Scholarly Research Journal for Humanity Science & English Language,

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PEER REVIEWED & REFEREED JOURNAL, FEB-MAR, 2021, VOL-9/44

TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT

Manju Tomar
Assistant Professor, Tika Ram College of Education Sonipat

Paper Received On: 25 MAR 2021

Peer Reviewed On: 30 MAR 2021
Published On: 1 APRIL 2021
Content Originality & Unique: 99%

Abstract

TQM is defined as a strategy that essentially aimed to establish and deliver high quality products and
services that cover all customers' demands and achieve a high level of customer satisfaction. The
objective of this paper is to know about the TQM, its history ,features, elements and importance.
Keywords: Total Quality management, organizational performance, high quality products and services,
customer satisfaction
Scholarly Research Journal's is licensed Based on a work at www.srjis.com

Introduction
Total Quality Management is mainly concerned with continuous improvement in all works and
functional activities of an organization. It is a long term planning. It is the consistent
improvement in the quality. It is a never ending process. It describes a management approach
to long–term success through customer satisfaction. In a TQM effort, all members of an
organization are involved in improving processes, products, services, and create a culture in
which they work. The success of the TQM depends on the significant changes in organization
design, work processes, and culture. There are various approaches to TQM. Some
organizations give importance to the use of quality programme like statistical process control
and some organizations give importance to the tool like quality function deployments.
Sometimes, the organizations fail to realize quality improvements because of lack of holistic
understanding of the quality tool(s) or concept(s) by the entire organization. “Total Quality
Management (TQM) is a comprehensive and structured approach to organizational
management that seeks to improve the quality of products and services through ongoing
refinements in response to continuous feedback. TQM requirements may be defined separately

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for a particular organization or may be in adherence to established standards, such as the

International Organization for Standardization's ISO 9000 series. TQM can be applied to any
type of organization; it originated in the manufacturing sector and has since been adapted for
use in almost every type of organization imaginable, including schools, highway maintenance,
hotel management, and churches. As a current focus of e-business, TQM is based on quality
management from the customer's point of view.”
Total Quality Management is a management approach for an organization, centered on quality,
based on the participation and commitment of all the internal and external customers and
aiming at strategically long-term success through customer satisfaction, and benefits to all
members of the organization and to society. It uses strategy, data, and effective
communications to integrate the quality discipline into the culture and activities of the
organization. So, some organizations adopt a problem solving focus concentrate on production
as well as customer service processes. They adopt quality circles and team approaches. Some
organizations concentrate on error prevention through continuous process improvement and
business process reengineering. Most of the successful companies have adopted unique
approaches of total quality management according to their own requirements because one
approach suitable for one organization may be not suitable for another organization. The reason
is the difference in the culture. Every organization has different culture. Total Quality
Management requires a set of guiding principles and concepts. The all-over world famous
quality gurus like Deming, Juran, Crosby, Ishikawa, as well as many others, have made
substantial contribution to the theory and practice of quality management. Their philosophies,
concepts, principles have helped to shape the framework for quality management. Quality
management as a discipline is incomplete without their contribution and approaches to total
quality.
Parag diwan –“It is an encompassing dynamic process in an organization to promote never
ending improvement in the effectiveness and efficiency of all elements of a business”
The history of total quality management (TQM) began initially as a term coined by the Naval
Air Systems Command to describe its Japanese-style management approach to quality
improvement. An umbrella methodology for continually improving the quality of all processes,
it draws on a knowledge of the principles and practices of:
 The behavioral sciences
 The analysis of quantitative and nonquantitative data

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 Economics theories
 Process analysis

1920s  Some of the first seeds of quality management were planted as the principles of scientific management swept through U.S.
industry.
 Businesses clearly separated the processes of planning and carrying out the plan, and union opposition arose as workers were
deprived of a voice in the conditions and functions of their work.
 The Hawthorne experiments in the late 1920s showed how worker productivity could be impacted by participation.

1930s  Walter Shewhart developed the methods for statistical analysis and control of quality.

1950s  W. Edwards Deming taught methods for statistical analysis and control of quality to Japanese engineers and executives. This
can be considered the origin of TQM.
 Joseph M. Juran taught the concepts of controlling quality and managerial breakthrough.
 Armand V. Feigenbaum’s book Total Quality Control, a forerunner for the present understanding of TQM, was published.
 Philip B. Crosby’s promotion of zero defects paved the way for quality improvement in many companies.

1968  The Japanese named their approach to total quality "companywide quality control." It is around this time that the term quality
management systems arises.
 Kaoru Ishikawa’s synthesis of the philosophy contributed to Japan’s ascendancy as a quality leader.

Today TQM is the name for the philosophy of a broad and systemic approach to managing organizational quality.
 Quality standards such as the ISO 9000 series and quality award programs such as the Deming Prize and the Malcolm Baldrige
National Quality Award specify principles and processes that comprise TQM.
 TQM as a term to describe an organization's quality policy and procedure has fallen out of favor as international standards for
quality management have been developed.

Features of TQM
There are many essential features of TQM, some of which are as listed below:

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1. Target: the most important target to accomplish in TQM is Quality. It is crucial that the
quality policy is set toward customers. Meeting customer’s needs means satisfying every
customer requirement but not that you are reaching the quality standards set before.
It is essential not to quit innovating, continue to do that as it is one of the important principles
of the TQM system.
2. Scope: without extension of the production process to suppliers and sub-contractors, quality
products and services can never be achieved in TQM. Setting up input materials standards is a
good thing to do as it helps to put the quality of the inputs in check. The method of placing
order needs to be made suitable, too, if you must do quality assurance
3. Form: Another fantastic thing about the TQM system is that it controls the quality of the
input even before the production process begins. It does not deal with finished products at all.
There are set up plans and programs to supervise and prevent problems right before the
production starts proper.
The tools are also used in supervising and analyzing the results and factors affecting the quality
while taking notes of reasons for possible solutions.
4. Basis of the TQM system: the human is the basis of TQM no doubt about that. When we
talk about quality, people usually think about the quality of the products. But in TQM, it is the
quality of the resource persons that emphases are placed on. The basic principles for
implementation of the TQM system are that the employee's qualification needs to be sound and
developed fully through training, delegation, and assignment.
5. Organization: TQM is cross organized in order to manage integrated corporate with
different activities of the system. Its implementation requires the participation of high and
middle-level managers. If there is proper organization, duties are well assigned clearly with no
hassles. This means that for the TQM system to function effectively, there is a need for a
management model with different features from the past model.
6. Management skills and tools: the methods to be implemented have to do with the principle
of doing correctly at the onset of the project. This is crucial to the attainment of quality
improvement.
ELEMENTS OF TQM
TQM can be summarized as a management system for a customer-focused organization that
involves all employees in continual improvement. It uses strategy, data, and effective
communications to integrate the quality discipline into the culture and activities of the

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organization. Many of these concepts are present in modern quality management systems, the
successor to TQM. Here are the 8 principles of total quality management:
1. Customer-focused: The customer ultimately determines the level of quality. No matter
what an organization does to foster quality improvement—training employees, integrating
quality into the design process, or upgrading computers or software—the customer determines
whether the efforts were worthwhile.
2. Total employee involvement: All employees participate in working toward common
goals. Total employee commitment can only be obtained after fear has been driven from the
workplace, when empowerment has occurred, and when management has provided the proper
environment. High-performance work systems integrate continuous improvement efforts with
normal business operations. Self-managed work teams are one form of empowerment.
3. Process-centered: A fundamental part of TQM is a focus on process thinking. A
process is a series of steps that take inputs from suppliers (internal or external) and transforms
them into outputs that are delivered to customers (internal or external). The steps required to
carry out the process are defined, and performance measures are continuously monitored in
order to detect unexpected variation.
4. Integrated system: Although an organization may consist of many different functional
specialties often organized into vertically structured departments, it is the horizontal processes
interconnecting these functions that are the focus of TQM. Micro-processes add up to larger
processes, and all processes aggregate into the business processes required for defining and
implementing strategy. Everyone must understand the vision, mission, and guiding principles
as well as the quality policies, objectives, and critical processes of the organization. Business
performance must be monitored and communicated continuously. An integrated business
system may be modeled after the Baldrige Award criteria and/or incorporate the ISO 9000
standards. Every organization has a unique work culture, and it is virtually impossible to
achieve excellence in its products and services unless a good quality culture has been fostered.
Thus, an integrated system connects business improvement elements in an attempt to
continually improve and exceed the expectations of customers, employees, and other
stakeholders.
5. Strategic and systematic approach: A critical part of the management of quality is
the strategic and systematic approach to achieving an organization’s vision, mission, and

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goals. This process, called strategic planning or strategic management, includes the
formulation of a strategic plan that integrates quality as a core component.
6. Continual improvement: A large aspect of TQM is continual process improvement.
Continual improvement drives an organization to be both analytical and creative in finding
ways to become more competitive and more effective at meeting stakeholder expectations.
7. Fact-based decision-making: In order to know how well an organization is
performing, data on performance measures are necessary. TQM requires that an organization
continually collect and analyze data in order to improve decision making accuracy, achieve
consensus, and allow prediction based on past history.
8. Communications: During times of organizational change, as well as part of day-to-
day operation, effective communications plays a large part in maintaining morale and in
motivating employees at all levels. Communications involve strategies, method, and
timeliness.
BENEFITS OF TQM
Total quality management benefits and advantages:
 Strengthened competitive position
 Adaptability to changing or emerging market conditions and to environmental and other
government regulations
 Higher productivity
 Enhanced market image
 Elimination of defects and waste
 Reduced costs and better cost management
 Higher profitability
 Improved customer focus and satisfaction
 Increased customer loyalty and retention
 Increased job security
 Improved employee morale
 Enhanced shareholder and stakeholder value

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Copyright © 2021, Scholarly Research Journal for Humanity Science & English Language