Total Quality Management

Defining total quality management [TQM] involves the overall operational process involving all employees of a company, from the top management personnel to the production personnel developing and distributing the company products, from the internal workings of the company to the external final use of the product. TQM includes management spearheading quality processes and filtration of those processes throughout all management and non-management personnel, involves thorough statistical analysis, and provides employee empowerment, along with continuous customer evaluations for the success of global development and distribution of a company's products and services.

Burrill and Ledolter (1999) describe TQM as a holistic business management methodology with all employees sharing the common focus of continuous improvement in every area of operations for the result of achieving customer satisfaction. Wadsworth, Stephens, and Godfrey (2003) discuss integrating management techniques for developing total organizational business strategies. Melnyk and Swink (2005) define TQM as a culture of total commitment to quality and attitude by all personnel using innovative scientific methods for continuous product and service improvements.

AFAP participation improves Fort Rucker quality of...

Nameless and Numberless

Dragonversion

These authors all share similar perspectives from their research of five American and one Japanese historical leaders (Shewhart, Deming, Juran, Feigenbaum, Crosby, and Ishikawa) and their significant impact on American and International global business today; to include the evolution of the International Standards Organization (ISO 9000), all which portray TQM to involve detailed planning, cost evaluations, and complete employee participation to deliver a quality product or service.

GlobalizationGlobalization has made a serious impact to businesses and the quality of products and services they provide, with the expedited evolution of technology and the introduction of the internet/world-wide-web, and the availability of low-cost labor pools in developing countries, businesses aggressively compete to meet consumer demands (Wadsworth, Stephens and Godfrey, 2003). Businesses are providing mass product for global consumption providing on demand world-wide...