an organisation there w ill be m any processes taking place, and each can be
analysed by an exam ination of the inputs and outputs to determ ine the action necessary to im prove quality.
In every organisation there are som e very large processes, w hich are groups of sm aller processes, called
key or core business processes. These m ust be carried out w ell if an organisation is to achieve its m ission
and objectives. The section on Processes discusses processes and how to im prove them , and
Im plem entation covers how to prioritise and select the right process for im provem ent.
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The only point at w hich true responsibility for perform ance and quality can lie is w ith the People w ho
actually do the job or carry out the process, each of w hich has one or several suppliers and custom ers.
A n ef cient and effective w ay to tackle process or quality im provem ent is through team w ork. H ow ever,
people w ill not engage in im provem ent activities w ithout com m itm ent and recognition from the
organisations leaders, a clim ate for im provem ent and a strategy that is im plem ented thoughtfully and
effectively. The section on People expands on these issues, covering roles w ithin team s, team selection
and developm ent and m odels for successful team w ork.
A n appropriate docum ented Quality Management System w ill help an organisation not only achieve
the objectives set out in its policy and strategy, but also, and equally im portantly, sustain and build upon
them . It is im perative that the leaders take responsibility for the adoption and docum entation of an
appropriate m anagem ent system in their organisation if they are serious about the quality journey. The
System s section discusses the bene ts of having such a system , how to set one up and successfully
im plem ent it.
O nce the strategic direction for the organisations quality journey has been set, it needs Perf ormance
Measures to m onitor and control the journey, and to ensure the desired level of perform ance is being
achieved and sustained. They can, and should be, established at all levels in the organisation, ideally being
cascaded dow n and m ost effectively undertaken as team activities and this is discussed in the section on
Perform ance.
Voice of the Customer
Feedback
Feedback
Voice of the Process
Materials
Procedures
Methods
Inf ormation
People
Skills
Knowledge
Training
Plant & equipment
Products
Services
Inf ormation
Paperwork
Process
CUSTOMERS
OUTPUTS
SUPPLIERS
INPUTS
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