Small Business Total Quality

Written specifically for small business managers, this book gives a practical step-by-step guide to the implementation of Total Quality Management (TQM). It will assist all small businesses from the recently established entrepreneur-based company employing a handful of people to businesses of 100 staff and above with an established management structure and position within the market place. This book will give practical help and early results and includes actual case studies of successful TQM implementation from a broad cross-section of small businesses.

This book shows senior management how to implement TQM with clear explanations of the principles behind it. It is an indispensable guide book for senior managers in all sections of industry and commerce, at all stages of putting into practice the quality improvement process.

Inhaltsangabe:Introduction: Total Quality Management (TQM) has already made its mark in history. Big players in major industries, such as Ford and Siemens, have already aligned their business and production processes to this holistic management concept. Over the past three decades there are more medium-sized companies applying TQM principles to their business. Quality has been important in helping companies gaining a competitive edge in globalized markets. TQM with its extensive set of methods aims to embed quality awareness among all departments of a company where work affects the quality of the products. There are thousands of articles and books written on how large and medium sized companies have successfully implemented of TQM. An extensive literature review and interviews of experts and owners of very small businesses (micro-businesses) indicate that this is the only industry where TQM systems have not yet been implemented. Although micro-businesses are pressured by their customers to achieve high levels of quality in their products, there is not enough research that addresses the issues of implementing TQM practices for micro-businesses. Scientific literature does not provide answers to crucial questions such as: - What methods of quality management are currently being in use in micro-businesses? - How could a TQM system be tailored to meet the needs in a micro-business environment? This thesis is part of a large-scale field study that recently has been launched by the Howe School of Technology Management at Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, NJ. The study aims to reveal answers to the questions listed above. This thesis forms the foundation for the subsequent field study. The main goals is to deploy a systematic TQM framework for micro-businesses that will be help micro-businesses understand how the quality management culture has an impact on a company s success. Additionally, this thesis aims to develop a questionnaire that will examine the validity of the framework and serve as basis for the field study. The focus is on very small manufacturers. First breakthroughs in quality management have been taken place in this industry. Thus we can dispose of more than 100 years of research results in this field. Furthermore it is the manufacturer who is used to the first-movers role in new quality management models another good reason for choosing this industry. Layout of This Thesis: After an exposure of the problem in [...]

This book is the first to seriously consider quality issues in smaller firms, based upon well-conducted research and careful theorizing. Subjects covered include: * the relevance of formal quality standards such as BS 5750 to small firms * definitions and implementations of 'quality' in a business context, from formal standards to Total Quality Management * interviews with a selected sample of over 150 owner-managers * detailed case studies of small firms * analysis of self-generated quality strategies * the variety of formal methods of quality control.

In this era of global competition, the demands of customers are growing, and the quest for quality has never been more urgent. Quality has evolved from a concept into a strategy for long-term viability. The third edition of Principles of Total Quality explains this strategy for both the service and manufacturing sectors. This edition addr

Human resource management is a particularly challenging role, both domestically and globally. This challenge can be viewed either as an opportunity or as a threat. As an opportunity, the principles and practices of total quality presented in this book can help human resource professionals or anyone who manages people, transform institutionalized mediocrity into organizational excellence. The focus of this book is on managing the difference TQ makes in human resources. Whereas the traditional nature and scope of responsibility for most human resource professionals has been that of staff support geared to administrative compliance, the total quality approach offered here reveals the keys to developing and sustaining commitment to world-class performance. These keys include strategic input and continual improvement of the human resource system to enhance internal and external customer satisfaction both now and in the future. The full meaning of these new TQ role demands is explored in light of the driving forces reshaping the HR environment into the 21st Century. In addition, this book offers practitioner assessment instruments, practical TQ tools, and specific implementation steps to take in order to make the TQ difference in managing human resources domestically and globally.

In this book leading experts including George Box, Noriaki Kano, Yoshio Kondo, John Oakland and James Harrington, analyse and document various aspects of Total Quality Management. Contributions range from discussions of the principles, strategy, culture, leadership, eduction and benchmarking to world class experience and achieving excellence both in the manufacturing and service industries. With over 100 contributions this book is an invaluable resource for the total quality managment journey. It will be of special interest to educationalists, academics, senior managers and directors, and quality practitioners from both the public and private sectors.