Many empirical studies have demonstrated that only a handful of soft total quality management (TQM) elements contribute to organisational performance while elements of hard TQM have no relationship with performance. Despite these findings, a review of literature suggests that the elements of hard TQM in fact have a profound impact on organisational performance. The empirical studies which have ...

organizations. Should this not be enough to demonstrate the value of TQM? Unfortunately not. TQM has come under increasing criticism from many business gurus for delivering lackluster economic returns. A recent issue of Business Week had this comment about TQM: “What’s as dead as a pet rock? Little surprise here: It’s total quality management. TQM, the approach of eliminating errors that increa...

PURPOSE Despite the potential benefits of total quality management (TQM), many healthcare organisations encountered difficulties in its implementation. The purpose of this paper is to explore the barriers to successful implementation of TQM in healthcare organisations of Iran. DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH This study involved a mixed research design. In-depth interviews were conducted with TQM ...

Although much has been written about TQM, little attention has been paid to the potential effects of contextual factors on TQM and TQM–performance relationships. The use of organizational theory to formulate propositions regarding the effects of such factors is especially scarce in the TQM literature. This study uses institutional theory and contingency theory as the basis to test a number of s...

This paper discusses the essences of total quality management (TQM) concept and identifies the principles of successful TQM implementation. It contrasts the Quality Seven (Q7) and the Management Seven (M7) tools commonly used in the TQM process. It also describes the Deming's quality management concept and his fourteenpoint management method. It briefly explains the similarities between softwar...

Over the past decade or so, TQM has been used to focus on improve profits, market share and competitiveness. Whilst TQM is used as a verified approach in creating success within manufacturing and services and it is used for improvement in the public sector, several organizations have failed in implementing TQM correctly; this is due to many reasons such as lack of top management commitment or i...