Total Quality Management (TQM) is the secret of keeping companies in the market, enhancing their marketing share and even gaining new marketing share at a time when other companies may collapse.

Applying the concept of TQM gives your company a great opportunity to fulfill your customers’ desires, ensuring their loyalty and your survival in the market.

In this article, we provide you with a comprehensive guide to total quality management (TQM), how to apply it, and application tools. Let’s start by defining the concept of TQM.

What is The concept of total quality management?

Experts define the concept of total quality management  as a strategy for achieving long-term success by focusing on customer needs and meeting their expectations by continuously improving the quality of the product or service and involving everyone in the organization to meet and sometimes even exceed the customer’s satisfactory standards as W. Edwards Deming says, “Quality is everyone’s responsibility.” The level of quality of a product or service can be determined by the extent of customer satisfaction and the conformity of their requirements, and the issue is in meeting the customer’s requirements, not in having a low level of service.

 

Total quality management is based on the principle that quality is not the responsibility of a particular department, but rather the responsibility of everyone in the organization, from top management to employees on the ground. As Joseph M. Juran said, “It is most important that top management be quality-minded. In the absence of a sincere manifestation of interest at the top, little will happen below.”

 

Requirements vary from customer to customer and from country to country, but the American quality organization ASQ has identified a number of the most common elements of customer requirements:

• Performance
• Features
• price
• Services
• reputation
• Warranty

The  objectives of total quality management for your company

The Objectives Of Total Quality Management TQM is to achieve growth and profitability in your organization:

 

• TQM improves customer satisfaction by meeting and exceeding their expectations, which enhances their loyalty to the company.
• Companies reduce their operational costs when errors and rework are minimized.
• Internal improvement processes increase efficiency and productivity and reduce waste.
• Implementing total quality management gives companies a good reputation in the market, which enhances their competitiveness.
• TQM encourages innovation by continuously improving products and processes.
• It helps eliminate defects, streamline processes, and enhance the overall performance of the organization.
• TQM ensures a company’s long-term success.

 

Total Quality Management Principles

To implement TQM effectively, an organization needs to adopt Total Quality Management Principles that contribute to achieving its goals, taking into account both theoretical and practical aspects. These principles include

• Customer focus

The primary goal is to meet and exceed customer expectations to ensure customer satisfaction and loyalty. This can be achieved through continuous communication with customers through surveys or face-to-face meetings. For example, Amazon relies on customer feedback to develop its services and improve the buying experience.

 

• Employee participation

Involve all employees in quality improvement efforts by providing ongoing training and skill development and empowering them to make decisions. Toyota, for example, encourages its employees to make suggestions for process improvement as part of its Kaizen system of continuous improvement. As Andrew Mason put it:

“Hire great people, and give them the freedom to be great.”

• Fact-based management

Decisions in TQM are based on accurate data analysis rather than guesswork,otherwise they become opinions. Companies like Google use statistical analysis to understand the performance of their products and make informed decisions.

 

• Systematic thinking

Improving quality requires a thorough understanding of internal processes and the relationships between different systems in an organization. For example, Samsung relies on integration between its departments to improve productivity and minimize errors.

 

• Continuous improvement (Kaizen)

Continuous improvement is the essence of TQM, as companies constantly strive to improve products and processes. Toyota is a prime example of Kaizen in action, helping it to lead the automotive industry globally as Benjamin Franklin said:

“Without constant growth and progress, such words as improvement, achievement, and success have no meaning.”

 

• Continuous and effective communication

Open communication across the organization fosters collaboration and integration to achieve quality goals. Apple relies on team meetings to review performance and identify areas for improvement.

 

• Long-term relationships with suppliers

Close collaboration with suppliers as partners in achieving quality ensures that materials are supplied to the required specifications. For example, Nestlé relies on long-term relationships with its suppliers to ensure the quality of raw materials, as Edwards Deming noted:

“The result of long-term relationships is better and better quality, and lower costs.”

 

• Leadership

Top management support is the foundation of  TQM’s success. Leaders at GE (General Electric) set a clear vision for continuous improvement, which helped the company achieve long-term success. Leadership here includes providing the necessary resources and motivating the team to achieve the goals.

The difference between quality management and total quality management

The difference between quality management and total quality management can be explained in several key points, which are illustrated in this table.

 

Total Quality Management	Traditional quality management
Meeting customer needs and improving customer service.	Focuses on standards and specifications about the product.
Aimed at improving the overall performance of the company and providing quality products and services.	Focuses on the quality of the final product and customer response
Use various tools and techniques, such as process management, data analysis, and continuous improvement.	Achieved through inspections, tests, audits, etc.
Aims to achieve quality in all aspects of the business.	Specific to a particular product
Responsibility of all employees in the company	Responsibility of top management

 

Areas of application of total quality management

There are many areas of application of total quality management, Whatever the field of your company, you can benefit from TQM because it can be applied in many areas, including:

The industrial sector

To ensure production quality, optimize the production process, and reduce waste using methodologies such as Six Sigma and Lean Manufacturing.

Educational sector

Improving the quality of training and education, keeping up with the latest teaching methods, and reducing the possibility of students running away from school.

Commercial sector

Raising the level of quality in stores and companies to increase competitiveness in the market, improve the quality of services provided, and enhance managerial accountability and transparency.

Government sector

Improving administrative performance and improving the quality of public services.

Health sector

Seeks to improve the quality of medical services and healthcare by applying standards such as JCI (Joint Commission International). This includes improving the management of hospitals and clinics and providing quality health services that focus on the needs of patients.

 Financial sector

Improving the quality of banking and insurance services and increasing customer satisfaction.

Technological sector

Raising and improving the quality of electronic products, ensuring the delivery of innovative and high-performance products

Stages of Total Quality Management Implementation

Now that we know the objectives and areas, it’s time to learn about the stages of total  quality management implementation to ensure you achieve the desired goals. Some of the most important stages of implementation include:

• Preparation

This stage involves building a culture of quality within the company by:

• Clarifying the company’s vision, purpose and values
• Train employees to increase their awareness and develop an internal communication plan to continuously communicate with employees about the importance of total quality.
• Identifying the issues faced by the company.
• Identifying customer desires to work on realizing them.
• Adopting the principles of total quality.

 

• Planning

It aims to show the desire of the company’s management to achieve total quality by spreading and supporting the culture of quality through:

• Preparing a comprehensive plan consistent with the company’s vision and objectives to implement TQM, with the participation of all employees to benefit from the diversity of their opinions and ensure their commitment.
• Developing a plan to develop information systems at the level of the organization, enabling it to keep pace with the technology used in data processing.
• Identify key performance indicators (KPIs) to follow up on progress in achieving the goals.

 

• Evaluation

At this stage, information related to the company and its development priorities is provided and includes:

• Diagnosing the current situation of the company and knowing the strengths to support it and the weaknesses to develop it.
• Define standards for total quality and international standards can be used, provided that they fit with the company’s work environment and its specificities.
•  Reviewing the organization’s culture in light of the changes that have taken place and the extent to which it fits with the culture of quality and commitment to it

 

• Development

In this step, the actual implementation of TQM and addressing the issues that arose in the previous steps is carried out:

• Activating the work of the TQM team.
•  Defining responsibilities and familiarizing all employees with their role in the change process.
•  Periodic review of the efforts made in applying TQM and the progress made in this aspect, in addition to studying similar experiences and what can be learned from them.
• Using quality tools such as Pareto Analysis and Fishbone Diagram to identify root issues during implementation.

Continuous improvement

At this stage, best practices are identified based on the numbers and invested again in continuous improvement by:

• Using TQM experts to evaluate the implementation program.
• Benchmarking the performance of the TQM application with similar organizations.
• Inviting all parties concerned with the development of the organization’s work to participate in the implementation process and adopt the importance of the culture of innovation in promoting continuous improvement.

 

Total Quality Management Application Tools

What cannot be measured cannot be developed, so it is necessary to use Total quality management application tools to know whether the desired objectives of its application have been achieved and what needs to be developed. Among the tools that help in TQM:

• Pareto Chart

It is used to identify the most impactful issues or defects in a process, based on the 80/20 principle, which shows that 80% of issues stem from 20% of causes.

This tool is used for priorities, such as improving quality, reducing defects, or increasing productivity, such as analyzing customer complaints to identify the most common categories or the main reasons for late deliveries.

• Fishbone Diagram

It helps in analyzing the root causes of issues by categorizing the influencing factors in a fishbone-like shape, it is important to use the tool collectively with teams to achieve a comprehensive and accurate analysis.

Some of the key categories that are analyzed using the diagram are:

People (workers).

Machines (equipment).

Materials.

Methods (procedures).

Environment.

 

• Check Sheet

An initial tool for collecting data that is later used in a structured way in a comprehensive analysis, making it easier to analyze and make fact-based decisions.

 

An example would be a check sheet to record equipment failures in a factory to identify recurring patterns or issues.

 

• Scatter Diagram

It is used to examine the correlation between two variables, which helps in understanding the effect of one on the other.  It does not prove causality but shows the relationship between the variables.

Example:

The relationship between the number of training hours and employee performance.

 

The relationship between temperature and the number of defects in production.

• Control Charts

They are used to monitor the stability of processes and ensure that they are operating within acceptable limits. They show normal and abnormal changes in processes, which helps in taking corrective actions when needed.

 

Example: Control charts are used to monitor the liquid filling process to ensure that the filling volume remains within acceptable limits.

• Flowcharts:

They are used to document processes, clearly define work steps, and identify gaps or stages that need improvement.

Example: Analyzing production steps to identify inefficiencies

 

It is important to emphasize that these tools work together. For example, a checklist can be used for data collection, a Pareto chart for prioritization, and a fishbone diagram for root cause analysis.

To ensure effective use of the tools, staff should be trained on them with practical examples from the work environment.

Challenges facing companies in implementing TQM

Despite the advantages of implementing TQM, such as reducing costs, improving productivity, and satisfying customer needs, there are some challenges that companies face during implementation, such as

1. Inadequate planning
2. Lack of participation of all employees in the company
3. Not understanding the customer’s needs or understanding them in the wrong way and as a result producing undesirable products
4. Stopping continuous improvement once goals are achieved.
5. Rejection by employees or departments of some of the changes required to implement TQM.
6. Lack of commitment from top management
7. Lack of interest in providing continuous training for employees

 

Does technology play a role in TQM?

Of course it plays an important role, as the integration of technology with TQM has resulted in

Solving issues faster.

• Shifting from  paper documents to electronic systems makes access to information easier and faster.
• Collecting and analyzing data in an automated way to make the right decisions.
• Integrating artificial intelligence into quality control results in reducing the margin of error by a large percentage.

 

 Conclusion

it can be said that total quality management is not just an administrative procedure, but a culture that requires long-term commitment by all members of the organization. It can lead to a significant improvement in performance, profitability, and cost reduction if applied correctly, as William A. Foster puts it. “Quality is never an accident; it is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction, and skillful execution; it represents the wise choice of many alternatives.”

 

To implement TQM in your company, contact us now at Eamak for expert consultations.

Shaymaa Mansour