'Quality has taken a central place in determining the organizational objectives and competitive position'

'Quality has taken a central place in determining the organizational objectives and competitive position'. Discuss taking into view the present trends..


The key success factors for TQM are listed below and then discussed briefly:
• Clear Aims and Objective of TQM
• Support and Commitment of Top Management
• Sufficient Time to be Devoted to TQM
• Resources for TQM
• Personal Qualities.
• Careful Analysis and Planning
• A Steering Group to Manage Change
• Adoption of an Ethical Approach
Clear Aims and Objectives of TQM
You should know your goal. Why do you need to change? Do you want to empower staff,
reduce defects or improve customer loyalty?
If you know what you are seeking, you can organize the TQM programme to achieve you aim.
Without a goal, your programme will lack direction.
Support and Commitment of Top Management
This is an essential condition for TQM success. TQM is a major strategic process that must
come from the top of the organisation. Before people in the middle or at the bottom can be
convinced of change, they have to be certain that this is a serious transformation. It is not the
kind of programme that the CEO can be launch with a single speech and them delegate to a
junior, while concentrating on the rest of the organisation's business. Senior managers who
have risen in the organisation because of their particular style of management are not likely to
abandon that style unless the top person makes it absolutely clear that TQM is to be the
defining guideline. Where this support from the top is lacking or perceived to be only token, the
effort is likely to fail.Sufficient Time to be devoted to TQM
Implementing TQM would take up a lot of managers' time. The time factor has to be considered
carefully.
When a TQM programme fails, it is often because the management fails to give it enough time.
If managers are told to carry out a TQM project in their spare time, it is unlikely to be successful.
Not only will senior managers need to spend many hours a week on the programme, but also
they will have to wait several years to see any results. There is a danger is losing interest in
TQM, if immediate results are not coming. Senior managers -should not get disappointed if
things are not fast improving.
Resources for TQM
If you develop your programme in-house, you will have to pay the salary of a full-time TQM
coordinator. You may have to pay for training courses. In addition, there is the time of seni74or

managers and other staff. Employees will be spending time in meeting or visiting other
companies. You may also print certificates, pens or mugs as give-aways. If you decide to use a
consultancy, you will have to pay its fees. So before you rush into a TQM programme, you
should set aside a budget.
Personal Qualities
When you have committed the company to TQM, and accepted that it will take energy, time and
money, you still need personal qualities to succeed.
Careful Analysis and Planning
A careful job of assessing the organisation's readiness to accept and embrace TQM is necessary. The top management should ask itself several questions before launching the TQM venture. They should begin with very basic question: What are our values? What is you mission? Who are our customers? Who are the stakeholders in our organisation, i.e., the people who are affected by what we do and who have an impact upon us? What are our strengths and weaknesses? Who are our competitors? What kind of organisation do we want to become? Careful, thoughtful preparation will significantly increase the chances of building a Total Quality Organisation.
Steering Group to Manage Change
Successful TQM change efforts involve a team of top executives in planning and guidance. The existence of such a steering group will reassure people throughout the organisation that this is not just another programme, but a serious permanent change of direction. It will also be the best vehicle for assessing the pace of the change effort and deciding what resources can be devoted to it. With this kind to steady guidance, the chances for successful organisational change are siqnificantlv increased.
You will need a structure like the one shown in figure. This has a number of elements, with the quality facilitator being one of the most important. The person will have day-to-day responsibility of TQM. He will not 'manage' it, because each individual must make his own contribution. Above all, the departmental managers must create an atmosphere of total quality in their own areas. So the facilitator (sometimes known as the coordinator) will simply remind, advise and encourage staff about TQM. He will also guide the project teams. The facilitator needs to have sufficient seniority to persuade others to adopt TQM. A formal job description should be written, outlining his authority.
In a small organisation the facilitator will report to the chief executive. In larger organisations, he might report to another member of the board. Whoever has responsibility must be committed to the success of the project, and must be at the company's top level of management. Otherwise, the TQM programme will not receive the resources and authority it needs.
Adopt an Ethical Approach
TQM is based on fairness. It requires the firm to satisfy its customers, and to be honest and
open with its employees. That means the firm has to be ethical. Every firm, like human, has
moral failings. Before a TQM programme starts, the company should carry out an ethics audit,
and draw up an ethics policy.
The ethics audit should cover relationships with the government, customers, suppliers, staff,
and the environment. It may relate to tax evasion, bribes, and forming cartels. Policies on
offensive advertising and environmental management might need to be formulated.
In this section, the eight determinants of success of TQM in an organisation are considered. Top
management should have clear objectives. They should give full support with time and
resources and have personal qualities. A steering group has to be formed to plan the activities.
Above all, TQM is not a tool, but a philosophy of worklife, requiring an ethical approach.