Defining Total Quality Management

TQM, or Total Quality Management, is a management style that involves the whole company as a team to insure the best customer service and total quality it can. It is "An approach to quality assurance that emphasizes a thorough understanding by all members of a production unit of the needs and desires of the ultimate service recipients, a viewpoint of wishing to provide service to internal, intermediate service recipients in the chain of service, and a knowledge of how to use specific data-related techniques to assess and improve the quality of their own and the team's outputs." (n.d.)

In this paper, TQM and its impact on globalization will be discussed, as well as a contrast and comparison of TQM versus different more traditional management styles. In addition, how TQM applies to Adecco Employment Agency will be reviewed.

Total Quality Management

Total Quality Management is a radical and innovative management style based on teamwork. It involves all departments and all levels of employment within the industry to create the best product and service base. TQM is a departure from more traditional management styles that focused on a leader and followers.

Traditional management styles typically focused on a "boss"; one manager who made and enforced the rules, and often present was a lead by fear manager. Lead by fear managers scare and intimidate employees with threats instead of encouraging with recognition. Often leader/follower organizations relied on dictatorship as opposed to democracy, which, although may have accomplished the goals set forth by the leader, made for an uncomfortable work environment, as well as created dissatisfaction with customers. Problems such as low morale, decreased productivity, and loss of revenue have been some of the results of such management styles. (Silva, 2007)

With TQM, the focus becomes more on the customer, as well as working together to create a quality product and service that will bring success to the company and satisfy the consumer. TQM also creates a work environment conducive to learning and sharing of knowledge and ideas between employees. Where as traditional management practices tend to react to the needs of clients and employees, in total quality management, there is more a focus on being proactive; tapping in to what clients and employees need, not only before a problem occurs, but even more so before the client asks.

Total Quality Management plays are large part in globalization. As companies get bigger and expand into global markets, competitions gets more fierce and the customer base more diverse. With a total customer and quality focus, the company has a better opportunity of standing up to competitors and making sure that customers are happy with the product and service.

A large, global company that has implemented TQM principles is Xerox. Xerox is an international company operating in several different countries in Europe, Asia, and North America. The company offers services that range from "...document processing, insurance, third-party financing, and...investment banking services." (1996). The company used the ten elements of implementing the TQM principles and discovered it had the right focus for incorporating this management style in to the running of the company.

Adecco Employment, a staffing agency based out of Sweden, does apply the principals of Total Quality Management in much of its operations by empowering employees to do what it takes to make customers happy.

Adecco operates several branches in many countries around the world. Although there is a branch manager in each office, the recruiters/staffing consultants, and sales associates work with management as a team to insure the highest quality of service and product. Adecco is regularly rated in the top 5 in overall service and quality for staffing agencies, and the TQM principals that it appears are applied are a large cause of this success.

Total Quality Management is a newer process in quality that, as with anything, will have both negatives and positives. It does seem, however, that by applying the principals of TQM in an industry, the quality and service will be far superior to that of companies run on traditional management styles. In companies such as Adecco and Xerox, it is understood that it takes more than one leader with followers to make a company a success, and therefore the Total Quality Management principals must be used in order to help the companies achieve their goals; customer satisfaction, employee retention, and a quality product.

Reference(n.d.) Methods & Tools QA Resources A Glossary of Useful Terms Healthcare and workforce improvement. Quality Assurance Project Retrieved on

July 21, 2008 fromfile:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Debbie/My%20Documents/Quality%20Management%20and%20Productivity%20Class/TQM%20definition.htm

http://www.scribd.com/word/full/2919927?access_key=key-gr0yjnhnci92e8dzgjg

Xerox Corporation (2006) Retrieved on July 21, 2008 from 

http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/1848/xerox.html

Silva, A. (2007). Quality Management. Presented by Help Desk Institute.