TABLE OF CONTENTS This chapter explains how total organizational excellence involves comprehensively improving competitiveness, effectiveness and flexibility through planning, organizing and understanding each activity, and involving each individual at each level. It is achievable in all types of organizations.
Achieving organizational excellence often requires a mind-set change to break down existing barriers, but it must start at the top where the serious obsessional commitment and leadership must be demonstrated. The chief executive must accept the responsibility for commitment to organizational excellence which focuses on the customer needs, but middle management also have a key role to play in communicating the changes required.
The culture of an organization is formed by the beliefs, behaviours, norms, dominant values, rules and the climate in the organization. Total organizational excellence will influence the culture and provide a vision framework comprising its guiding philosophy, core values and beliefs, a purpose, and a mission.
The effectiveness of an organization depends on the extent to which people perform their roles and move towards the common goals and objectives. This chapter is concerned with moving the focus of control from outside individuals to within, so that everyone is accountable for their own performance.
Effective leadership starts with the chief executive s vision and develops into a strategy for implementation. Top management must then develop the following to be effective leaders: clear beliefs and objectives in the form of a mission statement; clear and effective strategies and supporting plans; the critical success factors and core processes; the appropriate management structure; employee...
