Tqm principios

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TQM 17,2

RESEARCH AND CONCEPTS

Components of successful total quality management
´ ´ Juan Jose Tarı
Department of Business Management, University of Alicante, SpainAbstract
Purpose – According to the literature, quality management consists of a set of components: critical factors, tools, techniques and practices. The purpose of this paper is: to identify the components of total quality management (TQM), in order to make them known to managers and thus facilitate successful quality management implementation, and to show the situation of 106 ISO 9000 certified firmsconcerning these components. Design/methodology/approach – In order to achieve this objective, a literature review and a survey based on 106 ISO 9000 certified firms in Spain were developed. Findings – The results reflect that certified firms must develop their people orientation 1and use techniques and tools to a higher extent in order to progress towards total quality. Originality/value – The value ofthe paper is point out which TQM components are important to successfully implement TQM and identify the situation of these components in ISO 9000 certified firms in a particular area. Keywords Total quality management, ISO 9000 series, Spain Paper type Research paper

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The TQM Magazine Vol. 17 No. 2, 2005 pp. 182-194 q Emerald Group Publishing Limited 0954-478X DOI10.1108/09544780510583245

Introduction Total quality management (TQM) allows firms to obtain a high degree of differentiation and to reduce costs. In spite of its advantages (Sohal et al., 1991; Maani et al., 1994; James, 1996; Kanji, 1998; Lee, 1998; Quazi and Padibjo, 1998), problems have also been detected in its implementation (Joubert, 1998; Kanji, 1998; Quazi and Padibjo, 1998). Firms must develop a number ofcomponents in an integrated way for successful implementation (Easton and Jarrell, 1998; Claver et al., 1999). Various studies have been carried out for the identification of those elements of successful quality management, from three different areas: contributions from quality leaders, formal evaluation models and empirical research. Besides, researchers have identified a number of tools andtechniques for quality improvement that are necessary for TQM success. Managers need to know which aspects they must consider to successfully develop TQM in their firms. The purpose of this paper is: to review the literature in order to identify the components of TQM that managers must implement to develop TQM to its full extent, as a management system improving quality and competitiveness; and to study thecase of 106 ISO 9000 certified firms. This paper will be structured as follows: firstly, we shall review the literature, on the one hand, concerning TQM critical factors, and on the other, regarding the tools and techniques for quality improvement. The following section reflects the components of TQM that are required for managers to be aware of the factors of TQM success. The

next section showsthe case of 106 ISO 9000 certified firms. Finally, a number of conclusions will be proposed.

Components of successful TQM

A review of the literature As pointed out above, TQM can be studied from three different approaches: contributions from quality leaders, formal evaluation models and empirical research. Deming (1982, 1986) underlined the use of statistical techniques for quality control,and proposed his 14 principles to improve quality in organizations, based on the following ideas: leadership, an improvement philosophy, the right production from the beginning, training for managers and employees, internal communication aimed at the elimination of obstacles for cooperation and the suppression of quantitative objectives. Juran (1986) pointed out the importance of both technical...