DEFINING TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM)
Running Head: DEFINING TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM)
Defining Total Quality Management (TQM)
Joey J. Provencio
University of Phoenix
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For many of today's Fortune 500 companies, Total Quality Management (TQM) is more than just a philosophy - it's a way of life. Originating in Japan in the 1950s, TQM steadily become more popular out West, and continues to gain momentum today. Stark (1998), "TQM is a description of the culture, attitude and organization of a company that aims to provide, and continue to provide, it's customers with products and services that satisfy their needs. The culture requires quality in all aspects of the company's operations, with things being done right the first time, and defects and waste eradicated from operations."
There are several different models for TQM - Six Sigma or Kaizen - but all of them share the same foundational tenets. For example, Toyota, as a whole, leverages the Kaizen methodology.
Kaizen Gamorra by John Tighe
TQM
Untitled (Hifly) Airbus A340-313X; CS-TQM@SYD;31.0...Hudgik (2009), "Kaizen is a system that involves every employee - from upper management to the cleaning crew. Everyone is encouraged to come up with small improvement suggestions or a regular basis. This is not a once a month or once a year activity. It is continuous." Kaizen at Toyota started in on the manufacturing line as a way to improve efficiency. Fifty years later, Toyota has become the leading automotive manufacturer. However, Kaizen doesn't stop at the manufacturing floor. Toyota has expanded Kaizen principles throughout the entire organization - from Dealer Service Organizations to the Customer Servicing Call Centers.
On the Call Center side of Toyota, implementing Kaizen methodologies becomes a bit more challenging. Toyota call centers not only compete in the automotive manufacturing arena, but also compete with all of the other auto financing organizations out there - Bank of...