Skip to main content

TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM)

What Is Total Quality Management (TQM)?

Total quality management (TQM) is the continual process of detecting and reducing or eliminating errors in manufacturing, streamlining supply chain management, improving the customer experience, and ensuring that employees are up to speed with training. Total quality management aims to hold all parties involved in the production process accountable for the overall quality of the final product or service.

TQM was developed by William Deming, a management consultant whose work had a great impact on Japanese manufacturing. While TQM shares much in common with the Six Sigma improvement process, it is not the same as Six Sigma. TQM focuses on ensuring that internal guidelines and process standards reduce errors, while Six Sigma looks to reduce defects.

KEY TAKEAWAYS

  • Total quality management (TQM) is an ongoing process of detecting and reducing or eliminating errors.
  • It is used to streamline supply chain management, improve customer service, and ensure that employees are trained.
  • The focus is to improve the quality of an organization's outputs, including goods and services, through continual improvement of internal practices. 
  • Total quality management aims to hold all parties involved in the production process accountable for the overall quality of the final product or service.
Volume 75%
 
1:13

What's Total Quality Management?

Understanding Total Quality Management

Total quality management (TQM) is a structured approach to overall organizational management. The focus of the process is to improve the quality of an organization's outputs, including goods and services, through continual improvement of internal practices. The standards set as part of the TQM approach can reflect both internal priorities and any industry standards currently in place.

Industry standards can be defined at multiple levels and may include adherence to various laws and regulations governing the operation of the particular business. Industry standards can also include the production of items to an understood norm, even if the norm is not backed by official regulations.

Primary Principles of Total Quality Management

TQM is considered a customer-focused process and aims for continual improvement of business operations. It strives to ensure all associated employees work toward the common goals of improving product or service quality, as well as improving the procedures that are in place for production.

 

Special emphasis is put on fact-based decision making, using performance metrics to monitor progress; high levels of organizational communication are encouraged for the purpose of maintaining employee involvement and morale.

Industries Using Total Quality Management

While TQM originated in the manufacturing sector, its principles can be applied to a variety of industries. With a focus on long-term change over short-term goals, it is designed to provide a cohesive vision for systemic change. With this in mind, TQM is used in many industries, including, but not limited to, manufacturing, banking and finance, and medicine.

These techniques can be applied to all departments within an individual organization as well. This helps ensure all employees are working toward the goals set forth for the company, improving function in each area. Involved departments can include administration, marketing, production, and employee training.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

EXTERNAL COSTS AND EXTERNAL BENEFITS

External costs An external cost occurs when producing or consuming a good or service imposes a cost (negative effect) upon a third party. If there are external costs in consuming a good (negative externalities), the  social costs  will be greater than the private cost. The existence of external costs can lead to market failure. This is because the free market generally ignores the existence of external costs. External marginal cost (XMC)  the cost to a third party from the consumption/production of one extra unit. Example of External Cost Driving a car imposes a private cost on the driver (cost of petrol, tax and buying car). However, driving a car creates costs to other people in society. These can include: Greater congestion and slower journey times for other drivers. Cause of death for pedestrians, cyclists and other road users. Pollution, health-related problems. Noise pollution. Example of Production External Cost Producing electricity from burning coal leads to air ...

What are business activities?

What Are Business Activities? Business  activities include any activity a business engages in for the primary purpose of making a profit. This is a general term that encompasses all the economic activities carried out by a company during the course of business. Business activities, including operating, investing and financing activities, are ongoing and focused on creating value for  shareholders . KEY TAKEAWAYS Business activities are any events that are undertaken by a corporation for the purpose of earning a profit. Operating activities relate directly to the business providing its goods to the market, including manufacturing, distributing, marketing, and selling; they provide most of the company's cash flow and hugely influence its profitability. Investing activities relate to the  long-term use of cash , such as buying or selling a property or piece of equipment, or gains and losses from investments in financial markets and operating subsidiaries. Financing activitie...

Aims of a business

o    To Survive Many a times you find yourself fighting to survive. Sometimes your life is threatened by a certain sickness and you must do everything in your power to fight the disease and survive. It is the same thing with a business, it must survive. A business finds itself faced with tough competition and other things that threaten its survival. To survive means that the business is able to fight competition, gain new customers find reliable suppliers and grow. It is able to be successful and not fail. o    To make a Profit If you were to start a business today, what would be your main objective? Most people start businesses to make a profit. This means that the business is able to sell its goods and services at a price above the buying price . The difference between the selling price and buying price is the profit. For example, if you bought a product at E20 and sold it at E50, the E30 is your profit. o    To Grow or Expand Imagine a situatio...