Unit 2
Unit 2
How can a philosophy of quality improvement help a firm in its overall efforts of improving
the quality of its products and services?
Today’s organizations need to understand the new view of Total Quality as opposed to the
traditional view of quality? Discuss
Explain how TQM is different from the traditional notions of quality. Also, explain the
differences between traditional organizations and those that have implemented TQM.
Deming says “in the future there will be two kinds of companies – those who have
implemented TQM and those that have gone out of business…” what are your views on this
statement?
Do you believe that CEOs and business managers should be skeptical about the quality
movement, or should they embrace the quality movement and try to involve their firms in as
many quality initiatives as possible? Explain your answer.
The History of Quality Management
Modern quality management began in the USA in the mid-1920s and has had a profound
impact on modern business history.
It was not however widely applied in the West until the 1980s, some two decades after it
had taken off with remarkable results in Japan.
Quality Management went through 3 periods:
1. The Taylor Revolution
2. The Shewhart Period
3. The Japanese Quality Revolution
Quality Management Gurus
Cont…
The gurus could be grouped into 3 camps based on the notion of chronology (Bendell,
1991):
The early American writers subscribe mainly to a managerial approach to quality.
The Japanese writers developed new quality concepts in response to the American messages from
the late 1950s onwards
The new Western wave writers, following the Japanese industrial success, have given rise to
increased awareness of quality in the West
Deming and Juran have had the largest impact on our current understanding of quality
management and the ways in which quality is understood and managed in contemporary
organizations.
Implicit in their work is the view that quality is key to economic survival, social fulfilment and
environmental protection.
Revision questions
1. Briefly describe the contributions W. Edwards Deming made to the field of quality
management. Why do you believe he is the most influential quality expert?
2. Deming believed poor quality was not the fault of workers but resulted from poor
management of the system for quality improvement. Do you agree with Deming’s stand on
this issue? Why or why not?
3. Deming was not an advocate of mass inspection as a means of ensuring product quality.
Explain Deming’s beliefs in this area.
4. Select one of Deming’s 14 points for management and describe how this point could have
resulted in quality improvements in a business or volunteer organization with which you have
been involved.
5. Briefly describe the contributions that Joseph M. Juran made to the field of quality
management. What do you believe was Juran’s most significant contribution?
Cont…
6. Briefly describe the Japanese quality revolution following World War II. What can
modern-day managers learn from studying the history of this era?
7. What was Joseph Juran’s primary contribution to quality thinking in America? Discuss
Juran’s three step process to improving quality.
8. Compare and contrast Deming’s, Juran’s, and Crosby’s perspectives of quality
management. What are the major similarities and differences between their perspectives?
9. Describe Taguchi’s perspective of ideal quality. Does this perspective have practical
applications? If you were a manager, would you consider using the Taguchi method? Why?