What is Total Quality Management (TQM)?

Total Quality Management, often abbreviated as TQM, is a comprehensive management approach aimed at achieving long-term success. It emphasizes continuous improvement and aligns all members of an organization from top management to frontline employees to ensure customer satisfaction.

What are the 4 steps of TQM?

The four main steps or stages of TQM, often referred to as the core components, are:

1. Plan: Identify an opportunity and plan for change.
2. Do: Implement the change on a small scale.
3. Check: Use data to analyze the results of the change and determine whether it made a difference.
4. Act: If the change was successful, implement it on a wider scale and continuously assess your results. If the change did not work, begin the cycle again.

What are the 7 pillars of TQM?

The seven pillars of TQM, often referred to as the seven basic principles or concepts, are:

1. Customer-focused: The primary focus should be on meeting and exceeding customer expectations.
2. Leadership: Top management should provide a vision, inspiration, and direction for quality improvement.
3. Involvement of People: Every employee must be involved and empowered to seek out improvements.
4. Process Approach: Processes should be managed and improved upon systematically.
5. Continuous Improvement: Organizations should continuously strive for better processes, products, and services.
6. Fact-based Decision Making: Decisions should be driven by accurate data and analysis, rather than assumptions.
7. Mutually Beneficial Supplier Relationships: Organizations and their suppliers should work together for mutual benefit.

What is TQM with a suitable example?

Toyota is often cited as the gold standard for TQM. Their commitment to continuous improvement is embedded in their culture, with practices like “Kaizen” (meaning “change for better”). Every employee, from top-level executives to factory floor workers, is encouraged to suggest ways to improve processes. This culture of consistent enhancement has made Toyota a world leader in quality and efficiency in the automobile industry.