TQM

Total Quality Management (TQM) is a management approach that seeks long-term success through customer satisfaction by involving all members of an organization in the continual improvement of processes, products, services, and culture. It emphasizes preventing defects and reducing variation rather than inspecting quality after production.

The concept emerged in the postwar era, influenced by quality pioneers such as W. Edwards Deming, Joseph Juran, and Kaoru Ishikawa. Although earlier ideas existed, TQM was popularized in Japan in the 1950s and 1960s and later spread worldwide, forming the basis of many quality improvement programs.

Core principles typically include a strong customer focus, leadership commitment, involvement of all employees, a process-oriented view, continuous improvement (kaizen), data-driven decision making, supplier partnerships, and an integrated organization-wide system.

Tools and methods associated with TQM include the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle, quality circles, Ishikawa (fishbone) diagrams, flowcharts, Pareto charts, histograms, control charts, and benchmarking. TQM emphasizes prevention of defects, standardization, training, and measurement to guide improvement.

Implementation requires sustained leadership support, cross-functional teams, clear goals, training, and reliable data. Benefits often include higher customer satisfaction, lower costs through waste reduction, and better employee morale, but results may take time and the approach can be criticized as being vague or resource-intensive if not properly integrated with other improvements.