2.2.1 Total quality management
Deming and Juran in Japan started the modern movement of TQM after World War II. These two were among a group of advisors sent to Japan by the US government to advise the Japanese on the quality control techniques necessary for the reconstruction of their industry. The TQM process is about the long term benefits of a quality culture in the workplace. The principle is to improve performance through constant incremental changes. TQM thinking is not a series of processes, but an 'attitude' that permeates all parts of the organisation, including the way employees feel about themselves and their work. The following reading is an example of the experience that an organisation would go through when implementing TQM. As with any change, especially that initiated by management, there can be resistance from the workforce. This reading discusses some aspects of dealing with such internal resistance.
Reading 2.2
Packard, T (1995), 'TQM and organisational change and development', in B. Gummer and P. McCallion (Eds.) Total Quality Management in the Social Services: Theory and Practice, Rockefeller College Press.
Reading 2.2 was a discussion about implementing TQM in any services organisation. The next reading is a case study of the implementation of TQM in UPS. This reading (an assignment!) shares with the reader the experience of the organisation as well as the lessons learnt from the experience.
Reading 2.3
Decker K, Engleman, S, Petrucci, A and Robinson S (n.d.), United Parcel Service and the management of change . Sourced January 2002, at http://cbpa.louisville.edu/bruce/courses/ups/htm/ups.htm .
Short lead times to meeting the customer's orders have put a strong emphasis on the production process in all areas of the organisation. Most attention has been focused on areas that have direct dealings with the customer, such as transport. Leading logistics providers, like FedEx and UPS, are making pick ups and deliveries in less than an hour from notification. This impacts on all parts of the organisation in planning and providing a highly responsive and reliable service. While internal systems are being analysed and refined, many organisations are turning to third party providers who can meet specific requirements more cost effectively.
Quality assurance. Quality assurance is today synonymous with the ISO 9000 series of standards published by the International Organisation for Standardisation, often incorrectly referred to as International Standards Organisation, in Geneva , Switzerland . These standards are used to control processes within the firm as well as to demonstrate to others that there is a formal system for developing, sustaining and managing the quality of the output.
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