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INTRODUCTION Total quality management or TQM is philosophy that has been in use for many years for continuous process improvement. When used, TQM is integrated into the company philosophy to enable the continuous improvement of the quality of products and processes. One of the key aspects of TQM, Total Quality Management is that the quality of products and processes is the responsibility of everyone involved within the processes of an organization. TQM involves all levels and aspects of a company including management, workforce, suppliers, and customers, to meet or exceed customer expectations.

TQM, Total Quality Management Basics The basic concept of total quality management, TQM is that it is a customer focused strategy aimed to produce consistently high quality products or services. In involves the whole organization and beyond, with quality becoming the responsibility of everyone in the organization. Some of the key concepts of TQM, total quality management include:

TRADITIONAL MANAGEMENT PRACTICES VS. TQM

Total quality management has changed the traditional management style forever. It was a very radical movement those days. Some of these changes are radical even today. Few of these changes are discussed below. Traditional way of management focused on internal activities. Quality had a meaning which was totally internally defined. Products or services provided by organization were assumed to be good in quality, if this organization has done its best in producing that product or service. But in total quality management, focus is the customer. So that ultimate decider of the quality is the customer. Fitting to the customer requirement was the least requirement while delighting them is the ultimate goal. Traditionally people thought bad quality products are due to the workers who do not perform their job correctly. One of the major differences between total quality management and traditional management style is the assignment of the responsibility of the quality to the management. Especially responsibility of the quality goes into the middle level management in the operational level. Total quality management is an organization wide movement. All the organization has to be in unity to apply TQM principles. Total quality management, unlike traditional management calls for high amount of team working. Team building,

specially cross functional teams are feature of TQM. These teams will provide the necessary momentum to the implementation process and will propel the system forward, with very less resistance. TQM believes in quality assurance rather than checking. Quality is inbuilt to the system, so that products are assured to be in good quality. Some decision like narrowing down the supplier base is total quality management concepts used for this purpose, which is revolutionary still today. Unlike in traditional management style, total quality management makes decisions on facts and figures. Therefore problems are identified correctly. Therefore solutions are well planned. TQM depends on cyclic thinking. Also it is continuous. Therefore improvements are small, stable and continuous in nature. This is also known as Kaizen. These events are used in teambuilding, brain storming and decision making. There are many other differences between the old or the traditional way of management to the total quality management. In the bigger picture, TQM has basically changed the culture and the thinking patterns of the organization.

KAIZEN AND PRINCIPLE OF CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT Kaizen is a form of continuous process improvement that has been adopted in many development and manufacturing organizations. It gains its name from the Japanese word, the English of which is Kaizen, with a meaning of "improvement" or "change for the better. "Like many other forms of process improvement, Kaizen focuses on the continuous improvement of processes within an organization

Kaizen is a philosophy that defines management’s role in continuously encouraging and implementing small improvements involving everyone. It is the process of continuous improvement in small increments that make the process more efficient, effective, under control, and adaptable. Improvements are usually accomplished at little or no expense, without sophisticated techniques or expensive equipment.

It focuses on simplification by breaking down complex processes into their sub-processes and then improving them. The Kaizen improvement focuses on the use of: 1. Value-added and non-value-added work activities. 2. MUDA, which refers to seven classes of waste-overproduction, delay, transportation, processing, inventory, wasted motion, and defective parts. 3. Principles of motion study and use of cell technology. 4. Principles of material handling and use of one-piece flow. 5. Documentation of standard operating procedures. 6. The five S’s for workplace organization. (Already explained in Lean Production Post) 7. Visual management by means of visual displays that everyone in the plant can use for better communications. 8. Just-in-time principles to produce only the units in the right quantities, at the right time, and with right resources. 9. POKA-YOKE to prevent or detect errors. 10. Team dynamics, which include problem solving, communication skills, and conflict resolution. Kaizen relies heavily on a culture that encourages suggestions by operators who continually try to incrementally improve their job or process. .

PRINCIPLES OF CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT TQM is mainly concerned with continuous improvement in all work, from high level strategic planning and decision-making, to detailed execution of work elements on the shop floor. It stems from the belief that mistakes can be avoided and defects can be prevented. It leads to continuously improving results, in all aspects of work, as a result of continuously improving capabilities, people, processes, and technology and machine capabilities. Continuous improvement must deal not only with improving results, but more importantly with improving capabilities to produce better results in the future. The five major areas of focus for capability improvement are demand generation, supply generation, technology, operations and people capability. A central principle of TQM is that mistakes may be made by people, but most of them are caused, or at least permitted, by faulty systems and processes. This means that the root cause of such mistakes can be identified and eliminated, and repetition can be prevented by changing the process. There are three major mechanisms of prevention: 1. Preventing mistakes (defects) from occurring (Mistake - proofing or PokaYoke). 2. Where mistakes can't be absolutely prevented, detecting them early to prevent them being passed down the value added chain (Inspection at source or by the next operation). 3. Where mistakes recur, stopping production until the process can be corrected, to prevent the production of more defects. (Stop in time). The basis for TQM implementation is the establishment of a quality management system which involves the organizational structure, responsibilities, procedures and processes. The most frequently used guidelines for quality management systems are the ISO 9000 international standards, which emphasize the establishment of a well- documented, standardized quality system. The role of the ISO 9000 standards within the TQM circle of continuous improvement is presented in the following figure.

Continuous improvement is a circular process that links the diagnostic, planning, implementation and evaluation phases. Within this circular process, the ISO 9000 standards are commonly applied in the implementation phase. An ISO 9000 quality system also requires the establishment of procedures that standardize the way an organization handles the diagnostic and evaluation phases. However, the ISO 9000 standards do not prescribe particular quality management techniques or quality-control methods. Because it is a generic organizational standard, ISO 9000 does not define quality or provide any specifications of products or processes. ISO 9000 certification only assures that the organization has in place a well-operated quality system that conforms to the ISO 9000 standards. Consequently, an organization may be certified but still manufacture poor-quality products

BENCHMARKING The term benchmarking was originally used by early land surveyors, who used the term to identify a fixed point from which all other measurements are made. In the late 1970's however, it took a broader meaning. Applied to an organization, benchmarking is a process to determine who else does a particular activity the best and emulating what they do to improve performance. A more formal definition is "simply the systematic process of searching for best practices, innovative ideas and highly effective operating procedures that lead to superior performance.

BENCHMARKING VS TQM Total Quality Management, or TQM for short, consists of three main points (3). First, collaboration with suppliers to ensure that the supplies utilized in work processes are well designed and fit for use. Second, taking continuous employee analysis of work processes to improve their functioning and reduce process variation. Third, maintaining close communication with customers to identify and understand what they want and how they define quality. TQM works by either one of two processes, consultant-oriented TQM or projectoriented TQM. Consultant-oriented TQM typically involves the creation of separate quality control bodies that oversee the implementation of improvement and the control of quality improvement procedures. This process is generally problematic in the public-sector because the TQM bodies exist outside the chain of command, confusing accountability. These bodies often fail to become a part of the hierarchical structure of government organizations. In project-oriented TQM, some of the shortcomings of consultant-oriented TQM are addressed. This entails including all employees in the process and including their needs as well as the customer's, as well as using established procedures as a foundation instead of implementing new ones. In general, TQM uses internal methods and the ideas of people within an organization to improve itself from the inside out. This does not include comparing one's organization to that of another, which is critical in benchmarking. However, due to the potential unwillingness of employees to accept ideas without understanding their logic, both TQM and benchmarking require the input of everyone in an organization and a general resistance to change must be overcome.

BENCHMARKING VS REENGINEERING Another type of method of performance review and improvement is reengineering. Reengineering has been defined as "the fundamental rethinking and radical redesign of business processes to achieve dramatic improvements in contemporary measures of performance, such as cost, quality, service, and speed. " This generally involves discarding old practices with completely new ones. The new practices are usually determined from a process that requires a team and consultant to come up with, measure, and convince others to take up new ideas. Reengineering can be problematic in government because they are don't have profits and completely discarding old processes and breaking down barriers between departments run into political, trade union, or other pressures. This sometimes results in the creation of new agencies rather than overhauling old ones. Reengineering is very expensive and prone to failure rates in over fifty percent of cases. It also requires TQM after its successful implementation. While reengineering is cutting-edge and dramatic, and encourages employees to think big, it is still an internal process. It does not involve the practices of one organization to compare itself to those of another. While benchmarking may result in the use of completely new ideas similar to reengineering, it often is simply improving on existing ones. In addition, after performing reengineering, organizations often turn to TQM, to maintain their success

Focus

TQM

Re-engineering

Benchmarking

Internal

Internal

External

Develop dialogue within a Develop completely new Compare processes with process to improve it Main methods for obsolete or others who do the same and Principles through gradual failing processes determine best methods increments

QUALITY CIRCLES A group of employees who perform similar duties and meet at periodic intervals, often with management, to discuss work-related issues and to offer suggestions and ideas for improvements, as in production methods or quality control, called quality circle. Therefore quality circle is nothing but a small group of employees who come together to discuss with the management issues related to either quality control or improvement in production methods form a Quality Control Circle (QCC). These employees usually work in the same areas, and voluntarily meet on a regular basis to identify, analyze and solve their problems. Key Characteristics of quality circle: • A circle, usually consisting of 6-8 members, from the same section. • Membership of a Quality Circle is voluntary. • Circle members should meet regularly, ideally once a week, in particular place also in particular time. • Circle members select a name for their circle in the first meeting and elect a leader to conduct the meetings. • Members are specially trained in problem solving and analysis techniques in order to play their role effectively. • Circle works on a systematic basis to identify and solve work – related problems for improving quality and productivity not just discussing them. • The management must ensure that solutions are implemented quickly once they have been accepted

BASIC ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF QC: A quality circle should have an appropriate organizational structure for its effective and efficient performance. The structure may vary from one org. to another, but it is useful to have basic framework as a model: In a typical organization, the structure of a QC may consist of the following elements: 1. Steering committee – General manager / works manager, rep. from top management, rep. of human resource development and a rep. of employees’ union. 2. Coordinator: an administrative officer / personnel officer from middle level management. 3. Facilitator: senior supervisory officer / foreman. A facilitator may manage up to 10 circles. A facilitator is usually from one of the three departments – quality control, production or training. 4. Circle Leader: circle leaders may be from the lowest level of supervisors. A circle leader organizes and conducts circle activities. 5. Circle members: line and / or staff workers ( circle members should attend all meetings as far as possible, offer suggestions and ideas, participate actively in group processes, and attain training seriously.

How to implement quality circle: • Firstly, the management is informed about the quality control circle process that is being planned. • A committee is formed, and key persons such as a coordinator and in-house coach are selected. • The scope is defined, and areas of application identified. • First-line supervisors in the identified areas are given QCC presentations. It is important to make these impressive, and valuable tips on the subject are available. • This is followed up with extensive training for coordinators and middle management on the process and their roles. • Employees are invited to become members of a circle, and trained suitably once they sign up. Thus, a circle is formed and begins work. These may give rise to other circles. • Problems are discussed and solved in a systematic manner in the QCCs. It is very important that solutions are implemented as quickly as possible, to maintain the momentum. Usually QCC programs must operate in all sections of the company i.e., in the offices, service operations and manufacturing. But remember, while the size of the company is not important to a program's success, the following factors certainly are: • Voluntary participation. • Management support. • Employee empowerment. • Training programs. • Team work...