Daniel Robin &
Associates
Making Workplaces Work
Better
Keyword: Total Quality
In one sense, TQM is about increasing the effectiveness
and sustainability of the business. Research with US companies has
shown that those who made TQM a top priority improved their fiscal
strength (sustainable profits) 2.6 times over "average"
companies.
Traditional definition used during the 70’s and 80’s in the
US:
Quality -- The customer
defines quality … usually that the product or service is delivered
in a timely way, at a reasonable price, that meets or exceeds
expectations.
Basically, quality is whatever the customer
thinks it is. In practice, this involves continuously asking
precise questions, listening and learning to keep pace with the
changing competitive environment.
In recent years, the idea of mission and vision
have become important to defining quality as they reflect who the
"customers" and what business you’re in.
Total -- Simply means that everybody
involved in providing the product or service also works to improve its quality in every
aspect. These are the principals of inclusion and participation.
A more contemporary interpretation is
"systems thinking," the new sciences of chaos theory,
organizational learning and holism (interdependence).
Management -- Management is planning and
organizing work. In TQM, management is the action we take to continuously improve the
quality of our products, services, and the processes used to deliver them. TQM managers
believe that the people doing the work know best how to improve it.
In recent years, "management" has
given way to the idea of "leadership," which means providing
an environment where people can self-manage. This assumes that the
"manager" has handled basic structural guidelines such
as groundrules, agreements around communication, teamwork, and
standards.
So, to sum up, TQM means continuously improving the quality of
our products and services by working together with everyone involved
to improve the processes that we use to get results.
Articles:
Recognition and Accountability in the New Workplace
Helping the Emergence of Co-operative Work
Vision, Mission Goals in the Healthy Workplace
Relevant Skills or Coursework:
- Business Process Improvement & Redesign
- Balanced Scorecard Approach to Leadership
- The Human Elements of Quality -- TQM Skills for Humans
What does it mean to be a Total Quality Leader?
| TRADITIONAL MANAGEMENT |
TOTAL QUALITY LEADER |
Problem
Solving |
Dominator Model
- Argue without listening
- Push against resistance for acceptance of the one right answer; use of force, politics,
deception
- Adversarial, win-lose, enemy stance; low trust
- Dictate, passive-aggressive
|
Partnership
Model
- Listen without arguing; use resistance as feedback
- Collaborative, win-win, rely on each team member's strengths
- Compromise only when win-win isn’t possible
- Invite ideas, ask for help and support, request cooperation.
|
Setting
Direction |
| No vision, mission or direction is needed;
everyone just follows orders |
Clear goals and agreements are
established, communicated and kept current |
Manage people and tasks through a
"command and control" approach
- Tell, give orders, make demands
- Emphasis on strict adherence to policies and regulations
- Focus on blocks, limitations, faults, and weaknesses
-
Failure, shame and put-downs
- Ignore own mistakes, judge or blame others without the facts
|
Lead people
with clear mission, vision and goals
- Ask for help, coach, facilitate
- Realistic, measurable goals that inspire and motivate
- Creativity, innovation, strengths
-
Feedback, evaluation, learning
- Praise what’s working to make room for criticism; assume
best intentions
|
Decision
Making Authority (how we get things done) |
-
Centralized control, no shared power, minimal inclusion
-
"Gopher delegation" with minimal empowerment (buy in)
- No objective standards coupled with management by fear
|
-
Shared power: trust, respect, inclusion and participation
-
"Stewardship delegation" with broad operating freedom, clear guidelines
- Clear accountability systems to keep management appraised.
|
Sharing
Information |
- Ivory tower, information retentive
- Low trust, suspects motives, fears about confidentiality, reactive
- Compete for resources, scarcity mentality prevails
|
- Designated forums and tools used to share information company-wide
- Asks "who needs to know" to foster a sense of teamwork, proactive
- Careful not to over-communicate
|
References:
The Total Quality Corporation: How 10 Major Companies Added to
Profits and Cleaned Up the Environment in 1990s, by Francis McInerney and Sean
White, 1997.
The Five Pillars of
TQM: How to Make Total Quality Management Work for You, Bill Creech.
Breakthrough Process Redesign: New Pathways to
Customer Value, by Charlene B. Adair and Bruce A. Murray, AMACOM,
1994.
Business Process Improvement: The Breakthrough Strategy for
Total Quality, Productivity, and Competitiveness, by H. James Harrington, 1991.
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