Total Quality Management

Twin themes shared by all modern theories of management are consensus that everyone should share the same goals and empowerment that everyone is enabled to work effectively toward those goals. TQM is the banner under which efforts to implement consensus and empowerment through fundamental organizational change.

In an organization, TQM occurs not as a philosophy but as a program for organizational change, with a definite commitment made in advance by top management. A TQM program is expensive.

Recognition of the many involved constituencies or stakeholders is essential:

• Owners

• Managers

• Employees

• Creditors

• Unions

• Customers

• Suppliers

• Regulators

• The public, mankind

The newer stakeholder capitalism movement involves making decisions on behalf of other stakeholders as opposed to owners only. The TQM movement is not so concerned with decision making in fact, the main function of managers becomes expediting (enabling making sure that workers have the right resources and environment) rather than decisionmaking. Rather, in TQM the constituencies are groups that must participate in consensus and be empowered.

Barriers to consensus include adversarial relationships (e.g., union versus management), traditional conservative ideas of competition, fear (especially fear of superiors), and lack of communication. TQM applies consensus-building techniques to create and maintain a shared vision of where the organization should go and how everyone should contribute. Focus groups or other face-to-face meetings are needed, and they...