Total Quality Management (TQM)
In today’s business environment, competition and quality are the two dominating factors. Companies are looking for ways to improve quality in order to stay ahead of their competition. Total quality management (TQM) is a business system designed to improve, maintain, and enhance quality. It is a systematic approach to constantly improve the quality of all processes, products and services. TQM has become an important management concept, providing an enhanced approach to quality in all aspects of a company’s operations, from the way products and services are produced, to the way customer service is provided.
The goal of TQM is to ensure that the customer is provided with the best product or service possible. This is accomplished by involving all departments, from the suppliers to production, from accounting to sales. Everyone must work together in order to create a system that meets or exceeds customer expectations and ensures that quality is consistently improved. TQM is made up of four core elements: continuous improvement, customer focus, employee involvement, and process-oriented management.
Continuous improvement is a core part of TQM. It is the process of continually refining processes, products, and services in order to meet customer demands and expectations. This can be done through process redesign, Lean Six Sigma, and other tools and techniques. Continuous improvement helps to identify and eliminate sources of waste, improve product design, and improve production and customer service processes.
Customer focus is a key element of TQM. It is the process of tailoring products or services to meet customer needs and expectations. The goal is to exceed customer expectations and provide the customer with excellent products and services. To do this, companies need to gather customer feedback and use that feedback to constantly improve the quality of the produccts and services they are providing.
Employee involvement is another core element of TQM. It is the process of engaging, training, and recognizing employees in order to increase their involvement and commitment to quality. Employee involvement can have several different elements, including training, team building, and education. Training helps to increase employees’ knowledge of processes, products, and services. Team building helps to encourage collaboration and working together to achieve a common goal. Education helps to encourage employees to take ownership and pride in their work.
Lastly, process-oriented management is an important part of TQM. It is the process of standardizing operations, ensuring that processes and services are done correctly, consistently and on-time. It also includes establishing standards for quality and performance, measuring results, and identifying areas of improvement. Process-oriented management can help to identify and eliminate sources of waste and error, help increase productivity and efficiency, and help to ensure quality is consistently met.
Overall, TQM is a proven system for improving quality. It is a comprehensive approach to managing quality throughout all of a company’s operations. It is an ongoing process that can help to increase customer satisfaction, improve efficiency and productivity, reduce costs, and increase profitability. TQM is an effective way to ensure that quality is consistently improved and maintained, leading to improved customer satisfaction.
