Achieving Total Quality Management in a South African Manufacturing Environment UNIVERSITY Rand Afrikaans University PROMOTER Prof
AL UALR E !ifs
MARI'MANUFAC 1 RR RRO
by
SAREL FREDERICK CERONIO
Thesis submitted in fulfilment of all the requirements for the degree
DOCTOR COMMERCII
in
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
in the
FACULTY OF ECONOMIC AND PS ANAGEtifiENT SCIENCES
at the
ND AFRIKAANS UNIVERSITY
j01-1ANNES URG PROMOTER: PROF. N. LESSING APRIL 1996 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
SYNOPSIS ii
SINOPSIS iv
LIST OF ACRONYMS vi
LIST OF FIGURES, GRAPHS AND TABLES vii
Chapter 1 ORIENTATION 1-1
Chapter 2 THE EVOLUTION AND DIMENSIONS OF TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT 2-11
Chapter 3 GURUS OF TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT 3-45
Chapter 4 REQUIREMENTS FOR TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT 4-127
Chapter 5 IMPLEMENTING TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT 5-189
Chapter 6 TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT AT EMSA (PTY) LTD 6-265
Chapter 7 TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT FOR THE YEAR 2000 7-305
BIBLIOGRAPHY Bib-351
(i) YNI PSIS NAME CERONIO, SF DEGREE D Corn (Business Management) TITLE Achieving Total Quality Management in a South African manufacturing environment UNIVERSITY Rand Afrikaans University PROMOTER Prof. N Lessing DATE April 1996
In recent years, the criticality of increased productivity and competitiveness has accelerated in step with global trends towards privatisation, marketisation, and democratisation, coupled with a more highly educated, more vocal and more demanding consumer market. At a time when the technological gap between South Africa, North America, Europe, and the Pacific Rim is shrinking, competitive boundaries are expanding and, as a consequence, consumers have a growing range of products from which to choose. Quality increasingly guides produce selection. Consumer spending patterns have also changed to reflect increased concern for durability, partially as a response to environmental concerns.
Increasing recognition of the inadequacies of traditional quality control functions to address the demand for higher quality products and services has launched a seminal transition to a more comprehensive, integrated approach to quality management. Total Quality Management (TQM) refers to the implementation of a "continuous improvement" process to address inefficiencies at all levels of the organisation.
There is no single theoretical formulation of the TQM approach nor any definitive short list of practices that are associated with it. It is the product of the work of such quality experts as Crosby, Deming, Juran, and Ishikawa. The writings of these Gurus, as well as characteristics typical of most successful TQM processes.
TQM is best viewed as a management philosophy which combines the teaching of Deming and Juran on statistical process control and group problem-solving processes with values concerned with quality and continuous improvement.
TQM is endorsed as a powerful vehicle in the transition from the traditional price focus to quality strategies driven by customer expectations. Improving quality and adopting a customer focused orientation are so fundamental that they must take root in the very essence of the organisation. To achieve ambitious quality goals, the TQM philosophy must permeate all aspects of organisational functioning, underscoring the criticality of human resource excellence to total quality processes. The TQM approach is frequently endorsed by the impressive results attributable to it. Marked improvements in productivity and efficiency, profits, customer satisfaction, management-employee relations, job satisfaction, morale, and reductions in costs, inventory, defects and inspection requirements are among an array of reported benefits to be derived from TQM initiatives.
The positive relationship between quality and productivity may be largely rooted in the involvement of all employees to execute quality agendas. The benefits of employee involvement from increased productivity, job satisfaction and performance to reduced absenteeism and turnover are well documented.
Great emphasis is placed on including all employees in the TQM culture. Employees are expected to take responsibility for quality in two important respects. They are expected to call attention to quality problems as they do their normal work. Perhaps more important, they are expected to accept the continuous improvement culture and look for ways to do their work better. They are also expected to look for ways in which the overall operation of the organisation can be improved to enhance customer service.
The most important overall focus of employee involvement concerns locating decisions at the lowest level possible in the organisation. This approach consistently advocates a bottom-up approach to management. Jobs or work at the lowest level are thought of as designed best when individuals or teams do a whole and complete part of an organisation's work process. In addition, it is argued that the individuals or teams should be given the power, information, and knowledge they need to work autonomously or independently of management control. The task of management is seen as one of enabling and empowering individuals or teams to function in an autonomous manner. Management is an enabler, culture setter, and supporter rather than a direction of employee action.
This study focuses on the development of the TQM philosophy, and the development of a TQM model to be used as reference in the design of a TQM process in a manufacturing environment. It also endeavours to formulate an implementation process that can be used as guideline for implementing TQM in an organisation.
Research has been based on literature studies, extensive experience in the workplace, and interaction with a wide variety of practitioners in the TQM environment.
The study concludes that South African organisations can address the issues prohibiting real economic growth by continuously improving every product and service produced through the involvement of an empowered workforce, operating in teams, with the objective of achieving optimum customer satisfaction in the long-term. Pail
NAA CERONIO, SF G A A D D Corn (Ondernemingsbestuur) MEL Verwesenliking van Totalegehaltebestuur in 'n Suid Afrikaanse vervaardigings omgewing (uit Engels vertaal) UNOVERSDTE1T Randse Afrikaanse Universiteit PROMOTOR Prof. N Lessing DATUM April 1996
In die jongste jare het die noodsaaklikheid van verhoogde produktiwiteit en mededingendheid teen dieselfde pas versnel as wereldtendense teenoor privatisering, markgerigtheid, en demokratisering. Hiermee gepaargaande is daar `n meer ontwikkelde, meer hoorbare verbruikersmark met verhoogde vereistes. Op `n tydstip wanneer die tegnologiese gaping tussen Suid-Afrika, Noord-Amerika, Europa, en die Stille Oseaan Randgebied besig is om te vernou, brei die grense van mededinging uit en as gevoig daarvan het verbruikers 'n toenemende verskeidenheid produkte om van te kies. Gehalte rig en beInvloed toenemend die keuse van produkte. Die bestedingspatrone van verbruikers het ook verander om die toenemende kiem op duursaamheid te weerspieel, gedeeltelik as 'n reaksie op omgewingsentimente.
Toenemende bewuswording van die tekortkominge in tradisionele gehaltebeheer- funksies om die vraag na beter gehalte produkte en dienste aan te spreek, het in oorgang na 'n meer omvattende, geIntegreerde benadering tot gehaltebestuur van stapel gestuur. Totalegehaltebestuur (hiema afgekort as TQM) volgens die internasionale gebruik) verwys na 'n proses van deurlopende verbetering om doeltreffendheid op alle vlakke van die organisasie aan te spreek.
Daar is geen enkele teoretiese forrnulering van die TQM-benadering of enige bondige lys van praktyke wat daarmee geassosieer kan word nie. TQM is die produk van die werk van kundiges van gehalte soos Crosby, Deming, Juran, en Ishikawa. Die werke van hierdie kenners, asook die toepassing van hul denkrigtings in baie organisasies wOreldwyd, maak dit moontlik om eienskappe kenmerkend van die meer suksesvolle TQM-prosesse te identifiseer.
TQM kan die beste beskryf word as 'n bestuursfilosofie wat die leerstellings van Deming en. Juran oor statistiese prosesbeheer en groep probleemoplossings- prosesse integreer met die waardes van gehalte en deurlopende verbetering.
TQM is beproef as 'n kragtige voertuig in die oorgang vanaf die tradisionele fokus op prys-na gehaltestrategiee aangegryp deur verbruikersverwagtinge. Verhoogde gehalte en die vestiging van 'n ingesteidheid wat op die verbruiker fokus is so fundamenteel dat dit in die wese van die organisasie inslag moet vind. Ten einde gehaltedoelwitte te bereik, moet die TQM-filosofie alle aspekte van organisatoriese fUnksionering deurdring, met nadruk op die belangrikheid van menslike hulpbronne by die totalegehaltebestuurproses.
(iv) Die TQM-benadering word dikwels beklemtoon deur die indrukwekkende resultate wat daaraan toegeskryf word. Merkbare verbeterings, enersyds ten opsigte van produktiwiteit en doeltreffendheid, winste, verbruikerstevredenheid, werkgewer- werknemer verhoudinge, werksbevrediging en moraal, en andersyds ten opsigte van vermindering in koste, voorraad, foute en inspeksievereistes is van die voordele wat uit die TQM-proses vooruitspruit.
Die positiewe verband tussen gehalte en produktiwiteit word grootliks gebaseer op die betrokkenheid van alle werknemers by die TQM-proses. Voordele wat werknemerbetrokkenheid teweegbring strek vanaf verhoogde produktiwiteit, werksbevrediging en werksprestasie tot die vermindering in afwesigheid en personeelomset, en is at volledig gedokumenteer.
Groot nadruk word daarop geplaas om alle werknemers by die TQM-kultuur in te sluit. Daar word van werknemers verwag om verantwoordelikheid vir gehalte op twee belangrike gebiede te aanvaar. Eerstens moet daar gelet word op probleme met gehalte tydens die normale verrigting van hul pligte. Moontlik van groter belang is dat daar van alle werknemers verwag word om deel te wees van die kultuur van deurlopende verbetering. Tweedens word daar van werknemers verwag om voortdurend op hoogte van nuwe neigings te wees ten einde die algehele funksionering van die organisasie te verbeter om sodoende klientebevrediging te verhoog.
Die belangrikste fokus van werknemerbetrokkenheid is om werknemers op die laagste hierargiese vlak te Iaat deelneem aan die besluitnemingsproses. Hierdie benadering vereis 'n onder-na-bo benadering tot die bestuursproses. Werk wat op die laagste viak verrig word, word slegs as sinvol beskou indien die individue of spanne betrokke is by 'n volledige deel van die werksproses. Die vereiste is dat die individue of spanne die bevoegdheid, kennis en inligting wat benodig word moet ontvang om die werk so selfstandig en onafhanklik moontlik van die beheer van topbestuur te verrig. Die taak van topbestuur is om werknemers in staat te stet en toe te rus om op 'n selfstandige wyse die werk te verrig. Topbestuur behoort 'n geleentheidskepper en ondersteuner te wees eerder as om die optrede van werkers in 'n spesifieke rigting te probeer dwing.
Hierdie studie sentreer in die ontwikkeling van die TQM-filosofie, asook op die fomiulering van 'n TQM-model wat gebruik kan word as raamwerk in die ontwerp van `n TQM-proses in 'n vervaardigingsomgewing. Dit streef ook na die formulering van `n implementeringsproses wat as riglyn gebruik kan word ten einde TQM in 'n organisasie te vestig.
Navorsing is gegrond op Iiteratuurstudies, uitgebreide ondervinding van die werksomgewing, asook wisselwerking met 'n wye verskeidenheid kenners op die gebied van TQM.
Met die studie is bevind dat Suid Afrikaanse organisasies knelpunte, wat ekonomiese groei negatief kan beInvloed, kan aanspreek deur die voortdurende verbetering van elke produk en diens deur die betrokkenheid van 'n behoorlik toegeruste werksmag, wat in 'n spanverband funksioneer, met die einddoel om optimale kliente- tevredenheid in die langtermyn te bewerkstellig.
(v)
F ONG ENVO ENT
LOST OF ACRONYMS
BS British Standards CEO Chief Executive Officer CQA Continuous Quality Advancement CTE Coefficient of Thermal Expansion HS&EP Health, Safety and Environmental Protection ISO International Standards Organisation JIT Just-in-Time JUSE Japanese Union of Scientists and Engineers LWC Lost Workday Case MLL Minimum Level of Living NACA National Association of Clean Air NOSA National Occupational Safety Association 01P Operational Improvement Programme PCA Philip Crosby Associates PMR Professional Marketing Review QFD Quality Function Development R & D Research and Development RDP Reconstruction and Development Programme SABS South African Bureau of Standards SDE Statistical Design of Experiments SES Statistical Experimental Strategy SPC Statistical Process Control SQC Statistical Quality Control TQ Total Quality TQM Total Quality Management UHP Ultra High Powered
(vi) LIST OF FIGURES, G PHS, AND TABLES
CH PTER 2
Figure 2.1 The evolution of Total Quality Management 2-19 Figure 2.2 Total Quality Management: Its components 2-23 Figure 2.3 Leadership styles 2-40
CHAPTER 3
Figure 3.1 The quality improvement process 3-55 Table 3.2 The four absolutes of quality management 3-56 Table 3.3 The quality improvement process 3-60 Table 3.4 Salient characteristics of Crosby's approach to TQM 3-71, 72 Table 3.5 Deming's fourteen points 3-76 Table 3.6 Salient characteristics of Deming's approach to TQM 3-101 Table 3.7 Salient characteristics of Ishikawa's approach to TQM 3-111, 112 Table 3.8 Interrelation among Juran's quality parameters 3-116 Figure 3.9 Juran's spiral of quality 3-117 Table 3.10 Salient characteristics of Juran's approach to TQM 3-124
CHAPTER 4
Figure 4.1 Total Quality Management model 4-132 Figure 4.2 Quality management 4-136 Figure 4.3 An operational definition of quality for products 4-149 Figure 4.4 Customer satisfaction framework 4-150 Figure 4.5 Levels of customers' expectations 4-152 Figure 4.6 Work process model 4-159 Figure 4.7 Six step process improvement model 4-165 Figure 4.8 Deming's PDCA wheel 4-167
Figure 4.9 Continuous improvement: The only way out 4-173 Table 4.10 Benefits of quality circles to management 4-180 Table 4.11 Benefits of quality circles to members 4-181 Figure 4.12 Breakthrough improvement in performance 4-183
CH A PTER 5 Figure 5.1 Eight critical factors for TQM implementation 5-195 Table 5.2 Leadership styles and team maturity 5-198
CH PIER 6 Table 6.1 EMSA RDP policy 6-276 Table 6.2 EMSA health, safety and environmental protection policy 6-278 Graph 6.3 Lost time injury frequency 6-278 Table 6.4 Agenda for monthly HS&EP meetings 6-279 Table 6.5 EMSA quality circle policy 6-285, 286 Table 6.6 EMSA vision 6-290 Table 6.7 EMSA vision practices 6-291 Table 6.8 EMSA values and practices 6-292 Table 6.9 EMSA Total quality management policy 6-293 Figure 6.10 EMSA team structure 6-294
CHAPTER 7 Figure 7.1 STAR system 7-332 Figure 7.2 Team development continuum 7-337 Figure 7.3 Progression of empowerment and responsibilities 7-337
rry
RON ENT
CHAPTER 1
1.1 CKGROUND TO THE STUDY 1-2
1.2 ST TEMENT OF PROBLEM 1 -4
1.3 RESEARCH OBJECTIVE 1 -5
1.4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY 1 -7
1.5 CONSTRAINTS TO THE STUDY 1-8
1.6 STRUCTURE OF THE STUDY 1 -9
1 - 1 NEM
U ON
CHAPTER 1
0 RISC
1.1 B CKGROUND TO THE STUDY
Total Quality Management is a key strategy of many of the world's leading companies. These companies have selected it as a vehicle of change: changing the company culture, operating style and attitudes during the period of transition from where a company is now towards its vision of where it wants to be. It enables a company to improve its relative market share by a radical but co-ordinated approach to satisfying customer expectations.
Total Quality Management is seen as an enabling philosophy, ie. creating the right environment and correcting attitudes to enable a good company to become a world class company. It is not a programme but a process of continuous improvement (Neeson 1989: 34-35) which rolls quality, productivity and cost reduction together to achieve quality products and services at the lowest cost.
The whole Total Quality Management action comes down to an enormous effort for total mobilisation in renewing the company's philosophy, eliminate all imperfections and keep striving for improvement (Beheydt 1989: 354).
The process comprises a comprehensive set of management philosophies, management tools and improvement methods, including the following: customer orientation, the empowerment of employees, participative management, data-based decisions, continuous improvement, a "process" orientation, and a set of quantitative tools for process improvement. It is a
1 - 2 most important tool for achieving in-depth competitiveness and company wide cost control and it works because it benefits the employers, the employees and the external customers of the organisation.
To achieve Total Quality Management, the process must meet five goals (Klein 1991: 83-84):
Customer focus - the voice of the customer is clearly heard throughout the organisation - everyone knows what is required to satisfy internal and external customer needs.
Focused resources - all significant processes and systems are in control and all resources are targeted to satisfy all customer needs.
Rewards system - real rewards and incentives are structured so that achieving process control and customer satisfaction result in benefits for all the employees of the organisation.
Continuous improvement - a system is in place to continuously improve all processes in the direction of further meeting customers' present and future needs.
CEO commitment - the CEO is visibly committed to the Total Quality Management process and his/her leadership creates an environment conducive to continuous improvement.
Masaaki Imai (1986) quotes Michael Halay, a professor at Vanderbilt University's Owen Graduate School of Management, that Total Quality Management is applied in Japan as the key corporate strategy:
'To be implemented, the strategy must become concrete to everyone in the organisation. Therefore, long term strategies must be translated into short term plans and objectives which are clear and actionable.
"The principles of Total Quality Management provide the necessary
1 - 3 structural framework to help both the employees and management communicate and decide how to improve the quality and productivity of their work.
'Thus, Total Quality Management as a corporate strategy inevitably involves such areas as improving communication and labour relations, as well as revitalizing organisational structures.
"But above all, most importantly, Total Quality Management as a corporate strategy must deal with people. Its net results are more productive workers, more efficient managers, improved communication, and a more effective organization. Better and more competitive products are the result of better people and better management, and not vice versa" (Imai 1986: 74-76).
South Africa's output per capita is judged to be about one sixth of Switzerland's, one fifth of the USA's, a quarter of Japan's and a third of the UK's. Productivity must be increased not just to give us a bigger "economic cake", but also to make South Africa a world class competitor.
Productivity is not the only area that demands attention. It goes hand-in- hand with quality - an equally critical weapon in the global business war, and one that will become increasingly important as companies make the constant improvement of everything they do a way of life.
One way of achieving the required growth in productivity in all its consequences is by adopting the Total Quality Management principles as a management policy. Regardless of what the process is called, eg. Kaizen, Sasol Quality Improvement Process, Integrated Quality or Strategic Quality Management, it must have a focused goal to constantly improve the quality of products or services, to increase productivity and to improve the quality and application of human and material resources. In short, to take the path towards excellence and perfection for the benefit of the company, its employees and owners and its clients or customers.
1.2 STATEMENT OF PROBLEM
Many South African companies have wasted untold amounts of money in the past years on programmes with themes of excellence, customer care, productivity or quality. Typically these projects are launched with key
1 - 4 people being sent off for training or indoctrination; badges, buttons and posters appear all over the work-place; the CEO makes a video to explain the company vision; the "shared values" are printed on laminated pocket cards, but all too soon, managers' attention drifts, people get busy with "real work" - and the project is dead.
The reason for failure is twofold:
. the attempt to change the old, inherited ways is treated by management as a programme, a "theme-for-the-month" and not as a process of continuous, never ending improvement aimed at new levels of performance;
° the lack of a set of clear, generic guidelines for implementation of the improvement process.
Participative management is one of the cornerstones of the Total Quality Management philosophy. The active involvement and participation of all employees in problem solving, cost reduction efforts and operational efficiency improvements are considered essential elements for the achievement of continuous improvement.
The Total Quality Management process may serve as an example to organisations endeavouring to improve their performance in their quest towards delighting their customers. A detailed analysis of this process is thus called for in order to provide the necessary guidelines for organisations to gain a competitive edge over their competitors in the global market during this historic decade of the 1990's.
1.3 RESE RCH OBJECTIVE
The overall objective of this study is to research the implementation and advantages of the Total Quality Management process to contribute to
1 - 5 knowledge on Total Quality Management in the South African manufacturing environment.
Secondary objectives are:
Objective 1: To research the evolution and dimensions of the Total Quality Management Philosophy.
Objective 2: To do research on the philosophies of the Gurus of Total Quality Management
Objective 3: To do research on the requirements for the successful implementation of a Total Quality Management process.
Objective 4: To investigate the Total Quality Management implementation process.
Objective 5: To research the Total Quality Management process practised at EMSA (Pty) Ltd.
Objective 6: To research the requirements of Total Quality Management in manufacturing organisations in South Africa, approaching the year 2000.
This study provides a guideline to organisations contemplating the implementation of a Total Quality Management process. It may also motivate further extended research on the subject of continuous improvement towards organisational excellence. Other researchers will be able to make use of this study due to the exploratory and reconnoitre nature of the study. It will in particular form a valuable basis for further empirical studies, concerning the concepts of Total Quality Management within the strategic management process. In addition, the findings, conclusions and recommendations within the study may serve as a guide to practitioners, for
1 - 6 achieving congruency between the desired excellence and strategy of their organisations.
1.4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Courses and seminars, local and international, which were attended during a period of 10 years have added theoretical knowledge to practical on-the- job experience in the Total Quality Management area.
Contact was also made with colleagues in other companies and through the exchange of ideas, knowledge and experience, an in-depth insight in the application of the theory at different organisations was gained.
Numerous books, articles and programmes were studied in order to develop a data base of available relevant information. This literature survey was done using the following information systems:
The library and library data base of the RAU;
The library and library data base of UNISA;
The computer based information system at the CSIR, called "Infotech";
The EMSA Quality Management Systems library.
The literature study forms a major component of this study and plays an important role in the achievement of the objectives (objectives 1, 2, 3,4, 5 & 6) of the study. The literature on Total Quality Management is not confined to a single field or discipline, but covers a wide spectrum of research conducted within the various fields and related disciplines.
The literature study provides an orientation to the research already conducted within the field of study, as well as a perspective on the most
1 - 7 current research results and findings applicable to Total Quality Management, within the context of strategic management.
A cross pollination of ideas and perceptions takes place during the literature study, in that the ideas, views and perceptions held by various researchers and writers are compared, evaluated and applied, with regard to the concepts concerned.
A qualitative study of the Total Quality Management process at EMSA was conducted to gain an empirical basis for the practical application of the relevant theories and philosophies.
A comparison between the information obtained from the literature study and the Total Quality Management process at EMSA was undertaken. The objectives previously formulated for this study provided an unifying framework for the syste-matic evaluation and analysis of the information collected. The information tends to be descriptive and not statistical in nature and therefore an interpretive-deductive approach is used for analysing the relevant information obtained.
1.5 CONSTRANTS TO THE STUDY
Perspicacious observers of the growth of literature on Total Quality Management in South African context will have noticed that the majority of relevant literature concentrates on either quality or management. The literature on the concepts as individual entities is extensive in extent, but the literature integrating the two concepts into a synergistic entity is limited. This acted as a constraint on the literature research and extensive use of international publications was required to achieve the objectives defined previously.
Although the extent of the study is limited to the manufacturing environment and excludes all services as well as all non-profit making organisations, its
1 - 8
generic concept may be applied by any type of organisation.
Proof of advantages experienced by practising Total Quality Management principles is limited to one organisation, EMSA (Pty) Ltd, due to the availability of confidential information.
1.6 STRUCTURE OF THE STUDY
The structure of the study is related to the objectives to be achieved and the method of study. The underlying structure of the study follows a movement from gaining a clear understanding of the concepts and terminology, to the requirements for the successful implementation of a Total Quality Management process, the implementation process and the advantages of a Total Quality Management process as illustrated by the achievements of EMSA.
The structure of the study follows the following format:
Chapter 2: The descriptions and termincAogy of key concepts and terms used in this study are analysed and defined. This provides a common frame of reference for the rest of the study.
Chapter 3: A discussion of the views of four accredited Total Quality Management "Gurus": Crosby, Deming, Ishikawa and Juran.
Chapter 4: The requirements for the successika iuvvp pementation of a Total Quality Management process are described.
Chapter 5: A framework for the Total Quality Management imp5e- mentation process is described.
1 - 9 Chapter 6: This chapter deals with the Total Quality Management process at EMSA and illustrates the advantages of practicing this philosophy.
. Chapter 7: The study is concluded with specific recommendations to its practical implication for the managements of organisations striving towards customer satisfaction and organisational success in the South African environment, approaching the year 2000.
1-10
CH PIER 2
DOM fENSION.
SYNOPSIS 2-12
LOST OF FIGURES, GRAPHS ND TABLES 2-13
2.1 INTRODUCTION 2-14
2.2 DEFINITION OF QUALITY 2-14
2.3 TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT EVOLUTION 2-17
2.3.1 Operator Quality Control 2-17
2.3.2 Foreman Quality Control 2-17 2.3.3 Inspection Quality Control 2-18 2.3.4 Statistical Quality Control 2-18 2.3.5 Total Quality Control 2-18 2.3.6 Total Quality Management 2-19
2.4 DIMENSIONS OF TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT 2-20 2.4.1 The tools for continuous improvement 2-24 2.4.2 The philosophy of customer focus 2-29 2.4.3 The leadership styles for TQM 2-36
2.4.3.1 One-dimensional leadership model 2-37 2.4.3.2 Two-dimensional leadership model 2-39 2.4.3.3 Leadership styles 2-40
2.4: 4 Conclusion 2-44
2.5 SUMMARY 2-44
2-11 TUNING COMMENT
CHAPTER 2 LENT
SYNOPSOS
Defining Total Quality Management (TQM) is something like defining love. Most people fall back on gut feelings, reasoning that they know when it is there and when it is not. As in matters of the heart, there is no quality definition that satisfies everyone. Misconceptions about TQM abound throughout the organisation. What is really needed is a definition of TQM that can be used as a common form of communication throughout the organisation.
A major misconception about TQM is that it is confined to the product, and therefore to the manufacturing process. Nothing could be further from the truth. The customer's perception of TQM in an organisation includes more than the satisfaction obtained from the primary product or service. Their view of the organisation that provides the basic need will include how their original inquiry was handled on the telephone, the method and timing of delivery, up to the timeliness and accuracy of the invoice. Clearly, to delight the customer, TQM must be extended to all administrative areas.
Management has the tendency to believe that increased productivity, efficiency or quality, will be achieved mainly through investment in technology. The reality is quite the contrary. Quality is achieved through people. People work in processes and people manage processes. To effectively manage TQM, the organisation has to work through the chain of people who work in or on processes. "People", therefore, is not just a polite term for the workers in the organisation. The people chain, and therefore TQM, both start and eventually finish with the CEO. He determines the direction, personality, and leadership style of the organisation. A culture, conducive for TQM implementation, cannot be achieved without the commitment and visible leadership of the CEO.
It is important to realise that variation is a natural part of life. It is often quoted that between 85 to 95 percent of all the causes of variation are random variations built into processes, and only a small minority are attributable to unusual occurrences. Continuous improvement means working at reducing variation levels where customer delight can be achieved.
To summarise the above, and to that extent the contents of this chapter, an evolved definition for TQM is proposed:
"Total Quality Management is a management philosophy that seeks continuous improvement in all processes, products and services of an organisation. It requires a solid customer focus, a preventative approach to quality, a profound understanding of variation, decisions based on measurement, and the creative involvement of employees at all levels".
2-12
ENT
ENT
CH PIER 2 ENSIO EH ENT
FIGURES, G PHS AND TABLES
Figure 2.1 The evolution of Total Quality Management 2-19 Figure 2.2 Total Quality Management: Its components 2-23
Figure 2.3 Leadership styles 2-40
2-13
N A
CHAPTER 2
TH PIM ENSIGN
2.1 INTRODUCTION
Good business, which in turn means general prosperity and employment, is not something which comes about by chance. It is a result of the skill with which business in general is managed - and business in general is the sum of the quality of the business units.
Total Quality Management (TOM) challenges all forms of performance and industrial relationships. It is an unique concept in as much as it is not a technique or a tool, it is not simply a mechanistic approach, nor is it a behavioural concept or a purely philosophical approach to life. It is all of these combined. Total Quality Management represents a totally new approach to industrial understanding of quality and to the work ethic. Total Quality Management represents an approach that is dramatically opposed to the turgid, hierarchical, blame-led, conflict ridden industrial cultures of the past and present. It represents both a social revolution in the workplace and a rigorously effective approach to professionalism and success.
2.2 DEFINITION OF MI LITY
To really understand the philosophy behind the concept of Total Quality Management, it is necessary to define the term 'Quality'.
To many people, quality means goodness, or luxury, or glossiness, or weight, or price, or conformance to specifications, or fitness for use. In addition, quality is often used to signify the relative worth of things in phrases such as "good quality"
2-14 or "bad quality" (Crosby 1979:14-18).
Quality is a subjective term which means different things to different people in different situations. The Webster's Dictionary and the Oxford Dictionary both define quality as "degree of excellence". In addition to this definition, industrialists, academics and consultants have created a myriad of alternatives. According to Feigenbaum (1983:7), quality is based upon the customer's actual experience with the product or service, measured against his or her requirements - stated or unstated, conscious or merely sensed, technically operational or entirely subjective. He continues to define product and service quality as being the total composite product and service characteristics of marketing, engineering, manufacturing and maintenance through which the product and service in use will meet the expectations of the customer (Feigenbaum 1983:7).
Crosby (1979:14), in his definition on quality, expands on the above definition by defining quality as conformance to requirements. These requirements are determined through the interaction of a number of parties. The final user of the product or service has certain needs and expectations which must be satisfied. The design and production departments within the organisation are responsible for designing and producing a product or service which meets the agreed to requirements of the final user. To achieve this, all set production and design requirements will need to be constantly met, and even exceeded, to ensure complete customer satisfaction.
In a similar manner to Crosby, Ishikawa (1985:45-46) proposes that customer requirements are the point of departure when defining quality. Customer requirements, once accurately recorded, are translated into important final product control characteristics that are to be deployed through the product design, development, processing and production control system. He refers to these two processes as "quality of design" and "quality of conformance", while Deming (1982:264) refers to them as "quality of design" and "quality of production" respectively. Any discrepancy between quality of design and quality of conformance results in defects and/or rework, which results in cost increases and
2-15 waste generation. Quality thus incorporates reliability, serviceability, maintain- ability and overall economy at which a product or service, which satisfies the needs of the final user, is produced.
Townsend (1986:4-5) seems to agree substantially with Ishikawa, Feigenbaum, Crosby and Deming, in that he believes that any definition of quality must cover two distinct, overlapping, interrelated types of quality - "quality in fact" and "quality in perception". When a product or service meets the expectations of the customer it then achieves "quality in perception". According to Townsend (1986:6), even if a product is manufactured to exact internal specifications ("quality in fact") it is unlikely to be a success in the market place if it does not meet the quality expectations of the customer.
Juran (1988 b:2.4) defines quality as "fitness for use". Fitness for use is the extent to which a product or service successfully serves the needs of the user, during usage. Fitness for use is determined by those features of the product which the user can recognise as beneficial to him, and is judged "as seen by the user" and not by the manufacturer. He notes, however, that this definition needs to be qualified, as there are many uses and users. For this reason, a product must possess multiple elements of "fitness for use". Juran hence classifies quality characteristics into categories known as parameters of "fitness for use". The major parameters are according to Juran (1988 b:2.9-2.11):
Quality of Design (specifications);
Quality of Conformance (conformance to design specifications);
The Abilities (availability, reliability, maintainability);
Field Service (after sales service).
Due to the central role occupied by the satisfaction of customer needs in defining quality, Feigenbaum (1983:7-8) and Ishikawa (1985:55) hold that quality is not a
2-16
static term. They believe that it evolves and changes as the customer's definition of quality evolves and changes over time. This means that quality standards need to be continually reviewed, revised and improved.
The above definitions of quality bring to the fore a number of important elements which define quality. First, customer perceptions and expectations play a central role in determining what constitutes a quality product or service. Second, the quality of a product or service is influenced by the extent to which the production process is capable of meeting the requirements defined by customer perceptions and formalised in the design process. Third, as a consequence of the fact that customer perceptions and expectations are central to defining quality requirements, and that these are continually undergoing modification, quality standards need to be continually reviewed, revised and improved to ensure customer satisfaction.
2.3 TOT L QU A-1\ LOTS Fifi NAGENIENT EVOLUTOON
According to Feigenbaum (1983:15-17) major changes in the approach to quality work have taken place at approximately twenty year intervals.
2.3.1 Operator Quallty Control
The first step in the development of the quality field was inherent, in most industrialised countries, in the manufacturing field up to the end of the nineteenth century. During this period, which Feigenbaum (1983:15) calls "operator quality control", one, or a very small number of employees was responsible for the production of an entire product and was hence solely responsible for the quality of the product.
2.3.2 Foreman Quality Control
The early 1900's saw the advent of the modern factory concept, whereby a number of employees all performing similar tasks were grouped so that they could
2-17
be supervised by a foreman, who then assumed .responsibility for the quality of their work. This Feigenbaum (1983:15) calls "foreman quality control".
2.3.3 Inspection Quality Control
During World War I, the manufacturing process became more complex as a result of increased technology, complexity and output volumes of the machinery built. This resulted in many more subordinates reporting to each production foreman. Due to the production foreman's inability to control the product quality of all the employees reporting to him, full-time inspectors made an entrance into the "inspection quality control" period (Feigenbaum 1983:15).
2.3.4 Statistical Quality Control
Inspection quality control peaked during the 1900's and 1930's in the large manufacturing organisations. This process, however, was unable to cope with the tremendous mass requirements of World War II, due to the time consuming nature of an extensive and detailed inspection process. This fourth phase, which Feigenbaum (1983:16) calls "statistical quality control", was in effect an extension of the inspection phase, and amounted to making the inspection process in the large organisations more efficient. Inspection was now carried out with the aid of statistical sampling methods. The most significant contribution of this method of quality control was that it provided sample inspection, rather than 100 percent inspection as done previously. The concept of quality control, however, remained restricted to production areas.
2.3.5 Total uality Control
Shortcomings of the above quality control process marked the advent of the fifth step, in the late 1970's, which Feigenbaum (1983:16) calls "total quality control". This step involved the development of specific decision-making and operating frameworks which were effective enough to take suitable action on the quality control findings. This total quality framework made it possible to review decisions
2-18 regularly rather than occasionally and to take control action at the manufacturing or supplier source and to stop production when necessary. Further, this framework provided the structure into which the early quality control techniques could later be joined by the many additional techniques of quality control.
2.3.6 Total LoaMy Management
Still, under the above process, quality standards were not as high as required, and the cost of quality was unacceptably high. The reason postulated for this was the failure of quality control to be integrated into every aspect of the organisation. Quality needed to be something which every employee was committed to and responsible for, as opposed to something which had to be controlled and ensured through inspection. The 1980's saw the advent of Total Quality Management, with its emphasis on defect prevention, and the involvement of the entire organisation in the quality improvement process (Ishikawa 1985:20). Figure 2.1 illustrates the evolution of Total Quality Management.
Figure 2.1 The evolution of Total Quality Management
ro-rft.t_ QUALITY rNAAPJACWENIENIT
rr40,11-...1- QUALITY IC c=. pa,- stc:. e_
• Isrr"-T- ust-r tc /mi_i
IirasF•mc-ricaPal
IF OR E %RAM I
, pOPEF4.0c1,01121
1900 1918 1937 1960 1980
Source: Feigenbaum 1983:16
2-19 2.4 DIMENSIONS OF TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT
Historically, quality control consists of the following (Feigenbaum 1983:44; Ishikawa 1985:77-78; Juran 1988 b:4.17):
inspecting the final product against a set of agreed requirements or standards. Quality is seen as a function of the extent of inspection, necessitating a high ratio of inspectors to workers. Due to its size and importance, the inspection department is made an independent department and its authority is enhanced;
the existence of an independent inspection department effectively means that the responsibility for quality is centralised, and removed from its source;
quality is seen as a function of worker aptitude, and not the system;
the attitude that mechanisation, combined with a high degree of job specialisation will result in high productivity, low costs, satisfied workers and high quality.
A number of inadequacies of this approach have been identified (Crosby 1984:7; Ishikawa 1985:77-78; Juran 1988 a:24). The more prominent of them include:
the process of information feedback, so central to total quality improvement, from the central quality control department to the point of production, is a time consuming and inefficient one;
because quality is treated as a post production inspection function, it is only addressed on completion of the product or service;
quality is obtained at high cost and loss of productivity;
2-20 a "fire fighting" approach to problem solving is adopted, which results in short term solutions at the expense of long term improvement;
departments became autonomous units solely concerned with their own welfare and not that of the organisation as a whole;
department managers are judged on the extent to which they meet departmental goals, and these goals (with some exceptions) continue to perpetuate deficiencies of the past. No provision is made to determine if the existing processes are the most effective and efficient;
the importance of the human element to the quality improvement process is underestimated.
Total Quality Management (TQM) goes far beyond the philosophy and practices of quality control and quality assurance. It is a strategy which is concerned with changing the fundamental beliefs, values and culture of the organisation, harnessing the enthusiasm of participation by everyone, whether manufacturing or service oriented, toward an overall ideal of "right first time" (Atkinson & Naden 1989:6). All actions must be focused in an enormous effort of total mobilisation in renewing the company's philosophy, avoiding all imperfections and striving for continuous improvement.
There appears to be no universally accepted definition for the concept TQM. The various definitions attributed to the concept vary in content and context. Each definition adds to the overall conceptual understanding of the concept, as the various definitions tend to introduce new dimensions and components to the philosophy of TQM.
In recent years, there has been an increasing interest in developing improved "quality" in a broad range of activities covering not only a wide spectrum of industries in the manufacturing sector but increasingly also in the broad spectrum of both the public and private service sectors. This interest arises from the
2-21 realisation that TQM is a generic methodology with universal application that can be exploited in fields as diverse as the development of an engineering product, the sale and delivery of pizza, and the delivery of financial services by a bank.
One of the important elements of TQM is that of continuous improvements throughout all stages of any organisation's activities that leads to the final delivered "product", i.e. continuous improvement is sought in the planning, development and application of all activities. Irrespective of the nature of the organisation, whether it be built on innovation, efficiency or effectiveness, and no matter what type of "process" is managed (static, risk or change), TQM can offer major benefits.
During the past 50 years, TQM has been developed and practised in Japan very successfully. However, it is nevertheless still unknown as such in Japan. This name has been given to Japanese management practice by Western scholars who, for the last 15 years, have started to pay close attention to the Japanese system (Fakuda 1986:16; Keys & Miller 1984:342; Koontz 1980:175).
In the late seventies, when U.S. companies realised they faced effective and strong competition from Japan, top executives from the USA (mainly automotive and electronics industries) visited Japan to see for themselves the so-called Japanese industrial "miracle". They had assumed that very sophisticated and advanced machinery was the reason for such successful manufacturing performance but, instead, they found relatively very old U.S.-made equipment being used. From observations and discussions with their counterparts they also realised that Japanese managers emphasised product quality through participative management dedicated to continuous improvement. Following numerous studies, several attempts were made to transfer and implement these Japanese management practices in North America but difficulties were encountered. It was later realised that every case should be considered to be unique and, therefore, special care should be taken for the implementation of those practices depending on the nature and type of processes involved and products produces (Kono 1982:91; Sethi 1984:64).
2-22 In reality, these successful Japanese management practices were all "borrowed" from earlier Western initiatives and have been further developed in Japan during the post-war period. Viewed from a North American perspective, this Japanese management system that is now known as TQM appears to be a complex system of several innovative and interfunctioning disciplines, including management, psychology, statistics and engineering and scientific expertise. However, the field can be more conveniently split into three groups that are classified as: the new tools, a new philosophy and a new style of management, as outlined in figure 2.2.
Figure 2.2 Total Quality Management: its components
Customer Satisfaction
Customer defines quality
- Staff- is the most valuable asset
Team work ES SDE OFD SQC Drive fear out SPC JIT CQA Prevent problems Benchmarking Eliminate waste Pareto theory Reduce unreliability Cause-effect diagram Resolve conflicts Distributions, etc.
Source: Pouskouleli & Wheat 1992: 309
The successful implementation of TQM requires that all three groups be interlinked and interact extensively. Implementation of one or two of them may result in some improvement but the final product or process will not be optimised. It will remain on a weak foundation.
The "new" tools are in reality old tools being used in a new way (Wheeler & Chambers 1994:7). Some of them have been developed and studied back at the turn of the century by the Europeans, Pareto and Fisher. Unfortunately, initial efforts to introduce and implement them in Western industries were not successful. However, the same tools were later readily accepted and subsequently modified by the Japanese to be exploited more in production than in research (Taguchi 1987:76-79).
2-23 The new philosophy that arose in Japan stems from a combination of several factors including economic, political and cultural as the most predominant. The Japanese focus on quality resulted from the need for customer satisfaction in all activities and the need to beat foreign competition. More importantly, these same factors encouraged the manufacturer to seek the input of their customers in directly defining "quality". In return, this exercise confirmed to management that the source of "quality" arises not only from the mechanical process but also depends heavily on "the staff. Even with old equipment, quality products can be produced with committed, quality-conscious staff.
A new management style is also required to encourage the extensive interaction and exploitation of the new tools and the new philosophy that must interact and be dedicated to customer satisfaction through the continuous improvement of quality. This "new style" was also introduced to the Japanese by Western management teachers after the war (Cole 1980 :22).
Some of the cultural aspects of Japanese life were incorporated into the management system to produce what TOM adherents are now calling participative management (Pascale & Athos 1981:16; Ishikawa 1985:126).
It can be appreciated that TOM is more than a "quality" revolution and that is has to be looked upon as such so that careful and committed implementation can eventually improve both the process (a service or a manufacturing operation) as well as the product. These three components of TOM are examined separately below.
2.4.1 The tools for continuous improvement
As stated earlier, the "new tools" are old. Their roots can be traced back to the beginning of civilisation when the ancient Egyptians, Babylonians and Romans introduced "quality measurements" such as taxes and polls. As a result of these developments, the science of statistics was born.
2-24 From the late 1800's to the early 1900's, European and American statisticians and mathematicians introduced a number of new concepts and ideas, some of which are the basis for the Statistical Design of Experiments (SDE) which constitutes the backbone of the "new tools" of present-day TQM practice (Box & Draper 1986:71; Box, Hunter & Hunder 1978:27; Ishikawa 1985:134; McLean & Anderson 1984:121;).
Irrespective of the activity in either the service or the manufacturing industry, every process (activity) is influenced and affected by a number of factors. From experience, it is assumed that some factors are more important than others - this has been shown at the turn of the century by an Italian economist, Vilfredo Pareto (1848-1923), who observed that 90 percent of wealth is in the hands of 10 percent of the population (Schonberger 1985:282). Using SDE it is possible to screen out of many potential influences the few vitally important factors which affect the quality of the product (be it a typed letter, a filing system, decision making, manufactured goods or R & D).
The most important task for any manager is to use available resources in the most effective and efficient way. This requires that Statistical Experimental Strategy (SES) be interlinked with SDE which requires answers to a few extremely important questions before any, project starts, e.g. how many trials are needed, under what conditions, how much will it cost, what equipment is needed, what human resources are required, how long will it take, when will it start, etc. In other circumstances, certain external constraints may preclude the use of all the needed resources In those cases, the combination of SDE and SES will indicate the best way to perform the task under such constraints. While many readers would argue that answering such questions is a normal part of the strategic planning of any project, it is highly unlikely that the resources will be used to maximum efficiency without SDE and SES: far too many projects are still conducted using the old inefficient (and potentially misleading) one-fact-at-a-time approach.
An equally important requirement is to also select the quality characteristics which will satisfy customers' requests for and perceptions of "quality". This requires that
2-25 a quality characteristic measurement be identified which will quantify this "quality". This exercise not only answers the above questions in a quantitative manner but also indicates with confidence exactly what will be learned after the analysis of the data obtained from the experimental work. Just as importantly, it indicates what can not be learned from a particular experimental design before the work is conducted, i.e. a new design may be required, or more work, or different resources.
Imagine for a moment that it is necessary to screen eight factors that according to experience are thought to influence the quality of a manufactured widget. In order to find the effects of all possible combinations of these factors, 256 experiments will be required. By exploiting experience, SDE and SES it will be possible to come to an equivalent conclusion by doing only 16 well-selected experiments. The increased efficiency and savings in time and resources are clearly considerable (Box & Draper 1986:79; Hicks 1964:16).
Following the screening exercise which may reveal, for example, that only three factors are important in producing a quality widget, a second study is undertaken using only the three important factors and a model is developed from which optimised conditions can be identified. This results in a process and a product which will be accepted by the customer as a quality product.
Furthermore, it is possible to identify factors which affect the magnitude of the quality (average) as well as those affecting the variation (standard deviation). Clearly, by controlling these factors it is possible to control the average quality of the product as well as the quality variation. This approach has been used in Japan for more than 45 years and, as a result, the quality of their products is not only on a targeted value but also within a very narrow range of specifications - much narrower than that demanded by the customer, i.e. the product has quality "built-in".
There are several other benefits from the use of SDE apart from being the most efficient and effective way of studying any system. For example, the need for a
2-26 concise and carefully planned design requires the support staff, the project leader, research manager, and any others involved to participate .in a brainstorming session together with other colleagues possibly from other divisions in the company. This exercise will eventually build-up the necessary links which are important for the formation of an effective team (Kinlaw 1991:2-4).
Several other tools, such as Histograms, Cause & Effect Diagrams, Pareto Diagrams, Just-in-Time (JIT), Bench marking and Statistical Quality Control (SQC), are very important in manufacturing and R & D as well as in any other type of process (Wheelers & Chambers 1994:31, 288, 293, 303). Two other very widely used and important methods are Statistical Process Control (SPC) and Quality Function Deployment (QFD) (Owen 1989:3). Of these various tools, SPC is probably the most commonly encountered.
Statistical Process Control (SPC) aims at achieving good quality during manufacture through prevention rather than detection. It is concerned with controlling the process (or machine) which makes the product. This means that the process (or machine) which produces the product is inspected and controlled rather than inspecting the final product. This is really proactive management - inspecting and controlling the process, rather than reactive management - inspecting the product after manufacturing. SPC is undertaken through the use of control charts on which the performance of the process is plotted. If the process starts to go haywire it can be stopped in good time before many or any defectives are produced.
Every process has natural variation (Deming 1982:354). In other words, it is impossible to make any product with absolute consistency. The inconsistency will be caused by chance variations, however small, in, perhaps, the material, tool wear, positioning of a piece on a lathe, speed of the machine, start-up period, actions by the operator, and so on. These are called common causes (Deming 1982:310). This variation can be measured and, using statistics, its spread can be predicted. It turns out that the spread follows a particular pattern, known as the normal distribution (Levin 1987:236), irrespective of the type of process, so long
2-27 as there are no "special events" taking place. The special events are assignable to unusual or unexpected changes or events, which may cause defects to be produced. A special event may be an untrained operator, tool or bearing failure, a change in the type of material. The spread of a normal distribution can be used to calculate control limits. It turns out that within these limits (which equal plus or minus three standard deviations on either side of the process average value), lies virtually all of the natural variation (Levin 1987:239). When an operator takes a measurement and finds that it lies outside those control limits, then it is virtually certain that a statistically significant change has occurred to the process. The process should be stopped, the situation investigated, the root cause identified and corrected before production is resumed.
SPC is of course not the full answer to TQM. A poorly designed product can conform to all manufacturing requirements, but still fail to convince customers that it is a quality product. SPC is just one of the tools in the toolkit - albeit a major tool.
Following a screening done by SDE and the identification of the most important factors, SPC can be used to monitor the process so that, despite the existence of exo- or endogenous sources of variation, the final product always ensures total customer satisfaction.
As will be discussed, one very important element of TQM is that the customer, not the supplier, defines the quality of the product. For example, the fact that a customer wants a car to start, irrespective of climatic conditions of temperature, humidity or elevation, must be translated by the manufacturer into engineering factors such as the air : fuel ratio, spark advance and voltage at the spark plugs. Following SDE and SPC, the final product will have the required quality and the car will start regardless of the conditions.
Although each of these tools assumes a different level of importance depending on the specific process and also the product of the organisation, they are crucial elements of TQM. When developing systems solutions, it is imperative to focus
2-28 on the problem to be solved rather than the particular statistical technique to be used as part of the solution - the main aim being continuous improvement of everything and everybody in the organisation.
It is essential to recognise that the implementation of one - or all! - statistical tools does not constitute a TQM process. In developing a TQM process, some organisations will begin by following the philosophies of recognised quality "Gurus" and adjusting/changing their management style before starting to use any of the abovementioned tools. Other organisations may start with the tools and technology and then later move toward developing management philosophies and procedures. In all cases it is essential to keep the importance of all three components in mind when developing a TOM process. No TOM process is complete until all three components are fully in place, utilised and accepted by the total workfOrce (Marquardt 1984:8-14; Snee 1985:1-2).
2.4.2 The phlOosophy of customer focus
The new philosophy focuses on the importance of the customer. Organisational success is strongly related to meeting the needs and expectations of customers. Suppliers must be, and be seen to be, happy to serve their customers. Equally, it is an important message for all staff that customer satisfaction is a major quality characteristic that has to be built-in or provided with all products and/or services (Saraph, Benson & Schroeder 1989:810-829).
It is important to define the customer clearly. In any organisation there are two distinct types that are equally important: the internal and the external customers. The philosophy proposed by TOM explores the internal relationship and considers as a customer anyone with whom a direct or indirect labour relationship is maintained. In an indirect way, every other member of the organisation is considered to be a customer - not just immediate colleagues - because everybody should have confidence in the "product" they produce. Ultimately, in this manner, a relationship based on professional respect will be established that carries with it several other benefits including team building and team work (Kinlaw 1991:xvii).
2-29 In the same manner, it is possible to determine what is required to provide the external customers with a quality product, i.e. through the use of appropriate tools, the qualitative description given by the customer will be translated into quantitative terms. As soon as agreement on these quantitative measurements is reached, it becomes a straightforward matter for both parties to monitor and examine whether total quality has been achieved. If it is not achieved, the data will be analysed to find out why and the process will be changed through the implementation of relevant corrective action. After all corrective actions are taken, the quality characteristics will continue to be monitored and the data analysed under a Continuous Quality Advancement (CQA) program until the desired quality levels are maintained (Perigord 1990:61).
Doing the right things right, the first time, every time, is the simplest way to describe any high-quality process (Crosby 1984:60). This will lead to elimination of unnecessary activities, repetitions, check-ups and rework. Once the key factors affecting quality are identified, they can be monitored and controlled so that the "right thing" is done very time. In this manner, it is possible to anticipate, conform to and exceed the customer's requirements. Such improvements and understanding of the process not only result in a direct competitive edge but also indicate what is necessary to meet the quality requirements of tomorrow. In addition, costs and waste will also be reduced and controlled and as a result wealth will be created.
Customers are becoming increasingly demanding of high quality products and services. They want the items they purchase to be usable as promised and to be delivered or repaired within the proper time frames. They also keep themselves very well informed. A study made by Peugeot, France, shows that
one dissatisfied customer leads to the loss of twenty three potential customers;
one satisfied customer leads to seven potential customers (Perigord 1990:44).
2-30 To create an organisation that takes pride in serving its customers (internal and external), managers and employees must accomplish four basic tasks:
reconcile the differences between how they would like to serve customers and the present quality of service or product;
develop an organisation united behind serving customers well;
lay the groundwork for employees to develop solid relationships with their customers (also the person next in line);
manage conflict and refine skills in order to continuously develop and improve the organisation's ability to satisfy its customers (Tjosvold 1993:xiii).
On August 20, 1987, President Ronald Reagan signed a bill in the U.S. Senate, creating Public Law 100-107 and confirming that quality had indeed became a matter of national strategic importance. This act heralded the institution of a national quality and productivity improvement award that has since been awarded annually to deserving organisations in the United States of America. This award is known as the Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award and is awarded by the President of the USA (Steeples 1992:10).
The purpose of the National Quality Award programme is to help the United States improve quality and productivity by:
stimulating companies to attain excellence for the pride of achievement;
recognising outstanding companies to provide examples to others;
establishing guidelines that business, governmental and other organisations can use to evaluate and improve their own quality efforts;
2-31 providing information from winning companies on how to manage for superior quality.
The major categories of a TOM system are contained in the Award's seven examination categories:
1.0 Leadership 100 points 2.0 Information and Analysis 70 points 3.0 Strategic Quality Planning 60 points 4.0 Human Resource Utilisation 150 points 5.0 Quality Assurance of Products and Services 140 points 6.0 Quality Results 180 points 7.0 Customer Satisfaction 300 points Total value of points 1 000 points
(Steeples 1992:22)
Customer satisfaction is the biggest single focus point of the Award's examination categories (30% of the points) and this is a clear indication of its importance when evaluating a TC)iVi process.
The Customer Satisfaction category examines the company's knowledge of the customer, overall customer service systems, responsiveness, and its ability to meet requirements and expectations. Also examined are current levels and trends in customer satisfaction. The eight items for examination in this category are:
determining customer requirements and expectations;
0 customer relationship management;
customer service standards;
commitment to customers;
2-32 complaint resolution for quality improvement;
determining customer satisfaction;
customer satisfaction results;
customer satisfaction comparison (with those of competitors that provide similar products and services);
(Steeples 1992:192-193).
The European Quality Award has been initiated by the European Foundation for Quality Management and was awarded for the first time in 1992. The eight examination categories for this award are:
customer satisfaction - the perceptions of external customers, direct and indirect, of the company and of its products and services; 20%
people - the management of the company's people and the peoples' feelings about the company; 18%
business results - the company's achievement in relation to its planned business performance; 15%
processes - the management of all the value - adding activities within the company; 14%
leadership - the behaviour of all managers in transforming the company toward TQM; 10%
resources - the management, utilisation and preservation of financial, information and technological resources; 9%
2 - 33 policy and strategy - the company's vision, values and directions and the ways in which it achieves them; 8%
impact on society - the perceptions of the community at large of the company; 6%
(Steeples 1992:313).
Once again, it is evident that customer satisfaction is regarded as the most prominent evaluation of a company's TQM process.
Unsatisfied customers react by severing relationships with suppliers who are not focused on their needs and requirements. Xerox Corporation, a winner of the Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award, has slashed its supplier base from 3000 to 350 since 1981. IBM cut its roster of significant suppliers from 4000 to 3000 in 2 years. Unisys Corporation reduced their suppliers from 2300 in 1985 to 670 in 1992. Motorola reduced their suppliers, from 4000 in 1990 to 1500 in 1992, as a result of unacceptable quality of products and services. They treat their suppliers as an extension of their own factory and this partnership aims at achieving less than 3,4 defects per million operations (Haavind 1992:164).
For an organisation to become truly customer driven, a major shift in corporate philosophy must occur. Organisations committed to customer satisfaction realise that achieving the desired satisfaction cannot result just from doing all the traditional things better. Good product quality, warranties and customer surveys can help, but they are inadequate without something more. That "something" is when the customer is viewed as a partner and not a target (Naumann & Shannon 1992:47). As a partner, the customer is actually involved in an organisation's decision-making processes at many levels in the organisation. Committed organisations recognise that customers are a valuable asset and a source of innovation and they develop mechanisms for customer involvement comprehensively throughout the organisation.
2-34 The cornerstone for external customer satisfaction is the total drive for internal customer satisfaction. To be truly effective, the TOM process must ensure that the voice of the customer is clearly heard throughout the organisation - everyone not only knows what is required to satisfy internal and external customer needs, but are also empowered and enabled to satisfy those needs (Klein 1991:83). Smith (1988:5-6) states that customer focus involves not only conventional market research, but also requires sales staff, functional management and system designers to develop an awareness of what the internal customer wants. Those employees who do not have direct contact with external customers must be encouraged to view their colleagues as internal customers. We all have a customer for our work; the next operator in the process line, the user of our service, the boss, the secretary ... who the customer is depends only on the transaction.
Each transaction must have a recognised customer, with identified needs and expectations, who provides continuous feedback on the quality of the product or service supplied to him or her. Without customer response it is very difficult to know whether the product or service supplied has added real value, or only cost. Thus, all employees are seen as part of a chain, from internal supplier through to external customer, including both line and support functions. In this way, TOM emphasises that all employees are ultimately involved in serving the final customer, so that quality matters at all stages of the process, whilst teamwork and cooperation are essential elements of the process.
An advantage over competition as a result of customer satisfaction through quality can be a key to survival in the international and domestic market place (Feigenbaum 1983:xxxi; Ishikawa 1985:104-105; Juran 1988 b:xi; Kane 1986:29). One of the reasons for this is that quality can have a major effect on productivity and profitability. Evidence that quality customer service is becoming an increasingly important competitive differentiator is available in the PIMS corporate database, which shows that firms with high relative quality, whether in product or service industries, incur costs that are no higher than their competitor's, yet can charge approximately five percent more than their competitors (Buzzel & Gale
2- 35 1987:149). The work of Kume (1985 a:16) demonstrates that poor quality can lead to decreases in market share. This view is confirmed by the findings of Juran (1988 b:3.2 and 3.9-3.19). His findings are supported by Deming (1982:225), who argues that the production of poor quality goods or services will not result in customers repurchasing. The long term effect of poor customer perception of a supplier's goods and services will be a reduction in market share.
2.4.3 The leadership styles for TOM
Total involvement forms the third and final core concept of TQM. Through it, the idea of winning loyal customers is mirrored into the organisation, to build loyal employees and loyal suppliers. Total involvement aligns and integrates the efforts of everyone: managers and workers.
In this regard, leadership has specific implications for the senior managers embarking on the quality journey. When implementing TQM, several fundamental activities must be accomplished by the senior management team. These senior managers bear ultimate responsibility for the success of the organisation and, by virtue of their positions, have the authority to set direction, establish policy, allocate resources and select the markets in which the organisation will participate. These individuals are responsible to their customers, their employees and ultimately to their shareholders for the success of the enterprise.
TQM requires skills in both leadership and management. The difference between these two skills is stated succinctly by Bennis (1990:18):
"Leadership are people who do the right thing; managers are people who do things right... Americans (and probably those in much of the rest of the world) are underfed and overmanaged. They do not pay enough attention to doing the right things, while paying too much attention to doing things right."
To implement TQM, managing to get results will share centre stage with leading to improve systems. The old roles of planning, organising, leading and controlling
2- 36 will be diminished. In their place, we will find leaders who vision, align, empower, coach and care.
Leadership style is important in the quest for TQM. Many leaders say, "My style is my style. It's me. It's the way I do things and the way I am. It matches my personality. I've always been this way, and I can't change now." This is not necessarily true, however. People can change if they want to - and they must if they want to experience success in a quality improvement environment. It is not difficult to change because most people do not use the same leadership style in all situations regardless of what anyone believes.
Most people are actors. They act one way in front of their bosses, another way with workers, and still other ways in front of their families or the people at church. It is the same with leadership for most people; to some degree, surroundings affect the leadership style people use. This is perfect for the TQM environment because many factors require leaders to adapt their styles to best suit the purpose at hand. It is important to recognise two concepts (Johnson 1993:55):
some styles are more appropriate than others depending on the situation;
leadership style is a learned skill that is used to support leadership needs as situations change.
2.4.3.1 One-dimensional leadership model
In the past, there were generally thought to be two main leadership theories: democratic and autocratic. All leadership styles exist somewhere on a straight line between these two theories. In the true democratic theory, the leader is committed to goals established by the group. The group determines who the leader will be and how the leader will best serve it in the quest to meet the established goals, which are also determined by the group.
2-37 The group decides why certain courses of action are taken or if any action will be taken. The answer to the question "Why?" becomes important in democratic leadership styles. If the "why" is not great enough, no action will be considered. In the more autocratic styles, "why?" becomes less and less important except to those in leadership positions (Johnson 1993:55). Autocratic leaders might not discuss the reasons why with their followers - the choice is the leaders'.
In the true democratic theory, when the "why "becomes" great enough to deserve action, the group votes to decide whether it will act, who will do what, where it will be done, when it will be done and how it will be accomplished. The group is the decision-making body. In true delegating situations, the team will make many of these decisions by itself. This ultimate leadership style provides great payoffs in TOM.
In the autocratic-type theories, leaders are committed to goals and the reasons why, which are established outside the work group by people of higher authority (stockholders, voters and other such groups). The group then helps the leader reach these goals. This does not mean that the group cannot have goals in addition to the leader's goals. Teams become superior by reaching for and meeting goals above those expected of them or established for them. The leader might explain the reason why goals were established. The leader determines who will do what, where it will be done, when it will be accomplished, and, to some degree, how it will be done.
There are many leadership styles under the autocratic theory. They range from autocratic to consultative to participative and delegating. Business and military leadership theories are autocratic by nature. The leader, not the group, determines how the leader will lead, although the wise leader learns to tailor his/her style to the situation. Leadership style, however, is how the leader comes across to the followers and not how the leader sees himself.
2-38 2.4.3.2 Two-dimensional leadership model
There are virtually unlimited numbers of leadership styles that can be identified. There is little supportive evidence that any one style is constantly more effective than another until the situation aspects of leadership are considered. Leadership styles generally consist of behaviour patterns observed over time with leaders of like performance profiles in similar situations. Leaders do not generally select leadership styles the way cars are selected. Without training and conscientious habit - changing measures, leaders' styles generally are based on patterns learned over time, what they see working for others, and the behaviours of those perceived to be leaders. Other factors are the boss's demands, environmental demands, and the various pressures of the workplace. With training and habit changes, leaders can vary styles to meet the situations that confront them to bring out the best in individuals and groups.
Hersey and associates developed a two-dimensional theory of leadership (Hersey 1984). Degree of direction lies along one dimension and measure of support lies along the second dimension. This theory has been named situational leadership.
The concept of situational leadership provides an excellent understanding of practical leadership that works. A third dimension can be added: the relative power through leadership.
Situational leadership is derived from two seperate actions: supportive and directive. Directive actions concern how the leader defines and directs the tasks and responsibilities for the team. It involves telling the who, what, where, when, why and how of performing tasks. Supportive actions involve communicating with the team by listening, encouraging, helping and training the team members. It involves ensuring the team understands the who, what, where, when, why and how of assignments; defining the vision; and empowering the team for success.
Leaders become successful by directing and supporting their people to levels
2- 39 appropriate for each situation. The leaders' attitudes and behaviours are both important because team response depends on them. Attitudes includes concerns, feelings and values, while behaviour is built on factors such as commitment, excellence and knowledge. Although the leader's attitude can extinguish or ignite the drive for excellence, action will determine whether people own the quality process or remain involved from the periphery.
2.4.3.3 Leadership styles
Figure 2.3 Leadership styles
Preparation Activities Payoff Activities Power Over Power To
Low
S
-o co II ac. p li dg O r at 4.- t 1 3
2 4 n 0,., •C,4' g -40 Ti M E , 0 % 43 ,z•V ct A 41 1, 0 C o & 0- -3 , t '2 v. 1-64 0. rio .k- "a• .e.> 44' O $, V- 4;1, S• n C.,
1 High Directive Action Low
Source: Johnson 1993:56
Four leadership styles can be developed from these actions using the two- dimensional grid (see Figure 2.3) (Johnson 1993:56).
Others are possible but four are appropriate here. Directing, coaching, participating and delegating will be used here as the four leadership styles because they fully support TQM concepts.
2-40 The grid layout is arranged to establish a relative starting time that is deemed important for choosing leadership styles in the TQM process. The four leadership styles derived from the supporting and directing actions provide situational leadership from the highly directive stages of early employment or beginning process deployment to the empowered stages where delegation becomes reality. The first two, directing and coaching, actually are preparation phases in most cases. They are highly directive leadership styles that occur during initial stages of employee training and development.
Directing is a high-direction, low support style used in situations where specific instructions and close supervision might be required. This style is appropriate when people require training to gain awareness of a situation. New employees in the indoctrination stage are one example. Other examples include emergencies such as combat, when the leader has marching orders from above, when the team has a low understanding of the new task, and as a last resort because people are unable or unwilling to perform the task or because they are unsure of themselves.
Coaching is a high-direction, high-support style. It works when "Why?" needs to be explained. Coaching is used when people have acquired the basic knowledge and skills required for the task and are improving their efforts to carry out assignments. Coaching requires hands-on, show-and-tell training much like that provided by a sports coach during training sessions. It is the correct leadership style when group involvement is important and the group has a fundamental knowledge of the task; the group members might have a realistic expectation of some personal benefit from solid performance, but they do not have the complete picture. They are willing to complete the task, but they are not totally capable of peak performance for some or other reason.
The payoff leadership styles, participating and delegating, are low in direction. They can take place only when employees are well-trained and strongly support the organisation's vision and goals. They are the ultimate leadership styles because TQM will produce marginal success unless these styles can be employed. Organisational excellence depends on people with the ability and
2-41 willingness to perform well with occasional guidance rather than constant direction.
Participating is a low-direction, high-support style that is extremely important in the TQM process. Participating is used when ideas are shared in an effort to gain total team input to solve quality, production, and customer service problems. All team members must be able and willing to complete the task at hand. Participation is used when team commitment is necessary and the team thoroughly understands the task and performance requirements, yet cannot act without support. The team can reasonably expect recognition for its efforts when it performs to some designated level. Synergism generally is expected to increase results when high-performance teams work together.
Delegating is a low-direction, low-support style employed when team members are able, willing, and confident to tackle projects by themselves with minimal guidance. These teams are committed to the success of the organisation, assume ownership in it, and are empowered to act on the organisation's behalf. Delegation is used for a variety of other reasons, including training team members in new areas, when selecting and/or training people for promotion, or when a leader wants to free up time for personal growth in new areas.
Figure 2.3 depicts these leadership styles on a two-dimensional grid. They are placed on a time line, the first line that starts at the top left and works its way through four styles, ending at the top right quadrant. TQM followers should progress along this time line, which is a measure of training effectiveness and ownership of the TQM process over time.
The second line on the chart places the four leadership styles along the time line. This shows the expected progression of people when they are first hired to new process deployment under the directing style, through coaching and participating, to the ultimate payoff style, delegation. In the directive style, a high level of support either is not required or there is not time. The coaching style becomes a natural progression as training and awareness of needs take hold. In the
2-42 participating style, high-level direction is not needed and might interfere with the team's initiative. When the delegating plateau is reached, the team is willing and able to handle the situation facing it with little support or direction. Providing either generally would be undesired. Since the greatest performance potential exists under the delegating style, the leader's goal must be to bring the team up to speed rapidly so it can effectively operate in this mode.
The third line shows the activating force that powers each of the leadership styles. Positional power generally is the prime mover during the directing stages. Initial relationships with new employees don't produce personal power to any great degree, and the deployment of new processes requires the leader to say, "We are going to produce excellence in our organisation. Here is my vision...". When coaching is used, the followers have been progressing long enough that the skilled coach usually has gained considerable personal power, which becomes the motivating force. The leader's influence is enough in most cases when participative leadership styles are employed and empowerment fuels the delegating style.
The fourth line illustrates the progression of training and development that supports the various leadership styles. Knowledge acquisition is the initial phase of training, which introduces the participants to the task at hand and provides them with the basics to begin their efforts in that task. This is followed by skills enhancement, which helps people become productive. Under proper leadership, most people become more willing to perform as their ability to do the job well increase. This leads to participation, which requires attitude adjustments and teamwork skills for maximum effectiveness. Continuously fine-tuning the process requires the delegation style and demands attention to excellence in every detail of the operation.
The fifth line exhibits employee attitude and contribution to the TQM process in part and the organisation as a whole. People are initially aware of organisational needs and quality processes. As they work with solid leaders, they become involved in TQM and the organisation. Participation demands commitment to
2-43 excellence and the organisation if there is to be a payoff. The ultimate is TOM and organisational ownership as teams are empowered through the delegating leadership style.
2.4.4 ConcOusion
TOM embraces not only the quality of a specific product, process or service, but everything an organisation does, might or should do to determine the opinion not only of its immediate customers or end-users, but its reputation in the community at large. TOM is an umbrella term which includes: everything that an organisation does to determine whether its customers return to them and recommend them to others; minimising cost through efficient and effective organisational management; maximising the resources of the workforce to cooperate in making the organisation the best in its field; and finally, the exploitation of the weaknesses of the organisation's rivals.
2.5 SUMifiARY
In this chapter, a comprehensive selection of current literature on Total Quality Management was studied and reviewed in order to clarify the term "TOM".
Chapter 3 presents an overview of accredited quality management gurus' approaches to TOM.
2-44 NU ROHM
CHAPTER 3
U LITY IW HAGEN
SYNOPSIS 3-46
LOST OF FIGURES, GRAPHS AND TABLES 3-47
3.1 INTRODUCTION 3-48
3.2 THE TE ,,1/4CHINGS OF THE GURUS 3-49
3.2.1 Historical masters 3-49
3.2.1.1 Sun-Tzu 3-49 3.2.1.2 Aesop 3-52 3.2.1.3 Socrates 3-53
3.2.2 20th century quality masters 3-54
3.2.2.1 Philip B. Crosby 3-54 3.2.2.1.1 Brief biography 3-54 3.2.2.1.2 Crosby's approach to TQM 3-54 3.2.2.1.3 Summary 3-70
3.2.2.2 W. Edwards Deming 3-72 3.2.2.2.1 Brief biography 3-72 3.2.2.2.2 Deming's approach to TQM 3-73 3.2.2.2.3 Summary 3-100
3.2.2.3 Kaoru Ishikawa 3-102 3.2.2.3.1 Brief biography 3-102 3.2.2.3.2 Ishikawa's approach to TOM 3-102 3.2.2.3.3 Summary 3-110
3.2.2.4 Joseph M. Juran 3-112 3.2.2.4.1 Brief biography 3-112 3.2.2.4.2 Juran's approach to TOM 3-113 3.2.2.4.3 Summary 3-123
3.2.3 Comparing the Gurus 3-125
3.3 SUM RY 3-126
3-45 ENT
CHAPTER 3 OUft lit "' ENT
SYN I PSIS
Quality is an important competitive factor and in most markets a prerequisite of survival. This is why more and more organisations are implementing Total Quality Management. The 1990's looks set to see the quality revolution of the 1980's spreading beyond manufacturing organisations to both private and public services.
Many organisations base their quality approach on the work of one of the "quality gurus". This is a term coined to reflect their influence on:
the organisation and practice of quality management; and
modem management thinking.
Written hisotry provides a grand procession of characters and legends to emulate, starting as early as 500 BC. Some would seem to presage TQM principles, and a brief visit will be paid to Sun-Tzu (a Chinese warrior), Aesop (a Greek slave), and Socrates (a Greek stone- mason and philosopher).
In this chapter the focus will, however, be on the key features of the methods of Crosby, Deming, Ishikawa and Juran. Arguably, this list is not exhaustive and there are others who have influenced the development of quality management issues.
The purpose of this chapter is:
to examine the salient features of each guru's method; and
to compare their approach using a comparison framework.
This will enable managers and other readers to appreciate the common ground and differences between each guru's thinking and approach. To compare the approaches of the various guru's systematically, a matrix of key features was developed. Six key factors were selected. These are:
general approach;
external interface;
organisational context;
organisational requirements;
means and techniques; and
pace and nature of change.
3-46 EitliENT
Mei"
CHAPTER 3
LIST OF IFOGURES, GRAPHS AND T;LIES
Figure 3.1 The quality improvement process 3-55 Table 3.2 The four absolutes of quality management 3-56 Table 3.3 The quality improvement process 3-60 Table 3.4 Salient characteristics of Crosby's approach to 3-71, 72 TQM Table 3.5 Deming's fourteen points 3-76 Table 3.6 Salient characteristics of Deming's approach to 3-101 TOM Table 3.7 Salient characteristics of Ishikawa's approach to 3-111, 112 TOM Figure 3.8 Interrelation among Juran's quality parameters 3-116 Figure 3.9 Juran's spiral of quality 3-117 Table 3.10 Salient characteristics of Juran's approach to 3-124 TQM
3-47 CH PIER 3
G HAGEN
3.1 INTRODUCTION
The 1990's look set to see the quality revolution of the 1980's spreading to more and more organisations. Moreover, in this decade the quality revolution will spread beyond manufacturing organisations to both private and public services. This is because quality is considered to be an important competitive strategy (Shetty 1987:46).
Many organisations base their quality approach on the work of one of the so- called quality gurus. This is a term coined to reflect their influence on:
the organisation and practice of quality management; and
modern management thinking.
The list of gurus generally includes Crosby, Deming, Feigenbaum, Groocock, Ishikawa, Juran, Taguchi and Townsend. Arguably, this list is not exhaustive and there are others who have influenced the development of quality issues.
Surely, the first quality engineer was some unknown chariot maker in Sumeria who observed that the smoother the wheel, the faster the chariot, or some swordsmith farther north in the land of the Hittites who scrutinised his work in order to free it of all blemishes, thereby increasing its cutting power. Or was it a Neanderthal, who plied his craft with flint knapping tools, being attentive and conscientious in shaping a tool for a precise use? Modern archaeologists have demonstrated that
3-48 these skills are difficult to acquire. Yet we know that the skills were practised by Neanderthals and were passed on through generations. So perhaps quality control predates Homo Sapiens, and originated with Homo Sapiens Neanderthalenses.
While this thought experiment is entertaining, there are no written records to to use as guidance. Written history, however, provides a grand procession of characters and legends to emulate. Some would seem to presage TQM principles. While others can undoubtedly be found (Clemens & Mayer 1987) from nearly every era and arena, the spotlight here will be on:
Historical masters: Sun-Tzu, Aesop and Socrates;
20th Century masters: Crosby, Deming, Ishikawa and Juran.
3.2 THE TEACHINGS OF THE GURUS
Charismatic pacesetters such as Crosby, Demin or Juran are often identified (or even equated) with the TQM movement. Their magnetism has resulted in passionate devotees, each proclaiming their pundit to have revealed the one true path to quality enlightenment. The squabbling that occasionally occurs between each guru's camp sometimes resembles religious "heresy" disputes, where much arguing proceeds over differences without distinction. Because the writings of all the masters - historical and present day hero's - are motivational, it is important to read and reflect upon more than one of them prior to embarking on a TOM implementation process. While all of their platforms may agree to within 95 percent, that last five percent may represent the appealing difference.
3.2.1 Historical masters
3.2.1.1 Sun-Tzu Sun-Tzu lived sometime during the warring states period (480-221 BC) in China (Sun-Tzu, translated by Griffith 1963:iv). During this time, the entire world, as the
3- 49 Chinese knew it, was in constant war. Sun-Tzu observed the political and leadership struggles and attempted to codify how best to approach these disciplines.
Wing (1988) casts Sun-Tzu's terminology into business and strategic terms rather than martial terms and the 13 sections are summarised below.
1 Calculations. Is the goal reasonable and worthwhile? If so then the time to act is now. If not, wait and build strength until it is reasonable. Self- reflection (e.g., benchmarking and audits) are necessary to understand one's own strength as well as that of the opponent. Both the self and the opponent must be understood.
Estimating the cost. Contingencies and alternatives must be weighed. Once the costs have been estimated, then commit to an unrelenting forward momentum. There must be unbelievably swift and decisive action, with no looking back.
Plan of attack. Is the objective isolated or integral? If the objective is isolated, then a forward attack is appropriate. If it is integral, then a broader, less obvious attack route may be necessary.
Positioning. Remove elements around you that allow backsliding. One must have a supportive environment. You cannot cross a river by going across halfway and then returning to shore to rest for the next half.
Directing - Positioning your foe. Isolate your opponent, make plans that do not include it; enlist the help of others. Act spontaneously.
illusion and reality. The opponent must not be allowed to rest and recover. When weak, feign strength and when strong, feign weakness.
7 Manoeuvres and tactics. Indirect tactics such as logistics are essential
3-50 to success. Indirect actions which lead to direct effect are the best. Competition within your own forces is dangerous. The focus must be on the enemy. Give your opponents the ability to flee. Damage the overtaken as little as possible because they are tomorrow's customers.
Spontaneity in the field. Sun-Tzu warns against being overly cautious, reckless, angry, fastidious, and attached to the organisation or the states quo.
Moving the force - confrontation. Self-control and discipline will grow from a determined challenge.
Situational positioning. Challenge only when certain. Put yourself between your foe and his support system, as disorder brings defeat.
Situational awareness. Awareness of the situation is.vital. Contradictory situations call for contradictory action.
The fiery attack. Do not prolong the confrontation. Enlist help from the outside and make every action count.
The use of intelligence. Information is the essence of success or defeat.
An analogy can be made between Sun-Tzu's process and those of the immune system: it wards off disease and attackers without damaging the underlying support system. Like the immune system, which can enter an autoimmune phase and destroy the very body it was protecting, so too can TQM consume its own as it metamorphoses a company via continuous change and quality improvement, making the new business very different from the old one. In this respect Sun- Tzu's philosophy embodies principles of TQM: survival, growth and continuous improvement in a chaotic world.
3-51 3.2.1.2 Aesop
Aesop was a Greek slave who lived in the 5th century B.C. (Handford 1954:xiv). While not providing the integrated framework of Sun-Tzu, Aesop's simple fables or parables provide profound insight into the nature of people's conduct in society. A small sample of TQM related morals is presented:
United we stand, divided we fa. The four oxen and the lion (Handford 1954:171). A direct appeal to the use of self-managing teams, quality circles and other uses of teamwork and shared vision.
Please all and you Please none. The man, the boy and the donkey (Handford 1954:73). A vision that has been defined in scope and is attainable is essential. Serving only some segments of customers may mean ignoring others.
A loam w500 not be believed), even when he speaks the truth. The shepard boy (Handford 1954:200). Credibility in management is regained every day, and when lost, it may be lost until that management is replaced, and quite likely even longer. Trust is not bought by salary, or enforced by memos. Without trust, it is difficult to achieve the union required to succeed.
We often despise what is most useful to us. The hare and the hunter (Handford 1954:134). Hourly, shopfloor, unskilled, ... the list is long that is used to demean the workers on whom the organisation relies. There is dignity in all work. Failure to understand this leads to strikes, lock-outs and boycotts, and management by fear.
You may share the labour of the great, but not the spas. The lion's share (Handford 1954:23). Rewards must be given out on a fair and regular basis, and it must be understood how one can achieve these rewards.
3- 52 0 Perseverance wins the race. The hare and the tortoise (Handford 1954:70). Aesop agrees with Sun-Tzu regarding careful calculations, plotting and provisioning. Ambition and excitable energy are no substitute for wisdom and careful planning.
0 it us quaHty not quantity that counts. The vixen and the lioness (Handford 1954:19). A vixen sneered at a lioness because she never bares more than one cub. "Only one," she replied, "but a lion."
What is so instructive about Aesop's fabels is that little has changed in human nature since the beginnings of civilisation. Aesop has permeated Western literature for some 500 years, as browsing through a quotation dictionary will readily confirm.
3.2.1.3 Socrates
Socrates, the philosophising stonemason, lived from 470 B.C. to 399 B.C. in Athens, during the Golden Age of Pericles (Lindsay 1906: Introduction). He is known from the works of Plato as one of the great philosophers. A number of TOM concepts can be found in the various Socratic dialogues.
0 Fif oot cause analysis. Socrates was always asking Why?, and even when told why, would keep probing until he reached the bottommost cause. This rumination was meant to sweep away preconceptions and prejudices to reach the real reasons or truths of what ever subject was before him.
0 Empowering the worker. Democracy lends voice to all. Coupled with critical self-examination, this leads to an empowering force of continuous self-improvement.
0 Vision and ethics. Constantly examining organisational beliefs and motives requires building a solid framework of morals and ethics.
3-53 Socratic dialogue refers to the method of instruction by question and answer used by Socrates in order to elicit from his pupils truths he considered to be implicitly known by all rational beings (Collins English Dictionary 1994:1467). By using this method, a leader goads others into thinking about their actions and beliefs when making decisions and solving problems.
3.2.2 20th Century quaty masters
3.2.2.1 Philip B. Crosby
3.2.2.1.1 Brief biography
Philip B. Crosby was born in 1926 in Wheeling, West Virginia. Crosley obtained a degree in podiatry (his father's profession) but decided he didn't like the profession. In 1952 he became a reliability engineer for Crosby Corporation in Richmond, Indiana. He later worked for the Martin Corporation from 1957 to 1965. Crosby was in charge of quality on the Perching missile project. From 1965 to 1979 he was the vice president of quality for ITT. In 1979, he founded Philip Crosby Associates (PCA) in Winter Park, Florida from where he retired in 1991 to begin Career IV, Inc. to help grow executives.
3.2.2.1.2 Crosby's approach to TQM
Crosby's aim is to change the perceptions and attitudes of top management about quality. He defines quality as "conformance to requirements" (Crosby 1979:14), a supply-led definition, thus making quality tangible, manageable and measurable. The requirements of a product need to be defined and specified clearly so that they are properly understood. These requirements are determined through the interaction of a number of parties. The final user of the product or service has certain needs and expectations which must be satisfied. The design department within the organisation is responsible for designing a product or service which meets all the requirements of the customer in a cost effective way. Thereafter, the manufacturing department must ensure that the product or service which it
3-54
produces conforms to the requirements determined in the design process.
An error in any of the above processes will result in the production of a product or service which does not conform to specification initially determined by the end user. According to Crosby's definition, conformance to requirements is the only measurement of quality. Poor or high quality has no meaning, only nonconformance or conformance. The cost of quality is measured by the cost of nonconformance. Crosby estimates that in most companies these costs run at about 20 to 40 percent of sales (Crosby 1979:101-108).
Thus, according to Crosby (1984:7), all nonconformances are caused, and anything that is caused, can be prevented. As he describes it, the organisation can be "vaccinated" against nonconformance. Some of these "antibodies" are managerial actions, while others are procedural common sense. The preparation of this vaccine is discussed with the aid of figure 3.1.
Figure 3.1 The quality improvement process
CONCEPTS
ABSOLUTES OF QUALM! T 0 E S M A M M S T T w E M 0 M E R S N K T TOOLS
Source: Crosby & Associates 1989:39
3-55
CONCEPTS Crosby (1984:59-86) builds his quality process on the "four absolutes of quality", where the performance standard is "zero defects", the measurement of quality is the cost of quality, the system is prevention and the definition of quality is "conformance to requirements". The four absolutes are the concepts which are needed to transform the culture of the organisation to one which enhances and supports TONI.
Table 3.2 The four absolutes of quality management
(SOLUTES OF Q1U LITY Definition of quality: Conformance to requirements
Systems: Prevention
Performance standard: Zero defects
Measurement: Cost of quality
Source: Crosby & Associates 1989:11
The First Absoiute: The definition of quaiity is conformance to requirements
According to Crosby (1984:59) quality improvement is built on getting everyone to do it right the first time. In this regard, management essentially has three basic tasks to perform:
1) establish the requirements that employees are to meet;
3- 56 supply the where with all that the employees need in order to meet those requirements; and spend much of its time in encouraging and helping the employees meet those requirements.
Management should display their commitment to prevent nonconformance by adopting a quality vaccine consisting of determination, education and implementation. Quality improvement is a process, not a program and it should be designed to be permanent and lasting.
The Second Absoiute: The system of quaiity is prevent i n
The foundation of Crosby's approach is that defective work must be prevented before it appears, rather than dealing with it once it has occurred. Appraisal is very expensive and is always conducted after the fact, which means that the cause of the defect will not be addressed. The system of prevention allows for the identification and eradication of the factors giving rise to the defective output. Prevention comes from proper design of equipment and requirements, continual training of the workforce, discipline, example, and leadership focused on quality. Since Crosby equates quality management with prevention, inspection, testing, checking and other nonpreventive techniques have no place.
The Third Absoiute: The perfonrnance standard is zero defects
Crosby (1979:1) states that quality is free, but it is not a gift. What costs money are the unquality things - all the actions that involve not doing the job right the first time, and the sorting and inspection following the production of a defective product.
What Crosby is emphasising is that quality will not evolve naturally. Successful quality improvement requires active steps to make quality a standard way of life. Managers of any operation or function in the organisation must take active, visible steps to improve quality in every process and task under their leadership.
3-57 The first of these steps is the setting of performance standards. These performance standards are the device for ensuring that the organisation meets its quality requirements. For Crosby, the only acceptable performance standard is zero defects.
Zero defects is a performance standard which needs to be understood and attainable by all individuals within the organisation. It means that requirements must be met first time, every time and that errors are not acceptable. Where the zero defect standard is not met, the reason for this failure must be identified and the cause rectified.
Zero defects is an attitude of defect prevention. Zero defects is not a slogan, it is a management performance standard. Demotivating employees by constant exhortation is not the answer. Crosby believes that in the 1960's various Japanese companies properly applied the zero defects standard by using it as an engineering tool with the responsibility of proper implementation left to management. By contrast, the zero defects standard was used as a motivational tool in the United States, with responsibility left to the worker, where it failed.
The Fourth Absoiute: The measurement of quality us the price of non conformance
A major downfall of most quality control practices is that, although most quality failures are discovered in the factory instead of after shipment, the techniques for finding them are often excessively costly and wasteful (Feigenbaum 1983:5; Juran 1988 b:17-24). The costs of poor quality, including customer complaints, product liability lawsuits, redoing defective work, and products scrapped after inspection and testing are often huge. Crosby (1979:101-108) and Juran (1988 b:1) estimate that in most companies these costs run at about 20 to 40 percent of sales. This suggests that management should be investing a proportionally higher amount of money and effort on defect prevention, as opposed to quality testing and appraisal. The phenomenon is explained as follows. The more defects or nonconformities produced in an organisation, the higher the failure costs. The
3-58 traditional answer to higher failure costs has been more inspection and testing, which of course increases appraisal costs. According to Feigenbaum (1983:13) and McMillan (1982:33) this tighter inspection has little effect with regard to the elimination of defects, as opposed to prevention. Some of the defective products are going to leave the plant and end up in the hands of unsatisfied customers. Appraisal costs thus stay high as long as failure costs remains high.
Feigenbaum (1983:113) and Kane (1986:29) suggest that the manner whereby this spiralling cost cycle could be reduced is by concentrating on preventive measures. An increase in prevention costs results in defect reductions, which in turn have positive effect on appraisal costs because defect reduction means a reduced need for routine inspection and testing activities.
The cost of quality can then be measured by calculating the total costs of doing things wrong, or the price of nonconformance.
Crosby advocates that the absolutes of quality are realised through paying attention to the areas of commitment, teamwork and systems. These three areas in turn are addressed by Crosby's fourteen steps to the quality improvement process (Crosby 1984:97-104). These steps are illustrated in table 3.3.
Crosby's 14 steps are a specific action plan for the improvement of quality and can be seen as reinforcing Deming's 14 points of quality management philosophy.
3-59 Table 3.3 The quality improvement process
Steps kb the improvement process Commitment Teams ems
Management commitment x Quality improvement teams x Measurement x Cost of quality x Quality awareness x Corrective action x Zero Defects planning x Employee education x Zero Defects day x Goal setting x Error causes removal x Recognition x Quality councils x Do it all over again x
Source: Crosby 1984:99
The fourteen steps in table 3.3 are clustered and classified further into three areas: commitment, teamwork and systems.
Under commitment fall: management commitment zero defects planning zero defects day do it all over again
Contained in teamwork are: quality improvement teams quality awareness employee education goal setting quality councils
3 - 60 Under systems fall: measurement cost of quality corrective action error causes removal recognition
Step One: Management commitment
Management commitment at all levels of the organisation is vital to the success of a total quality improvement process. Management are responsible for a number of actions. First, they must decide that they want a zero defects strategy, and must develop and announce a clear, specific quality policy to this effect. Second, their commitment to the zero defects concept and the quality improvement process must be displayed through action. In order for this to happen, management must:
develop and communicate a quality policy;
develop a comprehensive zero defects strategy to provide determination, education and implementation of quality improvement;
establish an organisation to carry out the quality improvement process;
ensure that every manager, and eventually every employee, understands and practices the absolutes of quality;
provide the resources needed to ensure that quality is built into every function of the organisation;
ensure that all management communication contains a message denoting their commitment to the zero defects policy, and explaining the policy;
put quality at the top of the agenda.
3-61 Step Two: Quality improvement team
The early establishment of a quality improvement team is vital to the success of the quality improvement process (Crosby 1979:152). This team will promote, supervise and coordinate the planning and implementation of the quality improvement process throughout the organisation. Team members will need to be formally trained to run the quality improvement process.
The quality improvement team is cross-functional, comprising of an administrative representative from each department or major area of operation in the organisation, and an administrator or coordinator. The members of the team would be nominated by department managers and approved by the senior executives of the organisation. The chairperson would be selected by the team members. The quality improvement team will report to, and receive, its overall direction from a senior management steering committee.
The objectives of the quality improvement team are (Crosby 1979:152-162):
to provide the framework for the overall coordination of the quality improvement process;
to provide a vehicle which can remove the roadblocks to quality improvement;
to provide a formal communications medium to ensure that the quality improvement efforts are coordinated throughout the organisation;
to ensure continuity of the quality improvement process.
The responsibilities of the quality improvement team are (Crosby 1979:152-162):
to develop key quality related issues and a detailed strategy;
3- 62 to set a timetable for all quality improvement process activities;
to establish the need for resources such as administrators, training programs;
to monitor results, and make adjustments where necessary;
to assign each member the responsibility of over-seeing one or more of the 14 steps;
to develop a complete 14-step implementation plan, and to meet regularly to administer the plan and review progress.
The responsibilities of each individual member of the team include (Crosby 1979:153);
representing his/her department on the team;
ensuring that the decisions of the team are executed in the department.
Step Three: Measurement
The purpose of the measurement step is to provide a display of the current and potential nonconformance problems in a manner that permits objective evaluation and corrective action (Crosby 1979:169).
The objectives of the measurement step are (Crosby 1979:169-178):
to communicate openly where nonconformances exist;
to establish an atmosphere that allows the honest reporting of errors;
to ensure that all employees understand the purpose of measurement and
3-63 the system used to provide for it;
to help all departments understand their responsibilities to quality through the display of nonconformances;
to document actual quality improvement as it occurs.
An important source of measurement data is provided by observations of actual rejections and the results of inspection. A more general form of measurement is provided by Crosby's Quality Management Maturity Grid (Crosby 1979:32-34). This grid is a measure which enables management to identify the organisation's present status or maturity level regarding the quality improvement process. It does this by measuring management and subordinate attitudes to quality. These results can then be compared with those that existed on a previous occasion. The grid breaks down the continuum of maturity levels (attitudes to quality) into five categories and lists the categories by which each can be measured. The maturity grid emphasises the change in attitude toward meeting product requirements or quality that takes place in the progression through the stages of a quality improvement process. Perceptions are the instrument used to identify the organisation's position on the grid. The data used in the measurement process is collected by means of an attitude survey (Sargent 1986:30). With this information, management can identify where their organisation is placed on the maturity grid and what their next course of action ought to be. A possible constraint of the maturity grid is that it does not provide an explanation of why the organisation is at that specific position on the grid (Sargent 1986:30).
Step Four: Cost of quaOity
The cost of quality is a management tool which is used to measure quality improvement. This facilitates the identification of which areas in the organisation need corrective action. The reduction of the concepts of quality to a cost figure renders it intelligible to all. Crosby (1979:105-107) provides the following categories of costs:
3-64 1 Prevention costs
These are the costs of all activities undertaken to prevent defects in design and development, purchasing, labour and other aspects of creating and initiating a product or service.
Appraisal costs
These are costs incurred while conducting inspections, tests and other planned evaluations used to determine whether hardware, software or services conform to requirements.
Failure costs
These are the costs associated with output which does not conform or perform to requirements. Included are the evaluation, disposal, and consumer-affairs aspects of such failures.
Crosby (1979:104), Juran (1988 b:4.10-4.13) and Kume (1985 b:16-17) stress, however, that management should not be totally pre-occupied with attempting to obtain an exact cost figure for quality as this is likely to be a time consuming and subjective excercise All that is required is a consistent, reasonable accurate estimate of the cost of quality. After all, the purpose of calculating the cost of quality is essentially to draw the attention of the organisation to the cost of poor quality, to identify high cost centres and to provide a measurement base for seeing how quality improvement is progressing (Aubrey & Eldridge 1981:17).
Step Five: Quality awareness
The purpose of this step is to raise the level of personal concern felt by all employees toward the production of quality products and services.• An awareness of the importance of the quality reputation of the organisation needs to be engendered in the workforce. Employees will be made aware of the need, the
3-65 status of the process and the continuous commitment of management to quality and quality improvement.
The objectives of the quality awareness step are (Crosby 1979:181-191):
to develop a plan to share information about quality, including need, status and success;
to establish a mechanism to encourage departmental meetings on a regular basis.
The quality awareness activity has two essential ingredients (Crosby 1979:182):
Regular meetings must be held between management and employees to discuss specific nonconformance problems and to design actions which need to be taken to solve these problems. These meetings should not only be between workers and their supervisors but also between the supervisors and their management team. The meetings should take place on a regular basis to discuss quality improvement actions as part of the drive to eliminate all nonconformances.
Information about the quality process must be communicated through well designed communication channels throughout the organisation. The purpose of good communication is to provide reassurance that the company is serious and committed to quality and quality improvement and to convey this message constantly to all the people.
Step Six: Corrective action
Crosby (1979:65) argues that the measurement of quality alone is insufficient. The results of the measurement process must be used to identify and resolve the causes of nonconformance.
3-66 The purpose of corrective action is to provide a systematic method of permanently resolving the problems that are identified through the previous action steps. Corrective action should operate on the Pareto Principle, which states that problems should be addressed in descending order of importance (Schonberger 1985:483). Thorough analysis of the various processes in the organisation are essential to corrective action.
Corrective action systems have to be based on data that show what the problems are, and an analysis that shows the causes of the problems. Once the root cause of a nonconformance has been identified, it can be addressed by, for example, redesigning of the process or equipment, and the retraining of operators, in order to prevent the recurrence of the problem. This process involves all employees and external suppliers involved in the area or process under investigation.
Crosby (1979:67) also suggests that one of the most effective ways of identifying the causes of defective output is the quality audit. The quality audit is a well designed and planned examination of a process or function, carried out by determining conformance to procedures and specifications in a process or by critical analysis of the product or service that is a result of the process. All nonconformances to procedures or standards have to be analysed and corrected through the corrective action process.
Step Seven: Zero defects planning
The purpose of planning for zero defects is to examine the various activities that must be conducted in preparation for formally launching zero defect day (see step 9 for a discussion of zero defects day).
A quality improvement task team, which reports to the quality improvement team, should be established to do the planning for zero defects day. At least one representative of each department will be included in the task team.
3-67 Step Eight: Education
The purpose of this step is to provide training to all employees within the organisation as well as the organisation's external suppliers. This education will provide individuals with the tools and techniques to support the quality improvement process. Other objectives of the education process include (Crosby 1979:68):
the provision of a common understanding, throughout the organisation, of all the absolutes of quality management;
ensuring that all employees are properly educated so they can effectively carry out their roles in the quality improvement process.
The education process is a continuous one, starting with top level management and working down through the entire organisation. Due to the central role played by management and team leaders in the quality improvement process, special, intensive education must be designed and provided to them, since they will drive the entire improvement process.
The majority of authors on the subject of TOM identify the importance of education to the success of the quality improvement process (Cashbourne 1987:109; Crosby 1979:68; Deming 1982:285; Ishikawa 1985:106-109; Juran 1988 b:10.51-11.4; Lomas 1986:218; Marash 1989:123; Townsend 1986:13). As identified by them, the major thrust of the education phase of the total quality improvement process is three-fold.
Initial awareness training, designed to make the workforce aware of the importance of quality to the future success of the organisation. Awareness training is also used to show individuals how quality can be integrated into their own functions within the organisation.
To provide employees with an understanding of what not to do and why, as
3-68 well as what to do to ensure quality improvement.
To provide the workforce with the tools to manage their own quality outputs.
Step Nine: zero defects day
The purpose of a zero defects day is the creation of an event which will make each employee realise that there has been a change of culture and attitude within the organisation and the extent to which management is serious about these changes. On zero defects day management publicly affirms its commitment to zero defects. This day is in essence a public relations exercise to create awareness of the future focus on total conformance to requirements.
Step Ten: Goal setting
The goal setting process must be initiated once measurements are established and should be linked to the nonconformances revealed through the quality appraisal process. It involves the establishment of improvement goals by both individuals and groups or teams. All goals met should be publicised and celebrated.
Step Eleven: Error cause removal
Error cause removal will enable individual employees to communicate to management which obstacles impede upon their ability to improve quality. Error cause removal is not a suggestion system in that employees only need to identify the causes of errors, they need not provide solutions to the problems. It is a formalised procedure that provides a systematic way of identifying problems.
Step Twelve: Recognetion
Recognition is the means whereby rewards are given to those who actively participate in the quality improvement process. Crosby (1984:117-119) suggests
3-69 that those who are to be rewarded should be elected by their peers. He also stresses the importance of intrinsic rewards, since he feels extrinsic rewards are not entirely effective.
Due to the fact that TQM is dependent on the commitment and participation of the entire workforce, the reward structure of the organisation should be structured in such a way that it is in the interests of, and to the benefit to, the entire workforce to participate (Haridy 1985:43). The quality improvement process stresses the concept of using teams to identify opportunities and make improvements. Methods of compensation and reward should compensate individuals for their team participation, rather than strictly on an individual or organisation-wide basis. (Koopman et al, 1987: 95-112 & 161-162; Project Free Enterprise Report 1986: 21 & 26; Townsend 1986:84-85). In South Africa, a policy of rewarding group behaviour would be consistent with what Silberbauer (1987:26-47) identified as the cultural inheritance of most South African black people - a need for affiliation. This view is supported by Coldwell & Moerdyk (1981:70-76) who point out that Africans in general tend to show a need for group orientation and affiliation.
Step Fourteen: Do it over again
This step emphasises that the quality improvement process is a continuous process. It involves the selection of a new quality improvement team, since the retiring team often feels that there is little left to do in the quality improvement process and tends to stagnate, and therefore it amounts to an injection of enthusiasm into the process. The new quality improvement team will start the whole quality improvement process again. This step involves two very important elements: selecting a new team and reviewing present quality improvement activities.
3.2.2.1.3 Summary
Crosby (1984:136) does not insist that the fourteen steps have to be carried out in any particular order, with the exception of steps one and two. Education, for
3-70 example, is seen as an ongoing process which needs to be undertaken right from the inception of the process. The establishment of an environment which will facilitate improvement is primary. This is done through education, formalising management commitment and measuring nonconformances.
Since Crosby (1984:136-137) focuses on first changing the management culture, his approach is clearly a top-down process. It is evident that Crosby believes that the responsibility for quality does not lie with the quality professionals or the quality function within the organisation. The quality function is only responsible for guiding the process. Training and motivation are the main functions of this umbrella body. The execution of quality is the obligation and responsibility of all employees of the organisation. Quality improvement is therefore seen to be a line function with quality responsibility being decentralised. However, total quality improvement is a process which is directed and guided by management policies and actions. Managers at all levels of the organisation are responsible for removing the obstacles to and promoting the decentralisation of quality responsibility. Table 3.4 depicts the key characteristics of Crosby's approach to TQM.
Table 3.4 Salient characteristics of Crosby's approach to TQM
TEGORY ELEMENTS:::0E:QUALITY FOODS: POINTS
A General Definition of quality Supply-led Main emphasis Conformance to requirement Dominant factor Zero defects Scope of application Implicitly functional Applicability-sector Manufacturing emphasis
B External Customer focus Implicit in customer interface requirements Market focus (environment) Not addressed Vendor/buyer relationship Not specified
3-71 C Organisational Primary change agent Top management context Top management role To understand costs of quality, to promote zero defects Management style Instructional, promotional Organisation culture Quality as an organisational culture
D Organisational Top management commitment Essential requirements Employee involvement/participation Essential Education and training Essential lnventment in non-human resources Not specified
E Means/ Cost of quality (appreciated) Important, to motivate techniques etc. management Training programmes Training and motivational programme, including zero defect days Participation feedback Teamwork on zero defects; (eg. communication, quality consultation of problems circles) Not specific, but measuring Statistical methods results is stressed Recognition/rewards system Recognise and reward those who achieve quality (zero defect) goals Inspection procedures Not stressed
F Change Pace of change Gradual Nature of change Sequential (though ordering of steps may vary)
Source: Own compilation
3.2.2.2 W. Edwards Deming
3.2.2.2.1 Brief biography
W. Edwards Deming was born on October 14, 1900 in Sioux City, Iowa. Shortly thereafter, his family moved to Powell, Wyoming. Deming graduated with a B.S.
3-72 in Physics from the University of Wyoming in 1921, and graduated form Yale with a Ph.D in mathematical physics in 1928. He worked for the U.S. Census Bureau during and after World War II. In 1950, Deming went to Japan to help conduct a population census, and lectured to top business leaders on statistical quality control (SPC). Deming told the Japanese they could become world-class quality leaders if they followed his advice. During the 1950's, Deming again travelled to Japan at the behest of the Japanese Union of Scientists and Engineers (JUSE). Because of his refusal of payment for lectures (Japan at the time was quite impoverished), JUSE used the funds to establish the Deming Prize, which is today the most honoured quality award in Japan. Today Deming is generally regarded as the top leader in quality management, and is still cited as the founder of the third wave of the Industrial Revolution.
3.2.2.2.2 Deming's approach to TQM
The Deming approach to TQM has its origins in statistical process control and is based on five philosophies.
Continuous improvement
The first philosophy (Deming 1982:22) is that of the continual improvement of product and service quality. This centres on the elimination of any obstacles which stand in the way of achieving higher quality and involves testing and statistical feedback at various stages of manufacturing and marketing in order to improve a system which involves design, production, merchandising and service. The purpose of this is to provide a product or service which will meet the needs and expectations of the end user. The argument underlying this is that Deming views the customer and the level of customer satisfaction as the most critical elements in the entire production process (Deming 1982:225).
Different roles for management and workers
The second philosophy is that of the division of work between the workers and
3-73 management. Deming (1982:36) advocates that there are different roles for management and workers to fulfil in the quality improvement process. Responsibility for the quality improvement process is shared between management and workers. The worker, who is in contact with the process, should control it and aid management to improve it. After all, operators who work in the system are the ones who really know where the potential for improvement lies. Workers are, therefore, not only required to work in the system, but to help management to improve it. This requires that the employees are provided with the correct tools to enable them to fulfil their responsibilities. This is the responsibility of management. Management's responsibility is to provide all resources required to improve the system to produce quality products and services. Contained in this philosophy is the basic view that one can rely on the worker, that one can trust them and that if given responsibility they will do their best for the organisation.
Statistics
The third philosophy is that of the utilisation of statistics as the language of communication between workers and management (Deming 1986:340-341). If management are to control the variation in a factory or other place of work, they need to learn the language and implications of statistical process control.
Variation
The fourth philosophy is that of the causes of error, or variation. Deming (1982:111-120) provides two causes of variation, which need to be corrected or reduced in different ways, namely:
First, "special causes" of variation (Deming 1982:111-115) occur when a measurement is made which falls outside the normal limits of control for the activity being measured. A special cause is one that is specific to some group of workers, or a particular worker, machine or specific local condition. The discovery of a special cause of variation, and its removal are usually the responsibility of someone who is connected directly to the operation. Their responsibility is to find
3-74 the cause and to remove it.
Second, "common causes" of variation (Deming 1982:115-120) occur when a measurement is made which falls within the normal limits of control, but at an unacceptable range of variation from the mean. Common causes of variation are faults inherent to the system. Elimination or reduction of common causes can be effected only by action of management, since the system is under the control of management.
Improvement of a process then, according to Deming (1982:115), can come from the elimination of a special cause of variations by the worker, and then also from actions by management to eliminate common causes of error or variation. Deming (1982:124) stresses that the removal of a special cause of variation in order to move toward statistical control, does not constitute a significant improvement of the process. Removal of a special cause only brings the system back to where it should have been. The quantum leap in system improvement only commences once management removes the common causes for variation from the system. Statistical stability in a system is seldom a natural state. It is an achievement, and results from eliminating all assignable causes of variation, leaving only the natural, random variation of a stable process. The behaviour of such a system in the future is predictable and has a definite capability, expressible as the economic level of quality for that process (Deming 1982:319).
5. Attitude towards quality
The fifth philosophy involves the attitudes of the management of an organisation toward quality, productivity and competitive position. This philosophy is encapsulated in Deming's fourteen cardinal points (Deming 1982:13-59). These fourteen points are seen by Deming as being vital to the organisation-wide quality improvement process.
3-75 Table 3.5 Deming's fourteen points
emIng's Foamteen Pain s o a..ga ity mprovernent Create constancy of purpose for improvement of product and service.
Adopt the new philosophy of refusing to allow defects.
Cease dependence on mass inspection and rely on statistical control.
End the practice of awarding business on the basis of price tag alone.
Constantly and forever improve production and service.
Provide all employees with on the job training.
Adopt and institute leadership.
Drive out fear.
Break down barriers between staff areas.
Eliminate slogans, exhortations, and targets for the work force.
Eliminate numerical quotas for the work force and numerical goals for management.
Remove barriers that rob people of pride of workmanship.
Institute a vigorous programme of education and self-improvement for everyone.
Put everybody in the company to work to accomplish the transformation.
Source: Deming 1986:23-24
Deming's fourteen points are the basis for transformation of any organisation. It will not suffice merely to solve problems, big or little, in the system or process. Adoption and action on the fourteen points are a signal that the management
3-76 intend to stay in business and aim to protect investors and jobs. Such a system formed the basis for lessons for top management in Japan in the 1950's and in subsequent years (Deming 1986:1-6 and Appendix). The fourteen points apply anywhere, to small organisations as well as large industries, to the service industry as well as to manufacturing.
Deming (1982:15) stresses that the responsibility for these fourteen points lies with top management. Management must understand and have the authority to carry them out. By placing responsibility for these points with management, Deming is not suggesting that quality is only management's job. He argues that quality is everybody's job, but management is responsible for the leadership and commitment for the quality transformation (Deming 1982:16).
It is possible to summarise Deming's fourteen points into two main sub- philosophies as follows:
A management value system and approach for managing a company is required (points 1-5 and 14).
The worker is the most valuable asset of a company in attaining excellence in quality. This aspect requires specific management actions in supporting the worker (points 6-13).
The fourteen points are not intended to follow a sequence. Rather they are a list of management actions and responsibilities.
1 Create constancy of purpose toward improvement off product and service, with the aim to become competitive and to stay in business, and to provide jobs
In this step Deming (1982:17-18) forwards two problem areas which management have to address. First, "problems of today", which are concerned with the regulation of present quality standards and output, and second, "problems of the
3-77 future". These problems command first and foremost constancy of purpose and dedication to improvement of competitive position to ensure the company's future viability and existence.
An organisational vision must guide the corporate culture and provide a focus to the organisation. This vision equips the organisation with a long term perspective, measure management commitment, and benchmark how the organisation is doing relative to other related firms. This vision must not vary by department, by pressure of work, by time of month or by customer.
The establishment of constancy of purpose includes the acceptance of obligations such as the following (Deming 1982:18-19):
innovate for new and better ways of doing things;
allocate resources to accomplish the long term plans;
put resources into research and education;
constantly improve design of product and service;
put resources into maintenance of equipment, furniture, fixtures and new aids to production.
Constancy of purpose provides a philosophy and a framework so that decisions can be made in a consistent manner. Managers under the Deming philosophy are concerned with the problems of today and tomorrow and inspire confidence with their long term view of the company and its commitment to quality.
Embarking on the journey to quality signals the beginning of a new era and a new spirit for an organisation. Top management is infused with a spirit of change and growth, and this will filter down through the organisation. However, the journey is also filled with possible pitfalls that must be overcome to succeed. Possible
3-78 pitfalls include the following (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987:25-26):
Failure to plan for the problems of tomorrow. Management must continually plan for future developments in aspects like the following: customer needs and performance requirements, products and services, materials, methods, training and skills requirements, supervisory methods, costs of production and marketing. Failure to plan for the problems of tomorrow can be deadly to an organisation.
Management zeal to complete the mission statement. This will inevitably lead to the exclusion of input by certain groups and individuals in the organisation.
Thinking that the mission statement is cast in stone. Rigid adherence to a document only creates an inflexible system. Flexibility and adaptation are essential ingredients in the Deming framework to deal creatively with tomorrow's problems. The company's goal statement should reflect this, or the organisation will not be responsive to its vendors, customers, and others in the extended process.
2. Adopt the new phiOosophy
According to Deming (1982:19-22), traditional attitudes to quality tend to be that it is inevitable to make mistakes, and that some degree of rework and error is inevitable. He argues that no level of defects is acceptable. The foundation of the Deming philosophy is quality, its importance, how to improve it, and it's benefits. Adopting the new philosophy is synonymous with adopting a quality consciousness. This new quality consciousness is the backbone of the organisation's mission statement, embodying it with spirit and direction.
Adopting the new philosophy requires changing attitudes. This is difficult for many people because it involves moving from the known to the
3-79 unknown. This creates mistrust, fear, and anxiety, particularly for people who are satisfied with the status quo. Changing attitudes is a difficult task, but it can be made easier by giving people something more concrete to grasp. Defining what is meant by quality can create a common ground for discussion and can make clear what is expected of everyone.
Quality must be thought of as a customer-oriented philosophy. Quality should be defined as "surpassing customer needs and expectations throughout the life of the product." Definition of quality and commitment to it are top management's responsibility. Top management must infuse everyone else with the spirit of neverending improvement. This is a difficult process and some pitfalls to be avoided are as follows (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987:37-38):
Top management continuing to push for quantity while espousing a quality philosophy
This contradiction will be noticed immediately by middle management, workers, and union officials, who may then become turned off to anything having to do with the new philosophy.
The company's inattentiveness to customer feedback
Company's have to have a system whereby they can properly receive, assess, and use consumer feedback in redesign, otherwise there can be no real improvement.
Ignoring the union
Union officials should be made aware of the company's interest in moving toward the Deming philosophy, from the very beginning. They should be an integral part of the effort and should be included in the initial training of top management.
3-80 iv) Middle management's fear of change
Middle management have succeeded under the current system and may be reluctant to change. Top management must demonstrate their commitment to quality improvement by becoming visibly involved in the removal of barriers to continuous improvement.
3. Cease dependence on mass inspection to achieve quality by building quality into the product in the first place
Deming (1982:22 & 70-71) argues that routine mass inspection is synonymous with planning for defects during production, acknowledging that the process cannot make the product correctly, or that specifications made no sense in the first place.
Mass inspection is essentially checking goods with no consideration of how to make them better, improve the process, or achieve higher quality within the framework of the Deming philosophy. Moving from defect detection to defect prevention to never-ending improvement is critical to the new philosophy. Inspection only measures the extent of the problem, and does not allow any correction of the problem. Mass inspection is managing for failure. Under the new system, the goal is to manage for success. As inspection decreases due to improvements in the system, more and more of the resources spent on the inspection effort can be turned to further improvements in the system, creating a spiral of quality.
Eliminating the need for inspection on a mass basis involves funda- mental changes in how an organisation views its processes. Striving for never- ending improvement is dependent on these changes to succeed. Possible pitfalls include the following two aspects (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987:49):
3-81 i) Ignoring the importance of statistical process control
Implementing Deming's philosophy relies on both humanistic and statistical aspects, and both are necessary for success. Only statistically stable processes are predictable and ready for quantum improvement. ii) Lack of communication with vendors
To go from defect detection to defect prevention to never-ending improvement, it is necessary to work with vendors to help them improve their processes. Their outputs become inputs in the next process and no process can produce a quality output with defective inputs.
4. Minimise total cost by working with a single suppilier - end the practice of awarding business on price tag alone
Deming (1982:23-30) argues that price has no meaning without a measure of quality. Without adequate measures of quality, business will be awarded to the lowest bidder, with low quality and high cost being the inevitable result. Awarding business on the basis of price tag alone is managing for failure. If no thought is given to the quality of what is being purchased, and incoming materials are of poor quality, then the final product will be of poor quality. Awarding business on the basis of quality, in addition to price, is managing for success. It leads to single sourcing, which results in quality incoming materials as the purchasing company becomes involved in helping the supplier to improve his process over the long run.
Changing purchasing practices involves upsetting many "givens" in the marketplace. Some possible problems and pitfalls include the following two aspects (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987:67-68):
3-82 Top management resisting single sourcing
Top management has to be trained to understand the benefits of single sourcing before they will become freed of the fear of all the disasters that could potentially interrupt production.
Not providing adequate training and supervision for purchasing agents
The new role of purchasing agents will substantially change. These purchasing agents will need training in statistical methods, as well as ongoing support in adjusting to their new, more complex duties of selection of vendors on the basis of their statistically proven ability to meet required quality standards.
5. improve constantiy and forever the system of production and service to improve quality and productivity, and thus constantly reduce costs
Deming (1982:30-31) advocates that all employees in the organisation must strive toward continual reduction of waste and improvement of quality in every activity. Improved quality increases productivity due to the reduction of rework and rejected products. Systems and processes must be evaluated to ensure continual increasing effectiveness.
Making a commitment to constantly improve the system necessitates a long term perspective. Analysing, understanding, and improving the process are ongoing tasks that stretch out into the infinite future.
Constantly working to improve the system is managing for success. Quality achievement becomes management's primary objective. When management understands the sources of process variation, acts to achieve a stable process, and reduces common process variation, quality will result. The organisation succeeds through management taking responsibility for improving the system.
3-83 Constantly improving the process is strongly tied to stopping mass inspection. Achieving a stable process is necessary to minimise inspection costs. This works cyclically because the time and money saved from minimising inspection can then be put back into further improvement of the process.
Statistical methods are vital in working toward never-ending improve- ment. Everyone in the organisation need to learn basic techniques and principles to participate in the transformation process. However, the environment in the company must demonstrate the new commitment to quality, a long term perspective, and a growing trust between management and workers before statistical methods can be used.
Introducing the use of statistical methods to enhance the process of neverending improvement is a difficult and critical process. There are many pitfalls that must be avoided in working toward never-ending improvement (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987:93-95). The main ones are listed below:
Management attempting to reach never-ending improvement only through automation, and capital investments
This may be necessary, but overall system improvement using statistical methods may minimise the need for capital investment and can enable the organisation to reach its goals.
Management's inability to create an environment that is conducive to the workers' acceptance of their new tasks
Employees are going to experience many changes in the implementation of the new quality philosophy. They will be required to go through training in statistical methods, which will substantially alter their jobs. If management has not created an environment that recognises the difficulty
3-84 of this and has not offered substantial support and freedom to express doubts and concerns, workers will reject the use of statistical methods.
Managers' reluctance to make improvements that reduce their level of responsibility
Since the use of statistical methods usually lead to simplification of the process, managers may fear that their departments will become less complex, changing the need for their level of management. Managers must be informed and trained in their new roles and responsibilities in the new system.
Using statistical methods as a policing tool
Statistics should be used constructively for the purposes of never-ending improvement. Using statistics as a policing tool only creates and fosters an atmosphere of mistrust and pettiness, rather than creating an atmosphere of never-ending improvement.
6. Institute modem methods of trakdng on the job
In the Deming philosophy, people are viewed as an organisation's most valuable long term resource (Deming 1982:31-32). Management must help their people, through training, to constantly improve their skills and abilities. People want to do a good job, but they need to understand what their job is and to feel a part of the extended process. Modern training methods involve a long term perspective because use of control charts implies commitment over time, with consideration of normal variation in the system. Training becomes a process, not an entity that is completed for the sake of completing it.
Modern methods of training help to create the new corporate environment and provide a positive attitude that is necessary to compete in the new economic age.
3-85 By operationally defining what is expected of the worker and gearing training to improve what the worker already knows, management creates a positive experience. This feeling is generalised to feeling good about the organisation, about the work being done, and about himself or herself.
Training workers to achieve statistical control results in improvement of quality. The system's capability becomes known, and the company knows what it is able to produce consistently and at what price. This is vital information to customers and can make the company a much wanted supplier.
Training is extremely important in changing an organisation from its current state to a state of never-ending improvement. The entire organisation, including top management and union officials, should participate in training in the new philosophy and methods. There are, however, several pitfalls that can impede the training process (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987:108-109):
Management using training as a reaction to problems
It is very easy to throw training at a problem, instead of analysing the problem, discovering what the real issues are, and formulating and implementing a plan for dealing with it. This reaction is only a "band-aid" solution that may improve the problem in the short run, but over time will not solve the problem and may create more problems.
Continuing to rely on on-the-job training
Management has to give up the notion that employees can train each other. It is management's responsibility to provide employees with the tools to do their jobs. One of those tools are proper training. Deming considers reliance on on-the-job training a serious disease in modern industry.
3-86 Failure to realise that training is a process requiring never-ending improvement
Management has a tendency to believe that when people have completed training, they are trained for ever. Training is a process that should be constantly refined.
Delaying implementation of the training
Once people are trained, they should be given the opportunity to use what they have learned as soon as possible. This will substantially reinforce their learning.
7 Adopt and institute leadership: modem methods of supervision
Supervision is a critical link between top management and workers. Instituting modern methods of supervision is key in changing an organisation, because supervisors wield a lot of power in their interpretation of management's edicts and actions. Deming (1982:32-33) suggests that the responsibility of supervisors be changed from sheer output targets to incorporate a quality component. Supervisors must be responsible for identifying barriers to the quality improvement process. Therefore, management has to work closely and carefully with supervisors to ensure their acceptance of the new philosophy and the carrying out of their new responsibilities. Management has to provide a role model for supervisors, helping people accept change and creating a supportive environment.
The new method of supervision concretely demonstrates a long term perspective. Using control charts to monitor the worker's performance necessitates a long term view because the worker is looked at over time, rather than on a day-to-day or hour-to-hour basis. By concentrating on process control and considering normal variation, the supervisor is clearly
3-87 communicating management's long term commitment.
Another way that the new supervision demonstrates long term commit- ment is through the amount of time and resources that are devoted to employees and their learning and development. The supervisor's job is to promote the growth and development of the employee through a long term trusting relationship. It is within the context of this relationship that the new philosophy is made real for the worker and the employee can believe that top management cares about its workers.
Instituting modern methods of supervision is managing for success. It generates a positive atmosphere because supervisors are not policing workers and blaming them for the handicaps of the system. The worker is treated with dignity, trained and supervised properly, and knows what the job is so that performance can improve. It is a cycle of positives that is set into motion by the new supervision methods and attitudes.
Changing the way supervision is practiced is a very important element of the journey to quality. It involves major alterations in people's day-to-day existences at work. Problems that may impede efforts to improve include the following (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987:126-127): i) Failing to view the worker as a whole human being
Employees are humans with lives outside of the organisation. Taking a long term view can help supervisors support an employee through illness, family problems, or substance-abuse problems. If the employee is seen as a valuable resource to the organisation, these difficult times that everyone experiences occasionally should be looked on as temporary and surmountable, not as something for which the worker is penalised.
3-88 ii) Ignoring the union in the implementation of the new supervision methods
Union people have to understand supervision with statistical methods. They must be involved in training in the new philosophy, from the beginning, so that they can understand the type of supervisory climate you are trying to create. Otherwise, they will think that this is just a more sophisticated, precise way to police employees, and they may sabotage your efforts.
8. Drive out fear, so that everyone may work effectiveiy for the company
If quality is to improve in all aspects of the organisation, then the quality of work life must improve for everyone. People need a consistent, supportive, nonthreatening, secure environment in which to work. This can only be achieved through top management's commitment to treat people in a manner that allays fears and anxieties. Top management has to be given that same type of atmosphere, boards of directors and stockholders cannot motivate managers by fear. Otherwise, the mandate will be to use fear on subordinates to achieve goals. The quality improvement process is founded on employee involvement and understanding, two factors which are unlikely to emerge where employees are fearful in their jobs (Deming 1982:33-35).
Setting up long term goals that are consistent with the new philosophy will aid in driving out fear. People will be impressed with the new goals of improved training and supervision, not blaming workers for problems in the system - all of which are indicators of management's commitment to reducing fears. Using control charts to monitor the process involves a long term perspective on process improvement that will eventually assist to reduce fear. The workers will become more open and honest about discussing barriers to performing their jobs because they will sense that problems will be acted upon. When fear is in the system, everyone in it operates for short term gain at the other's expense, instead of as a team
3- 89 with a long term goal of quality and process improvement.
Driving out fear involves managing for success. Management provides the workers with adequate training, good supervision, and proper tools to do the job. Management measures performance fairly by using control charts to separate problems of the system from those of the workers. People are treated with dignity, and fear is removed from the work environment. When all of these elements are in place, people want to work with management for the overall good of the organisation and to share in its success.
Eliminating fear is one of the first things that should be acted on in the organisation's journey to quality. It can bring about tremendous changes if management is sensitive and responsive to people's concerns. Potential pitfalls include the following (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987:137-138):
Avoiding the problems of people
Human beings have emotions that strongly influence their behaviour. Their fears are a barrier to their emotional well-being and their job performance. Managers' job is dealing with employees' problems, eliminating their fears, and encouraging their development as people. Managers have to relate to employees on a person-to-person basis and should accept their employees' anxieties as normal emotions that can be dealt with and ameliorated. After all, managers may have experienced the same fears and should be able to communicate this to their subordinates.
Not planning for the new fears that the new philosophy may create
Management's concentration on driving out existing fears may involve a serious oversight. Implementation of the new system may introduce new fears into the environment, such as the fear of opening up and revealing oneself, and a mistrust of management's new attitude. These new fears will have to be foreseen and be dealt with in training and supervision.
3-90 Management may feel that it has traded in one set of fears for another, and become frustrated. However, ignoring the new fears will not make them go away. They can be handled properly if management addresses them and works with employees and the union to alleviate them.
9. Break down organisational° barriers - everyone must work as a team to foresee and solve probiems
The internal organisational structure gives rise to barriers between departments, and barriers between areas within departments. Competi- tion, personal grudges, different ways of looking at a problem, and different priorities are common barriers to communication and team-work. Barriers also exist between levels in the hierarchy. Poor communication between employees and supervisors, supervisors and middle management, and middle and upper management is common.
Every department and individual in the organisation must be seen as a customer and a supplier. They receive products and services from colleagues in the process and after working on it, pass it on to the next stage in the process. Prior to reaching its final user, a product or service has been impacted on by many individuals or departments, all of whom will have an effect on its quality. It is therefore important that each individual or department in the process is aware of the quality requirements of the next stage in the process. An internal client attitude must prevail to ensure continuous quality of products and services (Deming 1982:33-35).
Breaking down barriers requires a long term perspective. These barriers were created over a long period of time, and it will take time and patience to remove them. If an organisation is to adopt the new philosophy of never- ending improvement of quality in the extended process, then all areas have to work as an integrated whole. Vendors should be involved and be communicating freely with the organisation. Customer surveys and employee surveys should be done to break down barriers between the
3-91 organisation and its consumers and employees. Labour unions and management have to remove obstacles that impede their cooperation. Removing barriers to communication between all of these entities in the extended process is an important aspect of adopting the new philosophy.
Driving out fear and breaking down barriers between all members of the extended organisation will go a long way in signalling the arrival of the new system and the eventual phasing out of the old one. Breaking down barriers in organisations is a difficult endeavour, but its rewards are great. Pitfalls that may impede efforts include the following (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987:150-152):
Management's fear of losing the chain of command
Managers, who are take-charge people, may have a difficult time giving up some control to the teams. They may see it as undermining their authority and may not be able to give the team the autonomy it needs to function.
Management's denial that barriers exist
Managers like to believe that they are doing a good job at working with their people. The news that people in their department don't communicate with them or each other is generally greeted with denial and avoidance. Barriers can be so strong and so engrained in an organisation that the thought of removing them is absolutely overwhelming.
Failure to deal with people's fears
Efforts at breaking down barriers can be impeded by fearful employees who are scared of the change. They have learned how to get along in the old system, they know it and are comfortable with it. But they are unsure what .their role will be in the new system and are consequently scared. They will tend to cling to something familiar - the grapevine - which can become a
3-92 very negative, destructive force. It can distort information, reinforce old barriers, create new ones, and generally wreak havoc on attempts to transform the organisation.
10. Eliminate arbitrary numerical goals, posters, and slogans Tor the workforce which seek new levels of productivity without providing the methods to achieve them
Eliminating arbitrary numerical goals for the workforce is a strong statement that signals management's commitment to the never-ending improvement of quality (Deming 1982:36-40). Management must demonstrate a long term perspective and a constancy of purpose by unifying the entire organisation around this larger goal. Everyone should be made aware of management's desire to stay in business and to compete on the basis of quality improvement, as opposed to pushing the workers on quantity. Therefore, the new goals will now be set in the quality context, instead of . arbitrarily targeting some "magic" number as a goal to reach. The new attitude will be graphically shown to workers when posters and slogans are removed from the work-place. Replacing arbitrary goals with the use of statistical methods, particularly process control charts; will also aid in strengthening management's credibility. Workers will begin to believe that they are not being pushed to produce, penalised for variation, or expected to bear the burden of management for taking responsibility for the system.
The training and ongoing supervision that will be provided will be so thorough and comprehensive that the use of posters and slogans will seem ludicrous. Supervisory relationships that are developed over time, allowing trust, support and guidance to replace fear and insecurity, will motivate employees far more than a numerical goal or poster ever could.
Removing posters and slogans from the workplace and replacing them with meaningful goals, eliminating arbitrary numerical goals and their derivatives, and introducing planning based on statistical process control
3-93 are key action points on the Deming agenda. Potential pitfalls are the following (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987:161-162):
Management's inability to trust the new goals
Management traditionally has relied heavily upon numerical goals because it holds the erroneous nations that these: (a) let individuals clearly know what is expected of them, (b) improve communication between supervisors and subordinates, and (c) are needed as motivators to keep people on track. Programmes or campaigns which command a task but leave the worker powerless to achieve the objective constitute management by fear.
Using numerical goals for evaluation
A common belief is that numerical goals make the evaluation process more equitable by pausing on specific accomplishments and by letting subordinates know how they are doing in relation to the organisation's goals. The problem is that not all accomplishments can be quantified and not all accomplishments (or their lack) are due to the employee's efforts. The system may be responsible.
11. Replacing management by numbers with never-ending improvement
Work standards, measured day work, and piece work are names given to a practice in industry that is contributing greatly to the demise of quality, productivity, and competitive position (Deming 1982:40-43). Management demonstrates its short term perspective by establishing work standards and quotas. Both of these are set at a particular point in time and often fail to take into account changes in the process over time. Eliminating work standards and replacing them with control charts that can analyse, monitor, and change the process will signal the commitment to a long term perspective.
3- 94 Employing statistical process control charts is managing for success because it allows management to see what really exists in the process, not only some arbitrary figure that it desires. Everyone become involved with actions that can improve quality. The environment undergoes a transformation and becomes a positive, successful, quality-oriented place to work.
Getting rid of work standards and quotas will be difficult because they are so much a part of many organisations. Transformation cannot take place, though, unless they are eliminated. Possible pitfalls in this process include the following (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987:170).
Clinging to a short term view
One of the pitfalls management can succumb to is not realising the long-run process improvement potential of eliminating standards and quotas. Maintaining a short term view, rather than a process view, will cause the further decline of productivity, quality and competitive position.
Accepting current work standards as the "Best We Can Do"
Often, the present work standard is nationalised as a technological limit of performance for the process. This reduces hopes for long term process improvements because people feel that there is no possibility to get better. Management has to refuse to condone this line of reasoning and must continue to stress never-ending improvement. Pilot projects that succeed in process improvement have to be a priority, and their results should be communicated to everyone in the organisation to inspire further improvements.
12. Remove barriers that rob people of their pride of workmanship
Deming (1982:43-47) stresses the importance of treating and involving
3-95 hourly paid employees in the quality improvement process. These employees have an important role to play in the quality improvement process, and must be provided with the understanding, opportunity, and tools required to participate.
Restoring pride of workmanship necessitates a long term perspective on management's part. Employees must be viewed as the most valuable resource of the organisation and their pride of workmanship as essential to the company's existence in the long run. Workers who are not frustrated about barriers to the performance of their jobs will put forth their best efforts for the good of their company. Establishing constancy of purpose, developing a mission statement, and socialising employees to the mission will aid in developing the worker's identification with the goals of the company and pride in being part of an organisation that has as its mission never-ending improvement of quality.
In contrast, managing for failure, accepting poor quality as a way of life, and handicapping employees with problems in the system - rob all workers of their right to pride of workmanship. Management must provide workers with defect free materials, must use statistical methods to analyse and act on causes of variation, and must provide proper supervision and training to do this. Managing for success involves a positive approach to problem solving, communication between and within departments, and elimination of fear, all of which will contribute to pride of workmanship.
Removing barriers to pride of workmanship is an ongoing process that requires constant attention to details and sincere concern for employees. Failure to act on this point "may be the single most important contribution of management to poor quality and loss of market, save for failure to act on Point 1" (Deming 1982:66). The following are some of the possible pitfalls that could impede management's efforts to restore pride of workmanship (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987:179-180):
3-96 Top management's isolation from employees
Top management is protected by an absorbing layer of middle management, whose job often is to make top management think everything is fine. Top management then views the organisation through rose- coloured glasses, believing that the employees can take pride in their work. Management doesn't realise the degree to which employees fear physical harm due to unsafe equipment, have to work with defective materials, are not properly trained and supervised, etc., so consequently it doesn't realise that things need to be changed.
Establishing a Quality Control Department
Setting up one department as responsible for quality sends the message to everyone else that quality is not their concern. Management has to help everyone incorporate never-ending improvement of quality into their every action. Otherwise, there is a loss of pride because management is seen as not really caring about the individual employee's level of quality.
Failure to follow through on employee's suggestions
Very few things can anger and disenfranchise an employee as much as being ignored. Being unresponsive to workers by not following through, or failure to give feedback on why something can't be done or why there are delays is unconscionable. Putting up a suggestion box is worse than useless if no one gives feedback on the employee's ideas. It will only serve as a symbol of management's inability to relate to employees and of its reluctance to deal with problems face-on.
13. institute a vigorous program of education and seif-improvement for everyone
Training (Point 6) provides an immediate change in behaviour. Results of
3-97 education may not manifest themselves immediately, but it can have far reaching long term effects. Education develops employees for changes in their current and future jobs, in respect of procedures, materials, machinery, techniques, quality characteristics, and operational definitions. Everyone's job will be changing to incorporate the use of statistical methods, from management to hourly workers. Education must be provided so that the transformation process can occur smoothly. Education and training can prevent employee burnout because employees are exposed to new information and are provided with a forum to discuss problems. This can be very valuable because it stimulates interest in the job and encourages involvement in problem solving.
Other areas that education and training could cover include basic skills such as maths, reading, and verbal and written communication; job related subjects such as chemistry or electronics; and personal improvement topics such as substance-abuse education or stress reduction. The reason for providing in these needs is often because public education has not met the needs adequately. The organisation must attend to its employees' educational needs if it wants to utilise them to their fullest potential and to promote job satisfaction.
Education and retraining are critical components of managing for success (Deming 1982:47-49). Being responsive to customers' changing needs is an important part of never-ending improvement of quality. If an organisation does not educate and retrain its employees in state-of-the-art methods, there is a low probability that customers' needs will be met.
Several pitfalls in relation to training have been discussed in Point 6. However, continuous education and retraining involve two additional potential problem areas (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987:189-190):
3-98 I) Management's reluctance to get involved
Sometimes top management feels that it really doesn't have a need for continuous education or retraining and that this need only applies to the workforce. Self-improvement is an ongoing task of education and self- development, and is the responsibility of every member of the organisation. ii) Service departments' belief that never-ending improvement of quality applies only to manufacturing areas
This is a common misconceptioh, usually brought about by the use of only production examples in training. All efforts should be made to develop service examples, as the tools, methods and requirements are equally applicable to service areas.
14. Structuring for never-ending improvement
Point fourteen is the embodiment of the philosophy itself. Its major thrust is that top management has to accept the responsibility for the never- ending improvement of quality in organisations and has to create a structure conducive to the implementation of this philosophy (Deming 1982:49-50). Without top management's realisation that it is in deep . trouble and that it must make a commitment to change, frustration at the lower levels is inevitable, and workers will labour in an atmosphere full of inconsistencies, inequities, needless competition, and fear. This will wear down and burn out middle management and employees.
Changing the structure of an organisation necessitates a long term perspective because the short term effects may be somewhat chaotic and unsettling. Until top management has trained a substantial number of people in the new philosophy, confusion, distrust, and miscommunication may exist. Management can only undertake these organisational changes if it is prepared to allow enough time for people to adapt to the new
3-99 structure and methods. Patience and an understanding of the process of change will enable management to see the company through its metamorphosis.
Pushing the 14 points means absorbing them and living them in a manner that integrates statistical methods, an understanding of systems and a concern for everyone in the organisation. This holistic approach is a proven way to improve quality, increase productivity, and gain competitive advantage.
3.2.2.2.3 Summary
Deming is widely regarded as the person who helped to bring about the Japanese quality revolution. He is associated with SPC and other problem-solving techniques which measures performance in all processes. His definition of quality is that of satisfying the customer, not merely to meet his expectations, but to exceed them (Deming 1982:225). Deming has stressed the need to stay ahead of the customer, to anticipate his needs and demands, and his philosophy thus starts and finishes with the customer. The aim is to add value which the customer wants.
The means to improve quality are in the ability to control and manage systems and processes properly, and the nature of management responsibilities in achieving this. SPC aims to improve processes and reduce the inevitable variation which occurs in production from common and special causes. Common causes of variation are systematic and are shared by many operators, machines or products. The elimination of common causes is the responsibility of management. Special causes relate to the lack of knowledge or skill or poor performance and are the responsibility of operators and workers.
Deming stressed the responsibility of top management to take the lead in changing processes and systems. Management should give workers clear guidelines for what is considered acceptable work, and provide the tools to
3 - 100 achieve it. These tools include the appropriate working environment and climate for work - free of fault finding, blame or fear. Deming also strongly promoted employee participation at all levels of the quality improvement process. Table 2.9 depicts the key characteristics of Deming's approach to TOM.
Table 3.6 Salient characteristics of Deming's approach to TOM
CATEGO ''Y ELEMENTS OF QUALITY' (FOCUS PONT
A General Definition of quality Customer led Main emphasis Process Dominant factor Control of variation Scope of application Holistic Applicability-sector Manufacturing emphasis
B External Customer focus Surprise, delight customers; anticipate customer needs Market focus (environment) Quality needed to stay in business Vendor/buyer relationship Considered integral; quality requirement of vendors
C Organisational Primary change agent Top management context Top management role To promote quality, to improve the system Management style Participative Quality as an organisational culture Organisation culture Integrated-need to break down . "barriers"
D Organisational Top management commitment Essential starting point requirements Employee involvement/participation Essential Education and training Essential - a vigourous programme Inventment in non-human Not specified resources
E Means/ Cost of quality (appreciated) Reduce total costs techniques Training programmes Essential - especially training on etc. the job for all to reskill Participation feedback Achieve in both positive way (eg. (eg. communication, quality teamwork) and negative way (eg circles) drive out fear, eliminate exhortations) Statistical process control Statistical methods Increased job satisfaction through Recognition/rewards system quality and pride in workmanship. Performance appraisal irrelevant. End mass inspection, which accept errors/defects. Inspection procedures Obtain statistical evidence of built in quality.
F Change Pace of change Implicit gradual in implementing the 14 points Nature of change . Continuous improvement philosphy Source: Own compilation
3 - 101 3.2.2.3 Kaoru Ishikawa
3.2.2.3.1 Brief biography
Kaoru Ishikawa was born in 1915, and earned a degree in applied chemistry from the Engineering Department of the University of Tokyo in 1939. After World War II he became involved in Japan's efforts to promote quality. In 1947, he was appointed as assistant professor at the University of Tokyo, and, after obtaining a doctorate of engineering, he was promoted to the position of full professor in 1960. He became president of the Musashi Institute of Technology and, until his death in 1989, was the foremost figure in Japan regarding quality management. He was the first to use the term "total quality control" and developed the "Seven Tools" that he thought any worker could use (Ishikawa 1985:44). He received many awards during his life, including the Deming Prize, the Second Order of the Sacred Treasure, the Nikon Keizai Press Prize, and the Grant Award from the American Society for Quality Control for his educational programme on quality control.
3.2.2.3.2 Ishikawa's approach to TQM
Ishikawa defines quality as the development, design, production and service of a product that is most economical, most useful, and always satisfactory to the customer (Ishikawa 1985:44). He argues that quality control goes beyond the product and encompasses after-sales service, quality of management, quality of individuals and the company itself. Ishikawa (1985:44) also advocates that, since ensuring the production of a quality product or service is impacted on by the entire organisation, and since the essence of TQM is the prevention of defects, everyone in the organisation must participate in and promote quality control, including top executives, all divisions within the organisation, and all employees.
Ishikawa (1985:172-84) states that TQM is a revolutionary management philosophy characterised by five strategic goals.
3 - 102
1. Seek quality before profits
This requires a fundamental change that ideally starts at the top and gradually permeates the entire organisational belief system. Communi- cating the importance of quality requires that top management:
establish long-term quality objectives as key elements in corporate strategy;
maintain support of quality when significant trade-off decisions are made;
maintain performance standards and conformance to requirements;
avoid giving double messages to employees;
encourage behaviour that seeks to improve rather than maintain the existing business.
By recognising the interrelationship between customer satisfaction, quality, and market share, managers will be able to realise their traditional bottom line profit goals as the returns from paying for high quality exceeds the incremental costs of achieving it. If an overly inflated price is not charged for the increased quality, the firm can gain a disproportionately higher market share with its quality investment.
2. Develop employees° it human potential through education, training, delegation, and positive reinforcement
For TQM to take hold and permeate the organisation, companywide employee participation is essential. In order to accomplish quality improvement, quality of work life strategies must be well developed. Extensive training is required to expand each employee's knowledge of
3 - 103 various functions. Managers need to develop the skills of communication, listening, and clarifying in order to specify clear requirements, delegate assignments, and enable employees to find the source of problems rather than continually put out fires. Understanding motivational theory and the management skills of delegation and positive reinforcement is necessary for the manager interested in involving people in the identification and permanent resolution of quality and productivity problems.
Ishikawa (1985:140-143) recommends that the vehicle whereby employees can participate in the quality improvement process is through the establishment of a Quality Circle (QC) programme. The basic philo- sophy of QC activities carried out as part of company-wide quality improvement activities are:
contribute to the improvement and development of the enterprise;
respect humanity and build a worthwhile-to-live-in, happy and productive workarea;
exercise human capabilities fully, and eventually capitalise on these infinite possibilities.
A QC is defined as (Ishikawa 1985:139):
a small group;
performing quality improvement activities;
voluntarily;
within the same workshop or workarea.
3 - 104 This small group's activities are:
continuous, with all members participating;
part of the company-wide quality improvement activities;
self-development as well as mutual development;
control and improvement within their workarea;
utilising quality improvement techniques.
The TQM process links employee participation and human resource development activities directly to the financial goals of the organisation. Employees' attitudes and behaviours are recognised as the very basis of quality and productivity gains. Each employee is seen as a creative innovator and source of ideas to improve the products and services of the company. The importance of shared high-quality goals cannot be overstated. People who believe in their product or service and are committed to what they are doing experience feelings of pride and self- worth that are the essence of TQM. Successful TQM managers are skilled at the development of high-quality goals, and work in their organisations serves as a powerful source of intrinsic employee motivation.
3. &did iong-term consumer orientation, both outside and inside the organisation
The TQM process places primary importance on meeting customer requirements, whether these requirements occur inside or outside the company (Ishikawa 1985:44). A customer is defined as someone who receives a product or service. For example, the marketing department might be the product engineering department's customer or vice versa.
3 - 105 Meeting customer requirements means that various functions must work together to establish these requirements and clarify them as never before. When changes in procedures occur, they are reviewed by internal customers to determine whether the requirements need to be changed. No assumptions are made, all requirements are verified and acted upon. The consequence of this single process is ongoing and extensive communication and the development of measurements, documents, and procedures that people can trust. The extent of new structural policies and reward-system changes required to encourage this customer orientation is easily under estimated. The full extent to which corporations need to be market-oriented is also frequently misunderstood. Firms known for quality products and services establish quality standards based on their market requirements rather than engineering requirements or traditional financial considerations.
Companies that are serious about meeting customer requirements are also serious about developing close working relationships with their suppliers (Ishikawa 1985:159-160). Suppliers are significant contributors to any quality improvement process. Internal effectiveness is dependent upon the quality of external parts received. Company's with a strong quality focus, typically:
develop strong interdependent relationships with a small number of vendors;
hold vendors responsible for delivering a defect-free product;
actively involve vendors in product development and knowledge of product use.
The result of this shared interest in quality improvement is an informal network of companies that are bound together by their commitment to TQM and their ability to meet the time and quality standards it
3 - 106 necessitates.
4. Communicate throughout the organisation with facts and statistical data and use measurement as motivation
For a quality management system to be effective, communication of problems and issues must take place across functional boundaries and up and down the entire organisation. To accomplish this goal, it is essential that there be a common language in place that deals factually with problems. Measurement and statistical data provide this type of language (Ishikawa 1986:1). In many companies, the tools of measurement are not used to their full capacity but as an employee control that can impede productivity.
Statistical quality control tools have traditionally been used quite differently than is the case in a TQM approach.
Traditionally, statistical quality control is:
found primarily in manufacturing areas;
related to acceptable quality levels and the process of rejecting parts;
seen primarily as a management tool to control workers' nonconformance.
On the other hand, the TQM approach to statistics:
emphasises the existence of measurements in all functions;
uses measurements to monitor progress toward shared goals, with the emphasis on tracking prevention and improvement rather than
3 - 107 making accept/reject decisions;
uses measurements to communicate across departmental boundaries with data;
uses measurements to make decisions at both the management and operations level;
uses measurements to generate shared goals and to reinforce achievement.
Measurement and statistics become the language used by management and employees to discuss common problems and to communicate effectively across departmental boundaries. Accurate measurements and data go a long way toward resolving conflicts that result from opinions and hip-shooting decision styles and provide solid data on which to base management decisions. Measurement and statistics become the essen-tial link between people and productivity. With jointly established quality and productivity standards and continuous measurement the employee, every employee, becomes a manager. The supervisor in turn becomes more of a facilitator and provides positive reinforcement when there is measurable improvement.
5. Develop a companywide T itfi process focusing ail employees on the quality-related) implications of every decision and action at all stages of the product or service-development continuum from design to sales
Extensive communication and an effective problem solving system characterise the TQM process (Ishikawa 1985:196). In an environment that supports quality improvement, every employee understands what he or she is expected to do, recognises the costs that result from nonconformance of product or service, and feels responsible and able
3 - 108 to do it right the first time. To accomplish this goal, extensive communication is necessary and procedures are in place that ensure early communication of the requirements between the various functions. This communication greatly increases the chances of a successful outcome.
Early intervention and involvement of employees result in better decisions and in employees who are knowledgeable about all phases of the development cycle. In addition to early employee involvement in product development, a TOM process will have an effective problem solving structure, able to resolve problems across departmental boundaries. Quality circles are supported by higher level management teams that can resolve interdepartmental issues. Overlapping groups are an effective concept used to increase quality and productivity:
problem-solving teams with high-performance goals are linked together by persons who occupy overlapping memberships in several groups;
problem solving teams exist at all levels in the organisation;
identified problems are resolved at the lowest possible level;
problems that cannot be solved are sent to the next level of management;
higher level teams represent more than one function.
Ishikawa classifies statistical quality control techniques into two groups of increasing complexity. The first group is the classic Seven Tools and require minimal statistical knowledge. The Seven Tools are: i) Pareto diagram (Ishikawa 1986:42-49)
3 - 109 Cause-and-effect diagram (Ishikawa 1986:18-29) Histograms (Ishikawa 1986:5-17) Check sheets (Ishikawa 1986:30-41) Scatter diagrams (Ishikawa 1986:86-95) Graphs (Ishikawa 1986:50-60) Control charts (Ishikawa 1986:61-85)
Ishikawa believed that these seven tools should be known and applied widely, if not by everyone, in the company. They should certainly not be the preserve of experts, and are simple enough for everyone to use for ongoing improvement. More specifically they should be used by quality circle members in analysing problems and devising improvements. Used together, they form a powerful set of statistical tools for everyday use.
The second group of statistical methods are for use by quality specialists and also by managers who have responsibility for quality in their sections. These methods include, but are not limited to:
Sampling (Ishikawa 1986:108-116) Hypothesis testing (Ishikawa 1986:96-107) Sampling inspection (Ishikawa 1986:117-137)
3.2.2.3.3 Summary
It is evident that Ishikawa considers TQM to be a participative form of quality improvement, whereby quality responsibility is decentralised.
The decentralisation of quality responsibility means that responsibility for quality is not being left with a central quality department. It assumes that all individuals and functions within the organisation are responsible for their own quality and thus for the quality of the organisation as a whole. Ishikawa (1985:50-88) stresses that this process of decentralising quality responsibility needs to be promoted and
3 - 110 directed by management.
A number of deliberate actions on the part of management are required to ensure that it is supported and encouraged. First, in order to facilitate the decentrali- sation of quality responsibility, management must adopt a management style which will allow intervention in decision making by subordinates. Where they do not, the workforce will not participate in the quality improvement ,process. Second, training aimed specifically at quality improvement must be provided. This education needs to be provided to all levels within the organisation and must be given on a continuous basis. Third, management are responsible for establishing and distributing a quality policy throughout the organisation. This policy should make clear the intentions of management regarding the importance of quality and the decentralisation of quality responsibility.
The salient characteristics of Ishikawa's approach to TQM are summarised in Table 3.7.
Table 3.7 Salient characteristics of Ishikawa's approach to TQM
CATEGORY :: :-:-.::: ..... ISLE ENTS:OF QUALITY .-::::::::-.:.:FOCUS.POINTS
. . A General Definition of quality Value led Main emphasis Individual quality Dominant factor Perceived consumer value Scope of application Holistic Applicability-sector Manufacturing emphasis, but also supplies to services
B External Customer focus Integral to quality definition and interface management Market focus (environment) Quality - an important source • of empetitive advantage Vendor/buyer relationship Selected suppliers in partnership for quality
C Organisational Primary change agent Top management context Top management role To promote quality, to improve the system Management style Participative Quality as an organisational culture - • Organisation culture Integrated-need to break down "barriers"
3 - 111 D Organisational Top management commitment Essential requirements Employee involvement/participation Essential Education and training Essential for all employees Inventment in non-human resources As part of overall quality drive
E Means/ Cost of quality (appreciated) Improvement - quality reduces techniques other costs etc. Training programmes Essential. All employees should be competent in statistical process control and problem solving Participation feedback Advocate of quality circles, as (eg. communication, quality a means for participation and circles) problem solving. Statistical methods Statistical process control Recognition/rewards system Quality behaviour and performance to be rewarded Inspection procedures Inspection part of oepratives role, essential in manufa.cturing
F Change Pace of change Gradual Nature of change Continuous improvement
Source: Own compilation
3.2.2.4 Joseph M. Juran
3.2.2.4.1 Brief biography
Joseph M. Juran was born in 1904 in Rumania, and went to the United States in 1912. A holder of degrees in engineering and law, he advanced to the positions of quality manager at Westerh Electric company, government administrator and professor of engineering at New York University before embarking on a consulting career in 1950. Juran is regarded as one of the architects of the quality revolution in Japan, where he lectured and consulted frequently, starting in 1954. However, he feels that the people mainly responsible for the Japanese quality revolution have been the Japanese operating managers and quality specialists (Juran 1994:31). In 1979, he founded the Juran Institute, which conducts quality training seminars and publishes quality-related work.
3- 112 3.2.2.4.2 Juran's approach to TQM
Juran's approach to quality improvement focuses on management leadership and organisation, as opposed to statistical tools and techniques (Lodge .1989:118).
According to Juran (1988 b:2.6), managing for quality improvement is done by means of a quality trilogy consisting of three managerial processes: planning, control and improvement.
Quality planning is the process of developing products and processes required to meet customers' needs. It involves a series of universal steps (Juran 1988 b:2.6):
Determine who are the customers.
Determine the needs of the customers.
Develop product features which respond to customer's needs.
Develop processes which are able to produce those product features.
Transfer the resulting plan to the operating forces.
Quality control is a process used by the operating forces as an aid to meeting product and process goals. It is based on the feedback loop, and consists of the following steps (Juran 1988 b:2.6):
Evaluate actual operating performance.
Compare actual performance to goals.
0 Act on the difference.
The quality improvement process aims to attain levels of performance which are
3 - 113 significantly better than any past levels of performance. When such levels of performance are reached, Juran (1988 b:5.20) refers to the process as a "breakthrough". The quality improvement process is composed of a sequence of activities (Juran 1988 b:22.6-22.12):
Awareness: this is the phase of convincing managers that there is a need to do something different with respect to quality.
Setting goals: goals for the quality improvement process must be set at both the organisation and department levels, and should provide the basis against which the quality improvement process can be measured.
Organising the overall process: this involves a number of activities, all of which are dependent on top management support and involvement.
Juran defines quality as "fitness for use" (Juran 1988 b:24). Fitness for use is the extent to which a product or service successfully serves the needs of the user, internal or external, during usage. He proposes that two elements of any product or service have a large impact on quality. The first is product performance. The extent to which products and services perform and, therefore, meet the needs of customers will influence the degree of product satisfaction. The primary goal of product perfortance is to be equal, or superior, to the quality of competing products. The second element is freedom from deficiencies. Deficiencies result in complaints, claims, returns and rework. They collectively are forms of product dissatisfaction. Some deficiencies impact on external customers and hence are a threat to future sales as well as a source of higher costs. Other deficiencies impact on internal customers only and hence are mainly a source of increased costs (Juran 1988 a:5).
Fitness for use is determined by those features of the product or service which the user can recognise as being beneficial to him, and is judged by the user and not by the manufacturer. Juran classifies quality characteristics into categories known as parameters of fitness for use. The major parameters are (Juran 1988 b:2.9- 2.11):
3 - 114 Quality of design;
Quality of conformance;
The "Abilities";
Field service.
Quality of design is a technical term and can be regarded as a composite of three separate steps in a common progression of activities:
Identification of what constitutes fitness for use to the user;
Choice of a concept of product or service to be responsive to the identified needs of the user;
Translation of the chosen product concept into a detailed set of .specifications which, if faithfully executed, will meet the user's needs.
The extent to which a product conforms to the design specifications is called quality of conformance.
The "abilities" of a product are its availability, reliability and maintainability and are mainly required for long-life products. Short-life products (food, fuel) have their fitness for use determined mainly by quality of design and quality of conformance. The abilities are closely interrelated and are vital for fitness for use.
The final parameter is field service. The usual determining features of this parameter are:
It relates to activities that are carried out after the sale rather than before the sale.
3 - 115
It is performed by organisations or departments regarded as service industries or departments rather than manufacturers.
It includes extensive contractual and informal contact directly with the user.
The above four parameters are depicted in the form of a diagram, as shown in figure 3.8.
Figure 3.8 Interrelation among Juran's quality parameters
NTERRELATIOITAMOKIG:JURAWS.QUALITY
Quality of De.sign Quality of market research Quality of concept Quality of specification
Quality of Conformance Technology Fitness Manpower for use Management Reliability
Availability Maintainability Logistical support Promptness
Field Service Competence Integrity
Source: Own compilation
Due to the central role occupied by the satisfaction of customer needs in defining quality, Juran (1988 b:2.4) believes that quality is not a static term. He believes that it evolves and changes as the customer's needs and requirements change over time. This means that quality standards need to be continually reviewed, revised and improved.
The entire cluster of activities through which fitness for use is achieved, irrespective of where these activities are performed, are contained in Juran's
3 - 116
quality spiral (Juran 1988 b:2.5) and is depicted in figure 3.9.
Figure 3.9 Juran's spiral of quality
Customer Further Product Development Marketing
U Product Customers Development
Operations
Source: Juran 1988 b:2.5
The spiral shows the typical sequence of activities for putting a product or service in the market. The first turn of the spiral of progress starts with the definition of customer needs to enable proper product development. At the end of that turn the experience of use creates new ideas which start a new turn of the spiral for further improvement. The intermediate stages of the spiral will now be discussed for clarification.
1 illiarket research
Market research for the quality parameter is needed for the development of new products, and for monitoring the performance of current products (Juran 1988 b:12.2).
The main purpose of this step is to identify user needs, to asses if they are being met, and if not, to determine the cause. The information gathered during this stage amounts to the identification of customer requirements, and is used in the next step of the spiral : product development.
3 - 117 Product deveDoprnent
Product development relates to the process of translating the needs of the user (learned through market research), into a set of product design requirements for manufacturing (Juran 1988 b:13.2). This activity is also known as research and development, product engineering or design, and its role is to develop a product which meets all the customer's requirements. According to Juran (1988 b:13.3) there is increasing evidence that many fitness-for-use problems can be traced to the design stage of product development.
Supplier relations
The q-Ciality of items purchased for use in the production process is very important as it will directly impact on the quality of the final product. Where the quality of purchased materials is poor, either inspection costs or after sales failure rates will be unacceptably high (Juran 1988 b:15.2).
The overall objective is the creation of a partnership with a supplier that guarantees the quality of purchased goods to ensure that a minimum of incoming inspection or corrective action is required.
Rflaroufacturiing pinning
Manufacturing planning refers to the accumulation of activities which place a factory in a state of readiness to meet quality and processing standards (Juran 1988 b:16.2). A major objective of these activities is the prevention of defects. The process begins with the examination of the design concept to identify alternative approaches to manufacture the product, and is concluded when the production process is prepared and set-up for the production personnel to commence production (Juran 1988 b:16.3).
3 - 118 5. Production
Production is the activity of running the processes, machines and tools, and of performing the associated mental and manual operations to produce final products from basic raw materials and other components (Juran 1988 b:17.2).
Juran (1988 b:17.4-17.5) emphasises the importance of having all decisions and actions related to product quality under the control of the production workers themselves. However, the creation of such a state of self-control requires that certain essential criteria must be met (Juran 1988 b:17.4-17.5). Employees must be provided with all the means to:
know and relate to the objective;
measure their performance;
regulate the process.
The three basic criteria for self-control make possible a separation of defects into categories of controllability. If all three criteria for self-control have been met, a defect or nonconformity is the responsibility of the worker. A defect or nonconformance is considered management's responsibility if one or more of the criteria for self-control have been omitted.
The theory behind these categories is that only management can provide the means for meeting the criteria for self-control. Hence, any failure to meet these criteria is a failure of management, and the resulting defects are, therefore, beyond the control of the workers.
3 - 119 6. inspection and testing
By inspection and testing is understood the evaluation of quality of some product characteristic in relation to a prescribed standard (Juran 1988 b:18.4). Inspection cannot ensure quality, it can only determine whether or not products conform to specification, and where variation occurs, to identify the cause. Juran (1988 b:18.109) considers inspection as part of the preventative approach in the quality improvement process, rather than the sole means to ensure quality. As the causes of defects are identified and removed, through, amongst others inspection, inspection costs can be reduced with a resulting positive effect on the cost of quality.
7 Marketing phase
This phase of the spiral is concerned with the process of persuading customers to buy products for reasons related to product quality (Juran 1988 b:19.1), and forms part of the broader marketing activity which affects all steps of the spiral.
8. Customer service
This section is concerned with post-production activities. These activities may be classified into "pre-use" and "use" phases (Juran .1988 b:20.2). After production and prior to customer use of the product, is defined as the pre-use phase, which includes activities such as packing, shipping, receiving and storage. The use phase includes activities such as installation, checkout, operation and maintenance.
Juran (1988 b:20.18-20.34) recommends the establishment of a corrective action system to identify and correct the actual cause of product failures, either in the pre-use or use stage. The main steps of this system involves first, information gathering through the use of field and in-company reports (on failures and complaints), second, information processing (designed to
3 - 120 identify the actual cause of the complaint or failure), and lastly, corrective action focused on prevention of re-occurrence.
9. Administrative and support operations
According to Juran (1988 b:21.2), activities which only have an indirect influence on quality, such as those carried out by administrative departments, must be included in the quality improvement process. In large organisations, these activities are very often departmentalised. As a result, each department carries out an operating process, produces a product, and supplies that product to other departments (their internal customers) or the end user (external customers). The result is that each department within an organisation will be both a client and a supplier.
A company-wide quality function arises from the fact that product quality is the work of all departments (Juran 1988 b:2.4). Each department not only has a responsibility to carry out its special function but also has the responsibility for quality.
An important element of the quality spiral is that it is a process, indicating the continuous nature of quality improvement, as opposed to the static nature of quality control. Juran (1988 b:5.2) refers to the continual improvement of quality in terms of a "breakthrough", as opposed to mere control.
Control to Juran's theory is the principle of prevention as opposed to inspection (Juran 1988 b:Chapter 9). The mechanism whereby this is ensured is quality assurance. Quality assurance is intended to provide protection against quality problems through early warnings of trouble ahead. These early warnings take two major forms (Juran 1988 a:264):
quality audits;
managerial reports.
3 - 121 A quality audit refers to a review of performance. This review is conducted independently by persons who bear no close responsibility for the performance under review. A managerial report consist of periodic, structured summaries by management on the status of quality in the various departments within the organisation.
The trend to decentralise quality responsibility does not result in the redundancy of the quality department. In the absence of some recognised organisation mechanism for assuring coordination, it may be easy, for departments to emphasise departmental results to the detriment of company results. The prime responsibility of the quality department is to pass on the responsibility for certain aspects of quality once it perceives that the line department is able to take charge of this responsibility. It, therefore, has an important role to play as regards developing new quality improvement techniques, handing these over to the line departments, and then withdrawing to the role of providing a consulting service. A vital element of this process is that all responsibility for operations rests with line management, not staff management (Juran 1988 b:7.32).
In addition to the quality department, Juran (1988 a:250) recommends the establishment of a company-wide quality committee. The main purpose of this committee is to give the quality improvement process direction and guidance. The roles of the committee are fivefold, namely:
to coordinate the establishment of quality goals in the organisation;
to coordinate the preparation of strategies to reach the goals;
to review actual progress against these goals;
to coordinate the administration of the reward system for goal achievement;
g, to create the infrastructure required to run the above system.
3 - 122 A further element of TOM given . considerable attention by Juran (1988 b:Chapter 7) is the identification of quality responsibility for every aspect of the organisation. Juran (1988 b:7.25-7.28) recommends the use of a responsibilities matrix as a means to summarise quality responsibilities within the organisation. The minimum information required in order to adhere to quality assurance systems is to know who must do what. This information is provided by the responsibilities matrix. This matrix will inform the individual at a glance what he/she is responsible for doing and will guide him/her in locating supplementary information on how, when and why.
As regarding the tools required for quality improvement, Juran (1988 b:23.1-24.40) acknowledges the importance of statistical methods, particularly in process improvement and process control. He stresses that statistical methods are not a cure-all, and need to be regarded as part of an integrated approach to quality improvement.
3.2.2.4.3 Summary
Three major concepts emerge from the work of Juran. The first is the quality spiral, which indicates the TOM concept. The second is that of a management breakthrough & new levels of quality management. The third is that of self-control, based on the role of management in attaining the breakthrough.
The quality spiral conveys two messages. • The first is that quality is a total management approach. There are specific steps which have to be executed in striving to produce a quality product. The quality of output can only be as good as the weakest link in this chain of steps. One could have the best quality of design, but with a poor quality of manufacture, quality of the final product will be poor.
The second message is that quality is a continual process. The organisation has to move continuously through the spiral of progress to ensure fitness for use.
3 - 123 According to Juran, the prime objective of TOM is the production of quality products and services through the decentralisation of quality responsibility. The successful decentralisation of quality responsibility relies on the workforce being placed in a state of self-control. Only when employees are in a state of self- control will management be able to hold them entirely responsible for the quality of their output. The salient features of Juran's approach to TOM are depicted in table 3.10.
Table 3.10 Salient characteristics of Juran's approach to TOM
CATEG , - ELEMENTS 0 CIJALOTY CUSPOINTS A General Definition of quality Customer led Main emphasis People Dominant factor Fitness for purpose Scope of application Comprehensive programme for product life span Applicability-sector Manufacturing and services B External Customer focus Integral to quality definition Market focus (environment) Not specific Vendor/buyer relationship Multiple suppliers selected on quality C Organisational Primary change agent Management context Top management role Educative, supportive,avoiding exhortation Management style Participative, enabling Organisation culture Integrated D Organisational Top management commitment Essential requirements Employee involvement/participation Essential Education and training Essential lnventment in non-human resources As part of improvement programes E Means/ Cost of quality (appreciated) Objective is to obtain optimal techniques quality etc. Training programmes Teamwork approach on breakthrough projects; annual programmes Participation feedback Emphasis on participation (eg. communication, quality circles) and teamwork Statistical methods Reference to; not intergral to approach Recognition/rewards system Emphasis on recognition Inspection procedures Eliminate inspection depart- ments
F Change Pace of change Gradual Step by step, eg. break-through Nature of change projects Source: Own compilation
3 - 124 3.2.3 Comparing the Gurus
The approach to TQM of various 20th century gurus was reviewed in the previous sections. In this section, the similarity between their approaches will be highlighted and summarised. While each of the gurus on quality has his own distinctive approach, there is much common ground in what they say and propose. These points are discussed below.
The importance of controlling the process and not the product.
The importance of not forgetting the human process. This is as vital, if not more so, than the control of the technical process.
Top management is responsible for quality, and not the workforce. It is management's responsibility to provide commitment, leadership, and the appropriate support to technical and human processes. Thus, it is imperative that management has a clear understanding of the process.
Management determines the climate and framework of operations within the organisation. It is imperative that management fosters the partici- pation of the workforce (and others such as vendors and buyers) in quality improvement, and develops a quality culture by changing perception of, and attitudes towards, quality.
The importance of education and training is emphasised in changing employees' beliefs and attitudes and enhancing their competencies in carrying out their duties.
The emphasis is on prevention of product defects, not inspection after the event, and on the reduction of the costs of quality to improve competitive-ness.
Quality improvement is emphasised, producing benefits over time,
3 - 125
whether developed continuously or project by project. TOM is not a programme but a process, and not an instant cure.
There is a broad agreement that all aspects of activities should be looked at for quality improvement, as these all contribute towards quality. Functional integration is considered as an important ingredient of TQM.
9) Quality is a company-wide activity.
3.3 SURAM RY
In this chapter, a comprehensive overview of accredited quality management gurus' - current and hystorical - approaches to TQM was conducted. A comparison of these approaches concluded the chapter.
Chapter 4 defines the term Total Quality Management by means of a TOM model which is used to discuss the requirements for implementation of a TOM process.
3 - 126
ENT
CHAPTER 4
mgcoliggij ENT
SYNOPSIS 4-128
UST OF FIGURES, GRAPHS ND TABLES 4-129
4.1 INTRODUCTION 4-130
4.2 A TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT MODEL 4-131
4.2.1 Input 4-132
4.2.2 Process 4-132
4.2.3 Output 4-133
4.3 REQUIREMENTS FOR Titilfi 4-135
4.3.1 Leadership for TOM 4-135
4.3.2 Customer focus 4-145
4.3.3 Continuous improvement 4-157
4.3.4 Employee involvement 4-174
4.3.4.1 Quality Circles 4-177
4.3.4.2 Breakthrough Teams 4-182
4.3.4.3 Control Teams 4-183
4.3.4.4 Steering Committee 4-184
4.4 SUMMARY 4-187
4 - 127 CHAPTER 4
REQUMEMENTS
SYNOPSES
Total Quality Management is seen as an enabling philosophy, ie. creating the right environment and correcting attitudes to enable a good company to become a world class company. It is not a programme but a process of continuous improvement which rolls quality, productivity and cost reduction together to achieve quality products and services at the lowest cost.
The whole Total Quality Management action comes down to an enormous effort for total mobilisation in renewing the company's culture, eliminating all imperfections and continuously striving for improvement.
A customer focused organisational culture, based on the process of continuous improvement through the involvement and participation of all employees, provides the competitive advantage required for survival and growth of an organisation.
Successful organisations have some common indicators of success. These include, but are not limited to, the following:
increased productivity; increased profitability; increased market share; reduced costs and waste; empowered and enabled employees.
These indicators of success are also the outputs of the theoretical model of the Total Quality Management System described in this chapter. The parallel between these outputs and the success indicators implies that the practising of the Total Quality Management principles will be beneficial to the organisation.
4 - 128 4pivyttAgni
CHAPTER 4
ENT EAR ENT
UST OF FIGURES, GRAPHS AND TABLES
Figure 4.1 Total Quality Management model 4-132 Figure 4.2 Quality management 4-136 Figure 4.3 An operational definition of quality for products 4-149 Figure 4.4 Customer satisfaction framework 4-150 Figure 4.5 Levels of customers' expectations 4-152 Figure 4.6 Work process model 4-159 Figure 4.7 Six step process improvement model 4-165 Figure 4.8 Deming's PDCA wheel 4-167 Figure 4.9 Continuous improvement: The only way out 4-173 Table 4.10 Benefits of quality circles to management 4-180 Table 4.11 Benefits of quality circles to members 4-181 Figure 4.12 Breakthrough improvement in performance 4-183
4 - 129 CHAPTER 4
REQUIREN CAP
4.1 INTRODUCTION
After consideration of the theories advanced by Crosby (1979), Deming (1986), Juran (1988) and Ishikawa (1985), it is evident that while each theory possesses certain unique characteristics, a number of elements are common to most of the theories, irrespective of their point of origin. The objective of this chapter is to develop a framework for Total Quality Management which will serve as the basis for defining the requirements for TQM implementation.
There is almost universal agreement that there are a number of areas within the organisation which require alignment when determining the requirements for TQM (Beard 1989, Crosby 1979, Edosomwan 1987, Feigenbaum 1983, Garvin 1983, Juran 1988b, Kenworthy 1986, Marash 1989, Townsend 1986). These common- abilities can be summarised as follows:
Quality begins with delighting all customers.
The quality organisation has learnt how to listen to customers and help customers to identify and articulate their needs.
The quality organisation leads customers (internal and external) into the future by being proactive by anticipating future needs.
iv). Flawless, customer-pleasing products and services result from well planned systems and processes that function faultlessly.
4 - 130 In a quality organisation, the vision, values, systems, and processes are consistent and complement each other.
Everyone in the quality organisation works in concert.
Teamwork in quality organisations is based on commitment to the customer and to continuous improvement.
In the quality organisation everyone knows their jobs.
The quality organisation uses data and a scientific approach to plan work, solve problems, make decisions and pursue improvements.
The quality organisation develops a working partnership with its suppliers and customers.
The culture of the quality organisation supports and nourishes the improvement effort of every team and individual in the organisation under the visible, committed leadership of top management.
From these guidelines it is now possible to develop a conceptual Total Quality Management model, according to the systems approach (Koontz, O'Donnel & Weihrich 1984: 18-21), which will be used to determine the requirements for the TQM process.
4.2 A TOTAL QUALM MANAGEMENT MODEL
The TQM system consists of an input, a process for transformation and an output, and utilises the feedback communication, which originates at the output, to re- energise the system into perpetual, ever improving motion. This model is depicted in figure 4.1
4 - 131
▪
Figure 4.1 Total Quality Management model
TOTAL CADALOTY MAMAGEMEMT MODEL
>1 CULTURE CHANGE [INPUT
Ik%)°‘-ig 147 PRO le M 01):C\ 4:gr■, 0 TE ,'1 , ... .1c1- C' YS =cn t: PROCESS ._ = TH E S a u -. -g..L — 0 ING O 0..75, „." V 0,,____ z.), -.....-_, -LN3vas0 0 1.-x -
3 MERGIS 1=1 UJ OUTPUT REE U- INCREASED PROFITABILITY INCREASED CUSTOMER SATISFACTION 4 INCREASED PRODUCTIVITY EMPOWERED & ENABLED EMPLOYEES REDUCED WASTE AND COST • INCREASED MARKET SHARE
Source: Own compilation
4.2.1 Druput
The input that activates the process consists of a change in the organisation's culture. The need for such a change results from feedback regarding productivity, profitability, customer satisfaction, costs and market share. New objectives, strategies and key success factors are identified and the change process is led by a visibility committed chief executive and his top management team.
4.2.2 Process
The three main elements of the process are interactive and consist of:
i) Customer focus: Customer is defined as being an internal or external user/buyer of any product/service provided by the organisation, and also as the owner or shareholders of the organisation who are directly affected by the success (or failure) of the organisation.
4 - 132 Continuous improvement: The continuous improvement of productivity, quality, profitability, safety, environmental protection, asset utilisation, knowledge, processes, etc. are essential in the advent of competing in the global market.
Employee involvement: The active involvement and participation of all employees, in a multi-functional capacity, in all improvement actions are considered to be a fundamental element for the achievement of continuous improvement.
4.2.3 Output
The output of the TOM process are the results of the process as a whole and include, but is not limited to, the following:
0 increased productivity;
0 increased profitability;
0 increased customer satisfaction;
0 increased market share;
0 reduced waste and costs;
0 empowered and enabled employees.
Quality is of strategic importance in global competition. It must involve into a corporate way of life as its success is largely dependent on how well it is integrated into the corporate culture. A survey to identify critical success factors indicated that quality, along with the globalisation of markets, is the most important factor that will force changes in the 1990's (Kwok 1994: 14-15).
4 - 133 The TOM model presented in this chapter is not only applicable to the manufacturing environment, but also to the service and public sector environments. This structured approach to TQM makes it implementable in any industry with significant benefits in terms of enhanced customer satisfaction and reduced costs. For example, AT&T Oklahoma City works (an electronic communications equipment manufacturer) achieved a 66 per cent reduction in manufacturing intervals, a 60 per cent reduction in inventory investment, a 50 per cent reduction in purchased component lead time, a two orders of magnitude reduction in incoming component defect levels and 99 per cent on time shipment performance during the last seven years of structured TQM introduction into the business (Pulat 1994 : 49).
While there can be no model built in concrete for TOM implementation, the TOM model presented in this chapter indicates that TOM is a journey towards customer delight, and not an end to a program implemented as a "colour of the month" or "buss-word" of the 1990's.
The shift from the classic descriptors of quality to a holistic approach to quality is being driven by focus on customer needs (Pulat 1994: 44). The previous concepts of per cent defects and specification conformance are no longer sufficient to describe overall quality performance. Modern understanding of quality is greatly influenced by the needs of the customer. Customer needs in turn define specific manufacturing/service requirements with respect to on-time deliveries, reduced manufacturing lead times, minimum inventories and training/ retraining.
Although many agree that TOM is a philosophy, and some say it is an "art that utilises science" (Spechler 1991: Conference Discussion), its pillars still need defining if TOM is to be applied in industry. An operational definition is hence necessary. The proposed TOM model is used as basis in deriving an acceptable operational definition for TOM.
4 - 134
Total Quality Management is a management philosophy, led by the CEO, that seeks continuous improvement in all the processes, products and services of an organisation. Ot requires a solid customer focus, a preventative approach to quality, a profound understanding of variation, decisions based on measurement, and the creative involvement of employees at all levels.
4.3 RE rap UDRJEMENTS FOR TOM
With all the talk about quality improvement, many companies are beginning to get the message. They are exploring what is needed to start a TQM effort of their own. Becoming a total quality organisation is not an end but a journey. It takes an organisation several years just to master the basics and then they never stop improving. The problem for many organisations is that they are not sure where to begin and how to approach a TQM effort. It is not so much a lack of knowledge of what is quality, but how to get there.
4.3.1 Leadership for TQM
When implementing TQM, several fundamental activities must be accomplished by the senior management team. These senior managers bear ultimate responsibility for the success of the organisation and, by virtue of their positions, have the authority to set direction, establish policy, allocate resources, and select markets in which the firm will participate. These individuals are responsible to their customers, their employees, and ultimately their shareholders for the success of the organisation.
TQM requires skills in both leadership and management. Clarification of the distinction between leadership and management is offered in figure 4.2
4 - 135 Figure 4.2 Quality management
QUALOTY afiANAGEME
MANAGING LEADING
Plan Vision Organise Align Leading Empower Control Coach Care
Getting ImprovIng resuIts systems
Source: Own compilation
To implement TQM, managing to get results will share centre stage with leading to improve systems. The old functions of planning, organising, leading and controlling will be diminished. In their place, leaders who vision, align, empower, coach and care will be found.
Many authors hold that management commitment is the most important ingredient of effective TQM implementation (Alexander 1981 : 617; Babbit 1981: 28; Bradley & Hill 1987: 74; Beard 1989: 10; Candy 1982 : 45; Cole 1980: 25; Crosby 1979 : 21-34; Crosby 1984: 59 & 100, Dale 1984: 7; Edosomwan 1987 : 67; Ingle 1982 : 57; Ishikawa 1985: 122-128; Juran 1988b : 8.7; Kane 1986 : 28; Marash 1989 : 121; Townsend 1986: 8-9; Tribus 1988 : 29). Research has shown conclusively that where management is not committed to the quality improvement process, subordinates are unlikely to be committed to the process either (Bradley & Hill 1987: 72; Cole 1979: 77; Dale 1984: 7; Deming 1982 : 62; Feigenbaum 1983 :
4 - 136 205; Ingle 1982: 55; Juran 1988b : 10.51; Kenworthy 1986: 21, Marash 1989 : 122; McGraw & Dunford 1987: 157; Peters 1980: 205).
The importance of top management commitment to the quality improvement process is twofold. First, the workforce receives its standards from its leadership (Crosby 1979: 123; Deming 1982 : 62; Ishikawa 1985: 122; Juran 1988b : 8.3; Lomas 1986 : 218; Rieker 1983 : 16). Through their actions and behaviour, management sets the standards for the whole organisation. For this reason, Barra (1986 : 7) recommends that management must view quality as an attitude that starts with them and spreads throughout the organisation. This means a commitment from the top of the organisation down, in which management demonstrates, by actions and behaviours, that quality, not quantity, is the issue that guides decision making.
Throughout the organisation, management's behaviour must be orientated towards defect prevention rather than corrective action (Crosby 1979 : 132). This requires that management, through their own actions and behaviour, erase the attitude in employees that error is inevitable and should be anticipated (Crosby 1979: 132; Kane 1986: 28; Rieker 1983: 16).
Secondly, management is responsible for motivating the entire organisation towards a participatory style of management, in which problems, organisational information, decision making and recognition are shared with the entire workforce (Burnham 1987: 9; Cole 1980: 41; Crosby 1984: 10; Feigenbaum 1983: 201; Gow 1980: 18; Ishikawa 1985: 112; Juran 1988b : 10.1-10.55; Lees & Dale 1985: 21; Main 1980: 32; Shaw 1982: 36; Townsend 1986: 61-67). This involves the development and introduction of the structures and framework required for the participative quality improvement process (Crosby 1979: 34-54; Deming 1982 : 68; Feigenbaum 1983: 200; Garvin 1983 : 68; Juran 1988b : 10.31 & 22.5; Townsend 1986: 171-173). These actions will facilitate and encourage employee participation. Also, they will serve as an indication to the workforce that top management is not only preaching participative quality improvement, but practising it. That such a perception is held by the workforce is seen by a number
4 - 137 of authors as being vital to the success of the participative quality improvement process (Crosby 1979: 7; Juran 1988b : 22.9; Koopman 1987: 22; Nemoto 1987 : 63).
Continuous improvement of all products, services and processes is accelerated if everyone challenges the status quo every day. Leaders can set the stage for this challenge by developing answers to six fundamental questions:
Why do we exist, what is our purpose? (mission)
What will we look like in the future? What do we want to become? (vision)
What do we believe in, and what do we want everyone to abide by? (values)
What guidance will we provide to the many individuals in our organisation as to how they should provide products and services to our customers? (policy)
What are the long- and short-term accomplishments that will enable us to fulfil our mission and attain our vision? (goals and objectives)
How are we going to move toward our vision and accomplish our goals and objectives? (strategy) (Thompson & Strickland 1995: 22-57).
Answers to the first three of these questions form the cornerstones of the leadership's framework. The mission defines why the organisation exists. The vision shows what the organisation wants to create, and the core values explain how it wants to act. Answers to the remaining three questions fill in the details and build on these cornerstones.
These questions, while seeming simple and obvious, are enormously complex and
4 - 138 difficult to answer, especially when an organisations's traditional products and services are buffeted by new technologies, by competent and aggressive competitors, or by changes in customers' expectations. Nonetheless, failure to respond to each of these questions renders an organisation incapable of understanding and meeting its customers' demands, unable to allocate its resources effectively and efficiently, and incapable of capitalising on the talents of its people.
MISSION
The question of why an organisation exists is answered in its mission statement. This statement is comprehensive, easy to understand, usually limited to one paragraph in length, and describes why an organisation was created, and its primary function. The mission provides a clear statement of purpose to all employees as they perform their daily tasks. This statement, when published and disseminated to employees throughout the organisation and widely communicated to customers and the public at large, commit an organisation internally and externally to a specific purpose. A well-articulated mission statement also guides employees as to how they should manage their activities and sets a level of expectation among customers as to what they should expect to get from this organisation.
VISION
The vision provides a description of what the organisation will evolve into in the future and, like the mission statement, provides continuous guidance to employees at every level as to how they should manage their respective responsibilities. Usually, the vision is drafted as soon as the mission statement is completed and is developed through the same collaborative process.
The vision need not be described in precise financial or market terms. Rather, the intent is to provide a broad description of what an organisation can become if everyone's efforts are focused and successful. The vision is less a dream, less
4 - 139 a soft expectation of what is desirable, than a realistic picture of what is possible. The vision states what the organisation wants to become and where it wants to go. When there is a genuine vision people excel and learn, not because they are told to, but because they want to (Senge 1990: 206). Leaders should translate their personal visions into shared visions that will galvanise an organisation. A vision is shared when all the employees of an organisation have a similar understanding of the vision and are totally committed to achieving the goals implied by it.
Leaders should develop and live an enabling and empowering vision and ensure that the vision is (1) specific enough to act as a "tie-breaker (eg. quality is more important than volume) and (2) general enough to leave room for the taking of bold initiatives in today's ever changing environment (Peters 1987: 482).
VALUES
Organisations should not operate with some behaviours being expected without ever being explicitly stated. Clear definitions of expected behaviours should be provided so everyone has a clear sense of the values of the organisation. Stated values must be consistent with realities and can not merely be proclaimed; they need to be lived convincingly. The following is an example of a credible set of corporate values:
People: Our people are the source of our strength. They provide our corporate intelligence and determine our reputation and vitality. Involvement and teamwork are our core human values.
Products: Our products are the end result of our efforts, and they should be the best in serving our customers. As our products are viewed, so are we viewed.
Profits: Profits are the ultimate measure of how efficiently we provide customers with the best products for their needs. Profits are required to survive and grow.
4 - 140 QUALITY POLICY
Organisations consist of many different individuals with many different opinions. The quality level for the production and delivery of products and services should not be left for everyone to determine individually. A written quality policy should be provided to determine the boundaries between which products and services will be provided. The following elements should be considered by top management for inclusion in the organisation's quality policy:
Importance of quality, eg. "quality is first among equals."
Quality competitiveness, eg. "best in class."
Customer relations, eg. "constantly meet customer needs."
Internal customers, eg. "quality extends to all departments."
Workforce involvement, eg. "our policy is to provide 40 hours of quality training annually to every employee."
Quality improvement, eg. "we will continuously improve our services."
GO LS AND OBJECTIVES
Leaders must progress from the broad direction provided by the mission, vision, value and quality policy statements to declare what must actually be accomplished. Unless these statements are translated into measurable performance targets, they will be little more than nice sets of words. Goals cover the organisation's broad intent by defining what is to be attained through sustained effort over the long term. By contrast, objectives define what is to be achieved in a specific period of time. Clear-cut, measurable objectives help spur everyone in the right direction and serve as mileposts against which progress can be gauged. Five criteria help in framing effective objectives (Thompson & Strickland 1995:30- 35):
4 - 141 Objectives should be definitive and specific;
Objectives should describe accomplishments or results, not activities or behaviours;
Objectives should be measurable (quantifiable);
Objectives should delineate a time frame or deadline;
Objectives should be challenging yet achievable and they should be within the control of the responsible business unit and not rely on what might be achieved by other parts of the organisation.
STRATEGY
Having established what is to be achieved through a sustained effort over a specific period of time, the next step for top management is to determine how these objectives are to be achieved. This is accomplished through development of strategies and plans to specific courses of action : Who does what by when.
One element of the strategy should be the adoption of TQM as a comprehensive management system to achieve objectives by assuring all work is performed in a systematic, integrated, consistent manner. The implementation of TQM becomes the responsibility of senior management, and its pursuit of TQM is a prime example of its leadership.
The last element of the leadership framework covers management's actions in day-to-day activities. Commitment relates to what is done by managers themselves and in the allocation of resources to achieve total quality in the organisation. Although there are many examples that illustrate leadership in the implementation of TQM, one that remains as significant as the process of forging key statements is the demonstration of commitment by senior management. The demonstration of commitment takes many forms and is evidenced by what
4 - 142 managers do as well as what they say in daily contact with the rest of the workforce.
The first opportunity to demonstrate commitment is often found in reallocating resources and funding additional staff to implement the extensive training that is required to equip all employees with skills and knowledge required to pursue TQM. Equally important is senior management's willingness to demonstrate commitment by participating in the same training that the rest of the workforce will undertake. Senior management must also use the same tools, jargon, and processes to pursue continuous improvement in everything they do and not merely instruct their subordinates to do it.
Senior management's commitment can often be gauged against the following ten attitudes and behaviours:
Maintaining a long-term perspective in the face of short-term pressures;
Providing a focus on meeting customers' needs and being sensitive to the markets in which the organisation participates;
Realising that some returns are immediate but others will take three to five years of dedication and hard work;
Stressing that improving the process is as important as attaining results and that both must be accomplished;
Allocating resources to support TQM training and implementation;
Instituting compensation, recognition, reward, and promotions based on the criteria that support TQM;
Fostering employee involvement and better relationships across functions and between unions and management;
4 - 143 Building partnerships with suppliers and customers for mutual benefit;
Acting as a role model; "walking the talk" using quality improvement tools and jargon.
Leaders base decisions only on real data. Opinions are interesting, but decisions should only be based on what is known and can be proven.
Trust is a facilitator which helps to make it possible for an organisation to function effectively. It is hard to imagine a quality-orientated management team without a reasonable degree of trust and credibility (Gitlow & Gitlow 1987 : 20-22). An organisation without trust is more than an anomaly, it is a misnomer. Trust implies accountability, predictability, and reliability. It is what sells products and keeps organisations operating. Trust provides the foundation which maintains organisational integrity. It is known when it is present and when it is not; it is essential and is based on predictability. Leaders who are trusted are predictable in their behaviour towards the TQM process, have continuity and make their position as the sponsors of the TQM process clear. If the vision of the organisation is to be achieved, the leader in quality management must be a reflection not only of clarity, but of constancy of persistence and reliability (Bennis & Nanus 1985: 46). Persistence does not always mean sticking to the same thing forever. It does mean giving full concentration and effort to whatever one is doing. Integrity, reflected in honesty and frankness properly clothed in tact, is a key to the process of establishing trust in the TOM process (Crosby 1984: 155-160). There is no greater need within quality leaders than the need for integrity (Bennis 1989: 164-167). It is, in a sense, the assurance that what one sees, what is said to be, is something that can be counted on, without qualification in the leadership role of the total quality organisation. Integrity in the leadership position leads to trust within those individuals counted on to facilitate achievement of quality in the operations of the organisation (Crosby 1984: 155-160).
TOM is a strategic process that is launched from the top executive suite and requires both management and leadership skills. This principle, when accepted,
4 - 144 sets in motion a series of activities by senior management that shapes the organisations's future. The activities can not be delegated, and the process of how things are done are as important as what is actually accomplished. That is to say, the right things must be done right, the first time!
4.3.2 Customer focus
The key to gaining long-term competitive advantage is to continually meet customers' expectations in ways that they recognise as adding value. To achieve this advantage, it is necessary to know who the customers are, what they expect, and how well the organisation (and its competitors) are performing from the customer's point of view.
Organisations committed to TOM realise that achieving customer satisfaction can not result from just doing the traditional things better. Good product quality, warranties, and customer surveys can help, but they are inadequate without something more. That "something" is changing the customer from a target to a partner (Naumann & Shannon 1992 : 47). As a partner, the customer is actually - involved in the organisation's decision making processes at many levels in the organisation. Committed organisations recognise that customers are a valuable asset and a source of innovation. Therefore, committed organisations actively develop mechanisms for customer involvement comprehensively throughout the organisation.
Demand by customers for products of progressively higher quality continues to accelerate (Desatnick 1989 : 24-26). The world wide quality revolution evident in a growing number of organisations has reinforced such expectations. Peters (1989 : 78) recommends that top management become more proactive in satisfying customer expectations by changing from a product or engineering focus to a focus on customer-driven quality. It should be accepted that quality should apply company-wide. Deming (1986: 168-170) suggests that quality is defined by the customer and has many measurement scales, one for each of the characteristics the customer considers important. Juran (1989: 15-19) defines
4 - 145 quality as "fitness for use," with each product having multiple quality characteristics of two kinds: customer-desired product features and freedom from deficiencies. While both Deming's and Juran's definitions are customer oriented, they are not easily used in gaining customer input to the quality improvement process. Crosby (1979: 14) comes closer to an operational definition when he defines quality as "conformance to requirements," because a set of specifications can often be created that define the product from the viewpoint of the customer, serving as a de facto means of customer feedback. If the product meets those specifications, it conforms to requirements; hence, for Crosby, the ideal is zero defects or meeting the specifications 100% of the time.
What do customers want? In essence, they want their expectations to be met completely and consistently. Consumers tend to perceive the quality of a service or product by comparing the actual service experienced or product received. Their experience is judged to be unsatisfactory when expectations are not met, satisfactory when they are met, and more than satisfactory when they are exceeded. Successful organisations are able to diagnose the full set of customers' expectations and satisfy them completely, every time. World class organisations have the ability of understanding implicit and even latent requirements. These latent requirements are features that customers want but do not know are available and hence are unable to articulate in discussions with their suppliers.
Once the customers are identified in the targeted market niche for a particular product or service, their expectations can be determined by answering four key questions:
What product/service characteristics do customers want?
What performance level is needed to satisfy their expectations? iii) What is the relative importance of each characteristic?
4 - 146 iv) How satisfied are customers with performance at the current level?
Finding answers to these questions begins by postulating a set of features and characteristics that customer might want. This list of hypothetical criteria should next be tested by directly asking customers about their preferences and requirements. The process of learning customers' needs, requirements, expectations, and level of satisfaction is commonly called listening to the voice of the customer (Fontenot, Behara & Gresham : 1994: 73-76).
Garvin (1987: 101) proposes an aggressive organisational strategy to gain and hold markets with high quality as a competitive linchpin. He argues that quality means pleasing customers, not just protecting them from annoyances (Garvin 1987: 104), and proposes replacing defensive quality strategies with a strategic approach based on eight customer related dimensions of quality. An organisation's strategic choice is the combination of the dimensions it will emphasize in defining quality for its products, which include, according to Garvin (1987: 101-109):
perfomiance, a product's primary operating characteristics;
features, the "bells and whistles" that supplement basic functioning;
reliability, the probability of a product not malfunctioning within a specified time period;
conformity, the degree to which a product's design and operating characteristics meet established standards;
durability, a measure of product life which also has an economic component; vi) serviceability, the speed, courtesy, competence, and ease of repair of
4 - 147 the product;
aesthetics, how a product looks, feels, tastes, sounds or smells; and
perceived quaiity, the image or reputation of a product.
Garvin treats these quality characteristics or dimensions as a clear vocabulary with which to discuss quality strategy (Garvin 1987: 104). Sparks and Legault (1993: 18-21) propose to build on this with a process flow chart that classifies these dimensions and follows the product from conception to customer. In doing so, all Garvin's dimensions are included and several added to make the definition more complete. The process flow chart is the basis for both a classification system for these quality dimensions and for a customer-focused definition of quality that the manufacturer can operationalise.
The process flow chart, shown in figure 4.3, identifies and organises for the manufacturer the dimensions of quality most important to the customer's satisfaction and to his own success. It includes elements of the quality process seen by the customer in his or her experience with the product, as well as those that the customer never sees but that define quality from the manufacturer's viewpoint.
The flow chart makes clear that the product is designed to fulfil some customer need, is produced using some set of tools, techniques, machinery, etc., is sold in a manner reflecting (and reflecting on) the quality of the product, is delivered to the customer, and may require service after the sale. Safety and environmental impact become a necessary part of each element of the process relating to sale, delivery and, service, as well as the more traditional functions of design and production. Customer perceptions of quality are important at every stage of the flow chart, but often relate to the reputation where the physical quality of the materials from which the final product is made is not well understood. Finally, While the flow chart shows the stages in conventional order, it loses none of its relevance if that order is changed, such as if the sale of a product occurs prior to
4 - 148 its production.
Figure 4.3 An operational definition of quality for products.
AN OPE F. TOONAL:DIEFI'NOTOON OF tUfr UTTY: PRO DUO
DESIGN PRODUCTION DELIVERY AFTER-THE- SALE
Performance Conformance Facilities Quality Anticipated Features Communication On-time Service Aesthetics Process Place Unanticipated Reliability Transaction Service Durability System
SAFETY AND SECURITY
PERCEIVED QUALITY
Source: Sparkes & Legault 1993: 17.
Using the concept of the TQM model (Chapter 4.2), the continuous improvement philosophy assumes that each stage in the flow chart provides feedback to all the preceding stages. That feedback becomes a catalyst for change and establishes a framework for communicating with the customer on the characteristics of quality thus far identified.
Quality in production historically has been the most important focus of the manufacturer, with increasing attention being paid to design. Adding the stages of sale, delivery, and post-sale service, and recognising perceived quality and safety as important to all stages force the manufacturer to think beyond those traditional concerns to what happens to the product during and after its sale. If the manufacturer wants to ensure total customer satisfaction, doing everything right
4 - 149 until the product leaves the factory is not enough. Failure to perform to expectations on any one element will reflect on the manufacturer, even when the company does not have control of all the stages of the process flow chart. The philosophy of continuous improvement teaches that improvement of process quality for any dimension at any stage of the flow chart increases both product quality and customer assessment of that quality. Top management must choose the dimensions of quality to emphasize to satisfy the target market of its products.
The objective of implementing this disciplined approach of determining outputs, identifying customers, and identifying requirements is to enhance the supplier's ability to meet the customers' needs and expectations and thereby increase customer satisfaction. Clearly, the only viable means for organisations to achieve their objectives is to meet the requirements of their customers by continually improving work processes. Customer needs and expectations are constantly escalating as customers have their requirements met and learn of new possibilities from competitors. Any company that is too internally focused and not mindful of the dynamics of the market place will eventually lose market share.
The task, then, is to pursue customer satisfaction in an organised, disciplined manner, as shown in figure 4.4.
Figure 4.4 Customer satisfaction framework
Source: Own compilation
4 - 150 Beginning with an external assessment of the customers' perceptions of the products and services provided by the organisation, internal work processes impacting customer satisfaction are identified and improved to remove unwanted variation in performance. Unnecessary work steps are eliminated and variation is minimised so that consistent, reliable delivery of service can be achieved. Improvements are captured and made a permanent part of the new process, and the exercise is repeated. Once process stability is achieved, the organisation tries to improve the overall process by moving performance to a new level that better matches what its customers are demanding. This approach enables the organisation to continuously improve its outputs and meet its customers' requirements.
While internal suppliers are focusing on meeting the needs of their immediate customer (the next person to whom they are providing a product or service), they should also be mindful of the final end user, the external customer who will eventually consume the product or service. This awareness provides a reality check on an organisation, in that all individuals in the organisation must understand how their products and services are being accepted in the market place. Later, when customer satisfaction data are reported, everyone sees his or her value in contributing to the success of the organisation.
The characteristics of products and services expected by customers can be viewed as a progressive hierarchy of three levels: base expectations (conjunctive rule), specifications and requirements (disjunctive rule), and delight (lexicographic rule) (Shiffman & Kanuk 1983: 545).
Conjunctive ruie: A non-compensatory decision rule in which customers establish a minimally acceptable cutoff point for each attribute evaluated. Products or services that fall below the cutoff point on any one attribute are eliminated from further consideration (Shiffman & Kanuk 1983: 589).
4- 151 0 Disjunctive rule: A non-compensatory decision rule in which customers establish a minimally acceptable cutoff point for each relevant product attribute so that any product meeting or surpassing the cutoff point for any one attribute is considered an acceptable choice (Shiffman & Kanuk 1983: 590).
0 Lexicographic rule: A non-compensatory decision rule in which customers first rank product attributes in terms of their importance, then compare brands or suppliers in terms of the attribute considered most important. If one brand or supplier scores sufficiently high, it is selected (Shiffman & Kanuk 1983: 592).
These three levels are often referred to as implicit, explicit, and latent and are illustrated in figure 4.5.
Figure 4.5 Levels of customers' expectations
LEVEL 3
Value - added characteristics and features that customers did not expect Oeflgh
(LATENT)
LEVEL 2 Options and trade - offs available for selection by customers. Specifications and (EXPLICIT) Requirements
LEVEL 1 Minimum performance ass Expectations levels always assumed present
(IMPLICIT)
Source: Own compilation
Delineation in this fashion provides a model for understanding the level of performance needed to satisfy customers' expectations. The customers' base expectations form the lowest level. These are the characteristics (or levels of
4 - 152 performance) that are always assumed to be present, and if they are missing, customers will always be dissatisfied. The next level is represented by the specifications and requirements that are visible to customers and are actively involved in their selection process. This is the level where explicit trade-offs are made and terms negotiated. The highest level of performance is represented by the value-added features that the customer did not even know about but is delighted to receive. Performance at this level can be described as delivering all of the explicit requirements as well as latent ones. Latent requirements are real but are not always visible or obvious to the customer.
Recognising the performance level of any product or service characteristic offers three advantages. Firstly, it clarifies which characteristics should be discussed in detail with current or prospective customers. Secondly, it helps to predict how the level of customer satisfaction might respond to a change in characteristics. Thirdly, it indicates possible future trends in expectations. This knowledge can be applied as follows (Zeithaml, Berry & Parasuraman 1990: 111-116):
Focus discussions with customers around the characteristics that represent the conspicuous specifications and requirements (level 2). Customers tend to take the base expectations (level 1) for granted and assume that knowledgeable suppliers know this. Similarly, customers can not be expected to appreciate level 3 features until they are experienced.
Meeting level 1 expectations is a defensive requirement that at best will help avoid creating dissatisfied customers.
High levels of customer satisfaction can be expected by consistently delivering the implicit base expectations (level 1) and every explicit specification (level 2), as well as including the value-added features (level 3) that delight customers.
0 Customers expectation levels will escalate, and performance levels will
4 - 153 migrate down through the hierarchy over time. The escalation of customers expectations will move a latent requirement to an explicit specification to an implicit expectation, and the continuous improvement process has to be proactive in recognising this trend and to ensure performance to an ever higher level of customer satisfaction.
Just as the external customer must be satisfied, the internal customer must receive the product or service required for effective operation. Process effectiveness, continuous process improvement, and employee satisfaction ultimately depend on the level to which the internal customer is satisfied (Bank 1992: 16-17).
To discover the internal customer network requires the following questions to be asked by each individual employee:
Who gets my work?
What exactly does he/she need from me?
Am I giving you what you need?
What do you do with the product you receive from me?
What can we do together to make things work better?
Employees who work with each other to this extent soon being producing noticeable improvements. Other processes follow suit and soon the whole operation will improve. Improvements in one area of an organisation prompts improvements in others and in the end performance of the whole organisation improves dramatically. Top management's role in this is to point out the improvements to everybody concerned so that everybody eventually wants to join the movement.
4 - 154 Ongoing communication is essential. Work groups who labour in common processes must take time to talk the process through, determining how each group can improve the process to the benefit of all. Depending on the process, these team meetings can select a particular part of the process for improvement, or they can address an ongoing situation they all would like to fix. The decision is purely situational.
Supervisors need to be on the lookout at this point. Occasionally an individual in charge of a process dominates suppliers and customers alike. These weak links prove difficult to satisfy beyond reason and don't place much effort into satisfying their customers. This becomes a situational leadership (see chapter 2.4.3.3: 2- 36) problem that must be handled as circumstances dictate.
Changing to a customer-driven corporate culture must occur incrementally. Middle managers alone can not effect a change in corporate culture - it must be comprehensive and have the total support of the CEO and his top executives. Such a transformation is not easy because it requires changing beliefs and values acquired over an employee's career. This change in corporate culture is not only possible, it is essential if organisations are to survive the next decade.
Transforming the corporate culture to a customer-orientation requires five essential prerequisites (Naumann & Shannon 1992: 50-51): i) First, the chief executive must be intimately involved in developing the desired culture. A CEO must not be deluded into thinking that a change in culture can be delegated to trusted subordinates to develop and implement. CEO's themselves are responsible for providing the vision and direction for their organisations. Ultimately, the CEO must be the key change agent. Top managers must be consistent in both words and actions. The signals they send out determine how the rest of the organisation will follow through on the intended change in culture.
The organisation of the future will be a learning organisation that strives
4 - 155 for continual improvement and flexibility (Senge et a/. 1994: 12). The vision and direction that come from the CEO will provide the key integrative mechanism in a flatter, more decentralised organisational structure. Therefore, customer-driven orientation must be embraced as a way of life and as a basic business philosophy - not as a discreet set of activities and techniques. Ultimately, business must be designed around the goal of maximising customer satisfaction. If "six sigma" is a reasonable goal for TQM in production processes (Gill 1990: 42-46), the same concept can be applied to customer satisfaction (Fontenot, Behara & Gresham 1994: 73-76).
Second, changing to a customer-driven orientation should be viewed as a long-term evolutionary process. It takes years to implement TQM successfully, and it will also take years to fully achieve a customer- driven orientation. However, key target areas for improvement need to be identified if customer orientation is to be successful. Whatever the areas identified, subsequent expansion of customer focus efforts must be based on successes, not failures. The initial efforts must be "doable", leading to identifiable results, and must be aimed where opportunities for success are easiest to achieve.
Third, developing a customer-driven orientation must involve all organisational levels and areas, from receptionists to production workers. When all levels are involved, the importance of customer- driven focus will be unmistakable. Change efforts are executed by employees who actually contribute to customer satisfaction. This means moving beyond simple participative management. Real delegation must occur so that employees have a stake in the company's long-term success. An innovative culture that thrives on change and improvement, and rewards all employees for their contributions must be established.
Fourth, developing a customer-driven orientation requires extensive training and development of the workforce. Everyone must understand
4 - 156 how his or her job contributes to customer satisfaction. Employees must not only know their roles; they must also recognise that their jobs can be changed to enhance customer satisfaction. v) Finally, a customer-driven orientation must be evaluated, monitored, and reinforced. This means conducting complaint analysis, or regularly monitoring customer attitudes by using surveys. While these efforts are a start, they must also be translated into performance evaluation, compensation, and promotion systems. Customer retention rates and customer profitability analysis must be calculated and rewarded. Behavioral change must be rewarded at all organisational levels, either intrinsically or extrinsically.
Customers tend to perceive the quality of products or services by comparing the actual level experienced to their expectations. The process of satisfying customers therefore begins by fully understanding their expectations. This process can be referred to as listening to the voice of the customer and requires learning what features and characteristics customers want, the performance level they expect, the importance they attach to each characteristic, and how satisfied they are with the performance of the current level. Building an understanding of customer satisfaction and the relative importance customers attach to each quality characteristic is a complex and difficult task. Once understood, customers' expectations must then be translated into product and service specifications to ensure the production or providing of the expected products or services.
4.3.3 Continuous improvement
According to Flott (1994: 50) process management is TOM in working clothes. Process management is a continuous undertaking, which recognises that the work being done is accomplished through a series of processes. Everything an organisation does, from first contact with a potential customer until the product or
4 - 157 service has fulfilled the purpose for which it was created, is part of a process. The aim of process management is to increase the efficacy of every process. The desired outcome is greater customer satisfaction and all the benefits that accrue along with that accomplishment. By identifying potential problems, process management helps to guarantee defect-free results.
A process can be defined as the sequential integration of people, materials, methods, and machines in an environment to produce value-added outputs for customers (Sherkenbach 1987 : 36). A process converts measurable inputs into measurable outputs through an organised sequence of steps. Four groups of people are involved in the operation and improvement process, as shown in figure 4.6.
Customers: the people (or person) for whom the output (product or service) is being produced. Customers are the people who will use the output directly or who will take it as an input into their own work process.
Work groups: the people (or person) who work in the process to produce and deliver the desired output.
Supplier: The people (or person) who provide input to the work process. The people in the process are in fact the customers of the supplier.
wner: the person who is responsible for the operation of the process and for its improvement.
4 - 158 Figure 4.6 Work process model
Source: Adapted from Sherkenbach 1987:36
Pall (1987: 31-32) identifies six ingredients that are essential for quality process management:
Ownership: Assign responsibility for the design, operation, and improvement of the process.
Planning: Establish a structured and disciplined approach to understand, define, and document all major components in the process and their inter-relationships.
Control: Assure effectiveness: all outputs are predictable and consistent with the customers' expectations.
Measurement: Map performance attributes to customers' requirements and establish criteria for the accuracy, precision, and frequency of data acquisition.
4 - 159 improvement: Increase effectiveness of the process by permanently embedding identified improvements.
Optimisation: Increase efficiency and productivity by permanently embedding identified improvements.
These six ingredients are fundamental to the successful management of the quality improvement process. These ingredients are needed for the work processes that produce and deliver products and services to customers, for the processes that clarify requirements and satisfaction along the customer-supplier chain, and for the processes that support employees in their jobs.
Deming has stated repeatedly, "There is no such thing as instant pudding" (Deming 1988 : 19-22). Continuous improvement of key business processes cannot be expected to be an exception. The application of an improvement process requires discipline and a long-term approach by top management.
By linking Sherkenbach's four groups of people involved in the improvement process (Sherkenbach 1987 : 36) with Pall's six ingredients that are essential for process management (Pall 1987: 31-32), it is now possible to propose a six step process improvement model. This six step process improvement model introduces a systematic approach for applying quality management to any type of process. It can be applied to any operation: information systems, marketing, finance, administration, research and development, engineering, service, or manufacturing. It can be applied to any system: those that exchange information with the customer, those used to produce and deliver products and services, and those that create the work environment.
Universal application is possible because the approach helps build a fundamental understanding of the business processes before attempting to improve them. Continuous improvement requires knowing what these processes are, measuring how well they are performing and understanding why they are performing the way they are. This profound knowledge is built through application of the first four
4 - 160
steps of the process. Application of this knowledge is fundamental in the continuous improvement process and is the basis of steps five and six of the process improVement model.
Each of the six steps (figure 4.7) is explained and described in a straightforward, linear fashion for clarity. Actual application, however, will often be complicated by the need to recycle back to earlier steps as new information is gained and earlier hypothesis are found to be incomplete or incorrect.
Step 1: Define the problem in the context of the process
The process improvement model begins by clarifying which systems are involved, so that efforts can focus on processes, not outputs. Specific activities within this first step are:
1.1 Identify the output. 1.2 Identify the customers 1.3 Define the customers' requirements. 1.4 Identify the processes producing these outputs. 1.5 Identify the owner(s) of the processes.
When customers' needs and expectations are not well understood, special effort must be made to define them clearly and objectively. This lack of understanding is often encountered when output properties are difficult to measure, as is commonly the case when the outputs are intangible.
The owners of the processes involved should also be identified in this first step. This task is often taken for granted because of how clear ownership is in most manufacturing operations. For example, in manufacturing, responsibility is usually defined clearly and documented for daily operations, preventive maintenance, and individual manufacturing blocks of process units. On the other hand, this clarity it often lacking in service processes. Understanding who the owners are is an essential step in assuming that appropriate resources are applied and that
4 - 161
identified improvements can be authorised and acknowledged.
Step 2: Identify and document the process
This second step in process improvement demands that the process be described in clear, understandable terms, which is usually accomplished with a picture or model, not merely through written or verbal description.
The process flowchart is a commonly used tool for describing processes (Schmenner 1981 : 18). Creating a flowchart assists in performing the following four improvement activities:
2.1 Identify the participants in the process, either by name, by position, or by work group.
2.2 Provide all participants in the process with a common understanding both of all steps in the process and of their individual roles.
2.3 Identify inefficient, wasteful, and redundant steps.
2.4 Offer a framework for defining process measurements.
Step 3: Measure performance
In the absence of documented performance standards, remedial work is needed to quantify how well (or poorly) the system is performing. Further, these measures must be defined and evaluated in the context of customer expectations. This step is of double importance in situations where neither output requirements nor processes have been defined previously.
Performance can be measured at three levels: process, outputs and outcomes. Process measures define activities, variables, and operations of the work process itself. Output measures define specific features, values, and attributes of each
4 - 162 product or service and can be examined from two sides. One side represents the output characteristics desired by the customer (requirements), and the other side represents output characteristics actually delivered by the process (capability). The former is referred to as the voice of the customer and the latter as the voice of the process. Outcome measures define the ultimate impact of the process and are dependent on what the customer does with the product or service. Customer satisfaction represents the key measure of outcome. Flott (1994: 51) proposes four factors that determine the health and competitiveness of a process, irrespective of whether it is a manufacturing, service or business process. These four qualities of a good process are:
0 Effective: A process is considered effective if it meets the requirements of the customer; in other words, if it does what the customer expects it to do.
0 Efficient: A process is efficient if it produces what it is supposed to produce at the lowest possible cost; that is, if it expends a minimum amount of time and resources. A process' non-monetary cost, its effect on morale, public relations, and other factors must also be considered.
0 Under control!: A process is under control if the various activities are documented and well defined, and if data control points are established, monitored regularly and met constantly.
0 Adaptable: A process is considered adaptable if it has built-in mechanisms - such as measurements and reviews - that allow those responsible for the process to determine its capability to meet all customer requirements.
Step 4: Understand why
Lack of data increases the difficulty of understanding why a system is performing the way it is. This problem is compounded when the outputs do not appear to be
4 - 163
produced by a repetitive system, as is the case for long-term processes, such as research, development, and engineering. The six step process improvement model is designed to bridge this gap to assure identification of the specific factors limiting the systems capability.
By defining the problems in the context of their process (Step 1), identifying all the steps in the process (step 2), and measuring performance in objective terms (step 3), the classic tools of statistical analysis and quality can be applied to understand the root causes of the performance gap. Four tools stand out for accomplishing this step: Pareto analysis, cause-and-effect analysis, histograms, and control charts (Ishikawa 1986: 5-85).
Deming explains that experience alone teaches nothing and must be applied to knowledge of fundamental principles in order for learning to take place (Deming 1986: 52-53). Steps 2 and 3 of the process improvement model were designed to provide the base of fundamental principles. This is accomplished through flowcharting, modelling and measuring. Step 4 offers methods to acquire the next level of knowledge and to gain a profound understanding of the process.
Answering three basic questions can help build a fundamental understanding of the process in order to take effective and efficient steps toward permanent improvement.
4.1 Have the vital few been distinguished from the trivial many? Juran believes that a fundamental law of nature dictates that 80 percent of the problems are the result of 20 percent of the causes. One key to improvement is to identify those crucial 20 percent and focus attention on them. The pareto analysis is a method for categorising and recategorising causes until the vital few are found (Burr 1990: 50).
4.2 Have the root causes been diagnosed? Ishikawa suggests that the first signs of a problem are its symptoms, not its causes (Ishikawa 1982: 18- 29). Actions taken on symptoms cannot be permanently effective. It is
4 - 164 necessary to understand and act on the underlying root causes. Cause- and-effect diagrams, fishbone charts and Ishikawa diagrams are synonyms for a basic tool that can be used to help differentiate among symptoms, causes, and root causes (Ishikawa 1982: 18-29).
4.3 Are the sources of variation understood? Deming explains that all variation is caused and that the causes can be classified (Deming 1986 : 309-370). Common causes are inherent within the system and yield random variation within predictable boundaries. Special causes are assignable to specific reasons or events and result in sporadic variation that defies prediction.
Taking corrective action to control variation requires knowing its type, since appropriate actions differ according to the type of variation. Common causes can only be solved by addressing the underlying system. On the other hand, special causes are addressed by eliminating their specific, identifiable source. Control charts help to distinguish between common and special causes of variation.
Figure 4.7 Six step process improvement model
DEFINE PROBLEM
2 IDENTIFY AND DOC UMENT PROCESS
3 MEASURE PERFORMANCE
UNDERSTAND WHY
, DEVELOP AND TEST IDEAS
1-10CEIVOilMJECITIONS
u69 • AND EVALUATE
Source: Own compilation
4 - 165 Step 5: Develop and test ideas
The first four steps built the foundation for understanding the critical dimensions of the process. The assured knowing what the processes are, measuring how well they are performing, and understanding why they are performing the way they are. These steps led to identifying the underlying causes of the principal problem. Developing ideas for improvement begins with Step 5.
Ideas for improvement must address the root causes of the problem. Step 5 is the point at which development of new ideas and potential solutions should be encouraged.
Step 6: Implement solutions and evaluate
The sixth step beings by planning and implementing the improvements identified and verified in step 5. Step 6 continues to measure : and evaluate the effectiveness of the improved process. Step 6 also serves to evaluate the process itself and to acknowledge and celebrate the contributions of those who participated in this increment of process improvement. It makes no difference whether this was the work of a individual or, as is more likely, a team effort. Reward the contributors for the results achieved as well as for their discipline in applying the six step model.
Finally, return to step 1 to begin the next increment in the ongoing process of continuous improvement. A continuous improvement methodology proposed by Deming is called the Deming (or Shewart) Wheel (Deming 1986: 88; Shewart 1986: 45). This wheel, or cycle, consists of four elements that, when performed in sequence, provide a process for continuous improvement. These elements are plan, do, check and act, and are shown in figure 4.8.
4 - 166 Figure 4.8 Deming's PDCA wheel
CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT
Source: Adapted from Deming 1986: 88
Saylor (1992: 163) explains the PDCA wheel, as applied by the United States Navy Personnel Research and Development Centre, to improve the quality and productivity of the Navy's logistics organisations. In this model, the following actions are accomplished during the improvement cycle:
Plan State the goal (mission). Define the process through a flowchart. Determine the desired outcomes.
Do Identify potential causes of quality. develop baseline for process outputs. construct an as-is process flowchart. perform cause-and-effect analysis. Identify process measures. Establish data collection procedures.
4 - 167 what data will be collected. how will the data be collected. who will collect the data. where will the data be collected. when will the data be collected. perform Pareto analysis.
. Check Collect and analyze data histograms. scatter diagrams. run charts. control charts. Determine types of process variation causes. special causes. * common causes.
Act Select causes to change. Take action on special causes. Develop changes for common causes. Implement common cause changes on a trial basis. Evaluate effects of changes. Standardise and document process improvements. Monitor process. Continue improvement cycle.
In the quest for continuous improvement, Deming argues that three sets of guiding ideas are critical (Deming 1993: 111). The first concerns constancy of purpose for the enterprise as a whole. The second has to do with complete understanding of the nature of variation. Lastly, there is a set of guiding ideas that concern human motivation. All human beings, according to Deming, are born with "intrinsic motivation", an inner drive to learn, to take pride in their work, to experiment, and
4 - 168 to improve. These three ideas are linked together by the common need for everybody in the organisation to understand the causes of variation. Due to the importance of the need to understand variation, the two types of variation are summarised as follows:
O Common causes of variation on a production process are causes of variation that are inherent to the manufacturing system, or the way that system is managed. They arise out of the process, or out of the way the process is organised and operated. Because they are part of the system, they are the responsibility of those who control the system: the managers, and specifically, the top level of management. Common causes of variation can only be reduced or removed through action by management.
O Special (assignable) causes of variation are causes that are localised in nature. They are not part of the overall system, and should be considered as abnormalities. Often they will be specific to a certain operator, a certain machine, or a certain batch of material. Special causes are assignable causes of variation. Thus, they are exceptions to the system and deserve exceptional treatment. Normally, the workers or the local supervisors can take action to identify and remove a special cause of variation and top management action is not required.
If continuous improvement is the goal, how is progress to be measured? Wheeler and Chambers (1994 : 12-21) identify four possibilities that apply to every production process. These four categories are useful ways to summarise the status of a process.
THE IDEAL STATE
The first of these four possibilities is the ideal state. A process in this state is in statistical control and is producing 100 percent confirming products. This complete conformity to specifications implies that all of the product is suitable for
4 - 169 its intended purpose. Being in statistical control means that the variation present in the product stream is consistent over time. Such a process will continue to produce nothing but good product hour after hour, day after day, week after week, as long as it remains in control. Clearly this would be an ideal state for any process.
A process gets to be in the ideal state by satisfying four conditions:
The process must be inherently stable over time.
The manufacturer must operate the process in a stable and consistent manner. The operating conditions cannot be selected or changed arbitrarily.
The process average must be set and maintained at the proper level.
The natural tolerance of the process must be less than the specified tolerance for the product.
When a process satisfies those four conditions, the manufacturer can be confident that nothing but conforming product is being shipped. Whenever one of these conditions is not satisfied, the possibility of shipping non-conforming product exists. The only way a manufacturer can know that these four conditions apply to his process, and the only way that these conditions can be maintained day after day, is by the use of process control charts.
Therefore, if a manufacturer has a process that is operating in the ideal state, and wants it to continue to operate in this state, he will be using control charts to become aware of problems before they are severe enough to result in non- conforming product. Moreover, once a process is in the ideal state, the continued use of control charts will facilitate continuing process improvement. This will lead to ever more uniform product, which will yield lower costs and greater productivity.
4 - 170 THE THRESHOLD STATE
The second category is the threshold state. A process in this state will be in statistical control, but it will be producing some non-conforming product. As before, the fact that the process is in statistical control means that the variation in the product stream is consistent over time. When consistency is seen in a process that is producing some non-conforming product, the producer can count on producing the same amount of non-conforming product consistently until either the process is changed or the specifications are lowered.
The traditional solution of 100 percent inspection is not satisfactory because it can not be perfect. As long as some non-conforming product is produced, some will be shipped. Screening through inspection only reduces the amount of non- conforming product shipped. The real solution is to stop making non-conforming product. To do this with a process that is in the threshold state, the producer will have to modify the process. If the non-conformity occurs because the natural variation in the process exceeds the specified tolerance, the producer has to either change the specifidations or change the process variation. Specifications may only be changed with customer agreement. Most customers are reluctant to agree to such a change unless they can be convinced that the producer does indeed have a stable and consistent process. Once again, control charts are the key to any success in getting the specifications relaxed.
If the producer decides to try to reduce the process variation, some of the common causes of variation from the process will have to be removed. This means that the process itself will have to be modified. Moreover, different modifications will have different effects and the producer will have to evaluate each effect.
THE RINK OF CHAOS
The third state is the brink of chaos. Processes in this state are out of statistical Control even though they are producing 100 percent conforming product.
4 - 171 Many people find this combination hard to imagine because they are accustomed to thinking that any process which produces 100 percent conforming product is in control. In one sense they are right. As long as the process is producing 100 percent conforming product there will be no problem with rejected shipments. But this happy circumstance is not likely to last indefinitely for the fact that the process is out of control means that the pattern of variation in the product stream is inconsistent over time. The process is unstable, and this instability will continually change the product characteristics.
The problem with any process that is out of control is that it is subject to the effects of assignable causes. These effects can best be thought of as changes in either the process average or the process dispersion that apparently occur at random intervals. So, while the conformity to specifications may bull the producer into thinking his process is predictable, the assignable causes will continue to change the process until it will eventually produce some non-conforming product. The assignable causes "control" what the process will produce by determining when the process average or dispersion will change.
THE ST TE OF CHAOS
The state of chaos exists when a process is out of control and is producing some non-conforming product. The lack of control means that the producer is confronted with a changing level of non-conformity in the product stream. Efforts to correct this problem are ultimately frustrated by the random changes in the process, which result from the presence of the assignable causes. When a modification is made to the process the effect will be short lived because the assignable causes continue to change the process.
4 - 172 Figure 4.9 Continuous improvement: The only way out
IDEAL STATE - PROCESS IN CONTROL 100% CONFORMING PRODUCT - CONTROL CHARTS MAINTAIN PROCESS IN CONTROL GIVE TIMELY WARNING OF ANY TROUBLES
THRESHOLD STATE - PROCESS IN CONTROL - SOME NONCONFORMING PRODUCT MUST EITHER CHANGE PROCESS OR CHANGE SPECIFICATIONS - SORTING IS ONLY A TEMPORARY FIX CONTROL CHARTS MAINTAIN PROCESS IN CONTROL EVALUATE EFFORTS AT IMPROVEMENT
BRINK OF CHAOS PROCESS OUT OF CONTROL - 100% CONFORMING PRODUCT ALL MAY SEEM OKAY, BUT - SPECIAL CAUSES DETERMINE WHAT IS PRODUCED BY THE PROCESS! QUALITY AND CONFORMANCE CAN CHANGE AT RANDOM LEADING TO CHAOS
CHAOS - PROCESS OUT OF CONTROL 100% NONCONFORMING PRODUCT - SPECIAL CAUSES STILL DOMINATE RANDOM FLUCTUATIONS DUE TO SPECIAL CAUSES WILL EVENTUALLY FRUSTRATE ANY EFFORTS AT PROCESS IMPROVEMENT - THE ONLY WAY OUT OF CHAOS IS TO FIRST ELIMINATE THE SPECIAL CAUSES
Source: Wheeler & Chambers 1994: 21
4 - 173 The only way to make any progress in moving a process out of either the state of chaos or the brink of chaos is to first identify and then eliminate all assignable causes.
All processes belong to one of these four states. Processes, however, do not always remain in one state. It is possible for a process to move from one state to another. In fact, there is an universal force acting on every process that will cause it to move in a downward direction of performance. That force is entropy. It continually acts upon all processes to cause deterioration and decay, wear and tear, breakdowns and failures.
Entropy is relentless. Every process will naturally and inevitably migrate toward the state of chaos. The only way this migration can be overcome is by continually repairing the effects of entropy. A dual problem confronts every manufacturer. The manufacturer must be able to identify both the effects of entropy and the presence of assignable causes of variation. While entropy forces a process toward the state of chaos, the presence of assignable causes creates a barrier to process improvement, as shown in figure 4.9.
TQM achieves continuous quality improvement through prevention and the systematic improvement of key processes. Systematic process improvement relies on building a fundamental understanding of customers' requirements, process capability, and the causes of the gaps between them through a thorough understanding of the causes of variation.
4.3.4 Employee involvement
One of the main responsibilities of top management is the creation of an environment which will be conducive to the development and survival of participative forums for the continuous improvement of quality (Gregerman 1979 : 160). This view is supported by Garvin (1983: 63); Hagan (1984: 22); Ishikawa (1985: 5-11) and McMillan (1980: 26). According to Oakland (1989: 20-26) TQM, the new way of management, is the third revolutionary wave after the
4 - 174 industrial and computing revolutions. Oakland (1989: 26) states that:
"TQM is concerned with moving the focus of control from outside the individual to within; the objective being to make everyone accountable for their own performance, and to get them committed to attaining quality in a highly motivated fashion."
Organisations must provide effective responses to the increasing quality expectations for goods and services, changing demographics of the workforce, competition, and dramatic shifts in the national and international market places (Carnevale 1991 : 15-38). Employee involvement is a vital component of any effort to develop organisations as pro-active, change responsive systems because innovation is directly tied to the use of effective communication through employee involvement (Kouzes & Posner 1990: 56-59). Successful employee involvement programmes involve greater input by employees in problem-solving, enhanced two-way communication through the sharing of information and employee input, and more effective means of providing rewards and recognition for successes (Truell 1991 : 1).
Participative quality improvement impacts on and is impacted upon by the structure and climate of the organisation (Carroll 1987 : 66, Dale and Hayward 1984: 475-484; Juran 1988b : 10.17-10.18 & 10.49, McGraw and Dunford 1987 : 150). Total Quality Management does not exist in a vacuum and is a function of the organisational climate to which it is subject (Crosby 1984: 45-52). The very nature of participative forms of quality improvement, which entrusts employees with problem-solving responsibility, presumes an organisational philosophy of employee involvement and participation (Brooke 1982: 77). However, given the tradition and characteristics of South African management and labour relations, employee participation is unlikely to emerge spontaneously, and needs to be enabled if the process is to unfold. This would require a set of deliberate and specific management decisions to set the process in motion (Hagan 1984: 22, Manning 1987 : 16). The purpose of these decisions is the developing of a organisational climate which will be capable of sustaining a participative improvement process (Manning 1987 : 20). This climate should be one in which employees' ideas are welcomed and sought by management (Crosby 1984: 97;
4 - 175 Tribus 1988: 30). The creation of this climate among the workforce is to a large degree dependent on management style.
Brooke (1982: 77) and Cole (1979: 77) stress that a philosophy of involvement of subordinates must be held and promoted not only by top management, but by management throughout the organisation. While it is recognised that different management styles are applicable to different situations (Hersey 1984: 34), the total quality improvethent process and accompanying management style need to be seen in perspective (refer to chapter two).
The decentralisation of quality responsibility and the involvement of the workforce in the quality improvement process is central to Total Quality Management. Engaging the participation of the workforce in the organisation does not go hand- in-hand with an autocratic centralised or traditional management style (Koopman et al. 1987 : 145). Under an autocratic style of management, management reserves the right over power, decision making, authority, accountability, innovation and the dissemination of information. Rigid control systems in turn are administered by layer upon layer of managers each with their own rules and authorities, each a potential source of information distortion. Rigid control systems and creativity are incommensurate (Russel & Dale 1989: 6).
Where management style is not democratic, a more democratic, participative, people building style has to be adopted in order to enlist the participation of the workforce in quality improvement (Alexander 1981: 619; Koopman et al. 1987 : 94-112; Russel & Dale 1989 :10). Barra (1986 : 8) recommends a people- orientated management style that respects the intelligence of employees, and encourages creativity; a style that credits employees with the capacity to absorb training and the motivation to use it constructively; a style that listens to employees' recommendations and recognises achievements in a personal way.
Once management style and the prevailing organisational climate are supportive of intervention in the form of subordinate decision making, it is necessary to create some vehicle whereby subordinates can actually become involved in the decision
4 - 176 making process. Participative teams are the most common vehicle used to achieve this.
Since every individual and function within the organisation is a contributor to • defect levels, every individual and function must participate in the quality improvement effort. The vehicle for promoting such participation is usually some form of quality improvement team (Crosby 1979: 152-169; Deming 1982: 107- 110; Ishikawa 1985: 137-153; Juran 1988b : 10.1-10.49; Koopman et al. 1987 : 14-45; Townsend 1986 : 44-45). There are many types and forms of quality improvement teams, the more common being quality circles, breakthrough teams and control teams. Due to the fact that most participative teams are based on similar principles, these will only be addressed in the discussion on quality circles. The coverage given to the other forms of participative teams will be limited to the extent in which they differ from the other teams.
4.3.4.1 Quality circles
Barnard (1993: 8) defines quality circles as:
"... small groups of workers, usually between three and twelve, who perform similar work and meet regularly for about an hour a week. The meeting is chaired by a supervisor or even a self-elected leader, to identify communal problems that they themselves can solve; to analyze the causes of problems and to make motivated proposals to management for their solution."
McGraw and Dunford (1987: 151) define quality circles as :
"... voluntary groups of workers who meet regularly in paid time to identify, analyze and make recommendations to management on problems in their immediate workplace ..."
Baird (1982 : 25) regards a quality circle as:
"... an organizational tool which is used to increase employee participation in the running of the organization."
Although numerous writers have advanced different definitions of quality circles,
4 - 177 their definitions have many similarities. This discussion on quality circles focuses on the application of quality circles for employee involvement in the quality improvement process.
Quality circles may be formed anywhere in an organisation where people work together and experience similar problems (Dale 1984a : 56). For this reason, members of quality circles are normally from the same work area (Barnard 1993 : 9; Daniel & Huss 1987: 9) and the same hierarchical level (McMillan 1982: 35).
Membership of quality circles is usually voluntary and no pressure is exerted on workers to join (Alexander 1981 : 616; Barnard 1993 : 99; Dale 1984a : 56; Robson 1984 : 2). Thompson (1982 : 116) suggests that it should also be voluntary for a manager to decide whether to volunteer his workforce or not. The reason for this view is that where management or their subordinates feel uncomfortable with participation in quality circles, the project may be sabotaged. However, Thompson also recommends that managers should undergo training as to the workings, benefits, problems and skills required to partake in the operation of a quality circle before deciding to volunteer or refuse participation in the program.
The average size of quality circles varies between five to fifteen members, which is large enough to allow each member an opportunity to be heard and yet not so large as to be intimidating to members (Dale 1984a : 59; McCarty 1984: 100; Yager 1979: 683).
Leadership of quality circles is usually assumed by the supervisor of the work group in the early stages of the program (Barnard 1993: 116). The findings of Dale (1984b : 2) indicate that the trend regarding the leadership of circles is for it to pass, in time, from the supervisor to shop floor employees elected by the circles' members. This suggests that after supervisors have derived the benefits from their role as a leader, namely building a team and emphasising their position in the workplace, they show their willingness to pass on the role of leader. This step enhances the potential of personal development of circle members.
4 - 178 Quality circles meet on a regular basis for a relatively short period of time - the exact regularity being determined by the nature of the organisation and the maturity of the circle (Dale 1984a : 3). Lees & Dale (1985 :13) show that the most popular circle meeting frequency is once a week for an hour, during company time (Barnard 1993: 8).
Quality circles are a means of providing subordinates with the opportunity to identify and resolve problems related to their day-to-day work (Barnard 1993: 8; Gow 1980 : 18).
The quality circle concept is based on the premise that people who are involved in a particular job know more about it than someone else. For this reason, they are in a better position to identify solutions to problems within their scope of reference (Barra 1986 : 8). Quality circles, therefore, provide workers with an opportunity to become involved in meaningful decision making in the organisation.
Quality circles may scrutinise a diversity of issues relating to their immediate workplace (Cole 1979 74; Dale 1984b : 3). The selection of projects to be addressed by the circles may be undertaken in a number of ways. It may be made by the circle members themselves, it may be submitted to the circles by management or non-members, or it may be done by some combination of these (Barnard 1993: 142). Dale (1984b : 3) argues for the selection of projects by the members themselves. The philosophy underlying this approach is that circle members should be given as great a degree of ownership of the project as possible.
Training is a very important and integral part of the quality circle process (Harshman 1982 : 21). Thorough training enables the circle to optimalise the time it takes to achieve goals. Spencer (1987 : 237) is of the opinion that since training is so extremely important, it needs to be carried out effectively to ensure complete understanding of the quality circle procedure, bearing in mind the varying retention capabilities of the circle members. The training of circle leaders and members must include skills in the following areas (Barnard 1993: 129):
4 - 179
group dynamics and processes; information gathering and problem analysis; decision making and presentation skills; implementation and maintenance.
Training of circle members has a long term benefit to the trained workers and the organisation as a whole, which is why it should be well planned and administered. It must include technical and interpersonal skills, and according to Sedam (1982 : 74) must be comprehensive and directed at changing the organisational culture, not merely installing a system for employee involvement. Since circle participation is voluntary, training of leaders and members is more satisfying and effective.
The research of Lees & Dale (1985: 32-33) identified the various management and employee benefits (Table 4.10) to flow from involvement in quality circles.
Table 4.10 Benefits of quality circles to management
BENEFITS TO MANAGE 7v1 IN
Circles provide an opportunity for future managers to emerge.
Circles make management easier since they solve problems at grass roots level, allowing management to concentrate on more complex issues.
Circles place junior management in a leadership role in relation to the circles.
Improved communications.
Source: Adapted from Lees & Dale 1985: 32-33
4 - 180 Table 4.11 Benefits of quality circles to members
BENEFITS TO MEM ERS
Circles provide the opportunity to become involved in the organisation. Better team work within the department. Increased job satisfaction. Circles help relieve frustration by ensuring that something is done to remedy a bad situation. Better relationship with management. Increased feeling of "belonging" to the organisation. Recognition for achievements. Increased pride in work. Gives them a voice in their own future. Enables more learning about the job to be done. Improved job security by helping the organisation to operate in a more cost effective manner.
Source: Adapted from Lees & Dale 1985: 32-33
A study by Tortorich et al. (1991: 23-24) which measured the organisation impact of quality circles, found that quality circles had a profound positive impact on quality through improvements in organisational variables such as production rates, defect rates, scrap rates, attrition rates and lost time, amongst others. Similar findings were obtained by Dale's research (1984a : 59 and 1984b : 12-15), which highlights the following quality related benefits to emanate from quality circles: cost and wastage reduction, productivity improvements, working conditions and safety improvements. Dale (1984a : 61) found the estimated benefit : cost ratio of circle projects to vary from 2:1 to 6:1, with an average of 3,6:1.
Stanton (1986: 98) suggests that one of the major benefits to flow from quality circles is the improvement of internal communication. The positive effect on communication comes about because organisational members, who would not
4 - 181 normally communicate with one another, get the opportunity to do so during quality circle meetings and presentations to management. Also, quality circles promote direct communication between themselves and management (McGraw & Dunford 1987 : 163; Stanton 1986 : 111-112). The effect, however, goes further. Because projects are group efforts and not individual efforts, interaction must take place not just within circles, but also between them (Yager 1979: 684).
Many authors attribute the effect which quality circles have on quality to the fact that involving employees in the decision making process creates an environment in which everyone is conscious of quality and the need to improve it. In addition, giving ownership of quality to the workers tends to increase their commitment to quality improvement (Dale 1984a : 61; Daniel & Huss 1987: 9-15).
4.3.4.2 Breakthrough teams
Breakthrough teams, task teams, project teams or ad hoc committees, are teams of employees established to deal with specific projects or assignments, and are usually disbanded once the assigned project has been completed (Juran 1988b 10.10). According to Juran (1964: 2), a breakthrough means "change, a dynamic, decisive movement to new, higher levels of performance". The breakthrough team usually consists of about six to eight members. Team members may be drawn from multiple departments/functions or from within one department, depending on the scope of the project (Juran 1988b : 22.26; Kenworthy 1986: 23; Nemoto 1987: 51). Kenworthy (1986: 23) found that where team members are drawn from various departments within the organisation, departmental boundaries were eroded and understanding between departments enhanced.
Breakthrough teams are typically appointed by top management, to work on complex and multi-disciplinary projects with the aim to permanently improve existing standards (Barnard 1993 : 184; Juran 1988b : 10.10 - 10.11). Breakthrough teams therefore provide management with a top-down approach to management within the ambit of employee involvement (Project Free Enterprise Report 1986: 72).
4 - 182 In contrast with quality circles, membership of breakthrough teams is not voluntary and the team is dissolved as soon as the problem has been solved (Barnard 1993: 184).
Breakthroughs are called drives, campaigns, programs or breakouts and are focused on quantum leaps in long-term performance (Juran 1964: 7-8), and are illustrated in figure 4.12.
Figure 4.12 Breakthrough improvement in performance
g 0 0 © E Breakthrough
r Control 0
DO Trims
Source: Own compilation
4.3.4.3 Control teams
Control teams are permanent teams, with an average of ten members, who meet at least once a month to work on never-ending improvement in total quality (Barnard 1993: 184). Participation in control teams is compulsory and the teams shadow the organisational structure (Townsend 1986: 61-63). Every department should have a control team, led by the departmental manager, to work on maintaining process control as well as making small, incremental improvements in the quality of the process, product or service relevant to that department. Employees from the quality assurance, engineering, industrial engineering,
4 - 183 maintenance and costing departments may be co-opted to form part of a control team if it is working on a problem to which they could make a contribution (Barnard 1993: 184).
Townsend (1986: 20) believes that control teams must be given a great deal of autonomy to implement any ideas which fall within their area of responsibility. Recommendations for improvement should be the sole property of the team members in order to give them ownership of the process (Edosomwan 1987 : 68). The importance of this is twofold. One is to strengthen the participant's commitment to the resulting recommendations. The other is to stress that quality improvement is not something being done to participants, but an achievement of the participants (Townsend 1986: 37). Peters (1980: 196) found autonomy in decision making a common attribute in his research of "well run" organisations.
Townsend (1986 : 66) defines control teams as
"... the next evolutionary step beyond quality circles".
A further important distinction between control teams and quality circles is that membership and participation in control team is compulsory. According to Lawler and Mohrman (1985 : 65-71) low volunteer rates is a major reason for quality circle failure.
4.3.4.4 Steering committee
Many authors suggest that some type of steering mechanism must be established to guide and provide the various quality improvement teams with direction and assistance where necessary (Cashbourne 1987: 109; Crosby 1984: 106; Dale 1984a : 54; Ishikawa 1985: 113-119; Juran 1988b : 10.49-10.50; Klein 1981 : 19; Tavernier 1981 : 18; Townsend 1986: 5-12). This mechanism is referred to as the steering committee of quality improvement teams.
The steering committee is usually set up to oversee, direct and review the entire
4 - 184 quality improvement process. The committee does not assume direct, day-to-day responsibility for quality assurance as this task is performed by each of the line divisions in the Total Quality Management organisation. The steering committee is a corporate level committee and usually consists of senior management representatives, selected line and staff managers, and, where applicable, union representatives (Juran 1988b : 22.7; Russel & Dale 1989 : 13). It may also include a limited number of participants from the quality circle programme (Lees & Dale 1985: 9). As many departments as possible should be represented on the steering committee (Cashbourne 1987: 109; Crosby 1984: 106; Edosomwan 1987 : 67).
The reason for this high level involvement is that one of the prime responsibilities of the steering committee members is to represent and be able to commit their departments to action (Crosby 1984: 105-107).
Other responsibilities of the members of the steering committee include (Crosby 1984: 106):
to lay out the quality improvement programme; to cause the decisions of the committee to be executed in their department;
0 to contribute creatively to the implementation of the improvement activities.
The overall steering committee serves as (Klein 1981: 19; Ishikawa 1985: 113- 119):
0 a forum for consideration of operational improvements which are likely to affect more than one department, and which may exceed a certain sum of money to implement; cr a court of appeal for ideas or suggestions not accepted by the area management;
4 - 185 . a forum whereby management can raise improvement issues which it wishes to communicate to all employees.
More specifically, the major functions of the steering committee are to (Juran 1988b: 22.7-22.8):
0 formulate the quality policy;
0 estimate the major dimensions, eg. cost of quality, return on investments from prior improvements, etc; establish a project system, choose breakthrough projects and assign teams to them; identify needs for training;
0 plan the training;
0 establish support for the quality improvement teams;
0 provide co-ordination of the quality improvement process;
0 revise merit rating for managers to reflect quality of operations and improvement in quality;
0 design the quality recognition programme.
According to Lawler (1994 : 70) the most important overall focus of employee involvement concerns locating decisions at the lowest level in the organisation. This approach consistently advocates a bottom-up approach to management. Jobs or work at the lowest level are thought of as designed best when individuals or teams do a whole and complete part of an organisation's work process. In addition, it is argued that the individuals or teams should be given the power, information and knowledge they need to work autonomously or independently of management control. The job of management is seen as one of preparing the individuals or teams to function in an autonomous manner. Management is an enabler, culture setter, and supporter rather than a controller or director or employee action.
4 - 186 4.4 SUM RY
The TQM system consists of an input, a process and an output, and utilises the feedback communication, which originates at the output, to re-energise the system into perpetual, ever improving motion.
The input that activates the process consists of a change in the organisation's culture. The need for such a change results from feedback regarding productivity, profitability, customer satisfaction, costs and market share. New objectives and key success factors are identified and the change process is led by a visibly committed chief executive and his top management team.
The three main elements of the process are inter-active and consist of:
Customer focus: customer is defined as being an internal or external user/buyer of any product/service provided by the organisation, and also as the owner or shareholder of the company who is directly affected by the success (or failure) of the organisation.
Continuous improvement the continuous improvement of productivity, quality, profitability, safety, environmental protection, asset utilisation, knowledge, processes, etc. are essential in the advent of competing in the global market.
Employee involvement the active involvement and participation of all employees, in a multi-functional capacity, in all improvement actions are considered to be an essential element for the achievement of continuous improvement.
The outputs of the process is the measure of performance of the organisation and includes, but is not limited to the following (Zairi et al. 1994: 40):
increased productivity;
4 - 187 increased profitability; increased customer satisfaction; reduced waste and costs; empowered and enabled employees; increased market share.
In the next chapter, the implementation of a Total Quality Management process is described.
4 - 188
A
Sc
CHAPTER 5
0 NAG EMI EN
SYNOPSOS 5-190
LOST OF FIGURES, GRAPHS ND T IBLES 5-191
5.1 ONTF ODUCTION 5-192
5.2 C ITOC L F r2A, CIO S FOR T ililliPLEMENT TOON 5-192
5.2.1 Management behaviour 5-196
5.2.2 Policy management 5-203
5.2.3 Organisation for TQM 5-206
5.2.4 Employee involvement 5-212
5.2.5 Communication for TQM 5-221
5.2.6 Training and education 5-233
5.2.7 Quality technologies 5-240
5.2.8 Process management systems 5-250
5.3 CONCLUSOON 5-261
5.4 SUMMARY 5-264
5 - 189 SYNOPSIS
There is no one correct way to implement TQM just as there is no one way to run an organisation. However, there are accepted practices that have been proven to work, and incorrect ways of doing things that can lead to trouble. Between these two extremes lies the gray area that also must be used. Such will be the case of any TQM implementation process.
Reasons abound why there are so many variables in the TQM process. First, TQM fits all organisations from giant industries to small education systems. The needs vary greatly with the type and size of the organisation. The framework and ultimate goals will remain the same, but the training format, the quality manual, and so forth may be different.
The second, major reason TQM processes may vary is because TQM's main ingredient is employee involvement. People are different. The needs of people on an assembly line and in an accounting office are different. The work they do, their education backgrounds and their customers are different.
A third reason each TQM implementation effort varies is because of the organisation's current status. Some organisations have a long history of quality performance with a significant training programme. Others are just embarking on the quality journey, and may not have a training programme at all.
Regardless of where the organisation is in its struggle for quality, the basic concepts are identical. The base of the process is employee involvement; the focus is on the customer, both internal and external; and certain quality tools and technologies are required to implement and maintain the TQM process.
TQM is a long term transformation process evolutionary in character. This mandates change throughout the organisation. Different planning requirements, new systems and procedures, different leadership and management styles, new work habits, and new employee relations skills will all be part of the change required.
The TQM implementation process requires patience. It is a long-term process that takes time. It also requires continuous change. These changes are best implemented in small steps. Organisational leadership must show evidence of change before change will be accepted by other members of the organisation.
TQM builds on the strengths of the organisation and creates plans to overcome weaknesses or quality-deficient areas. This requires organisation assessments based on a well documented quality management system.
TQM implementation is not a temporary change in how things are done in the organisation. There is no agreed time frame to know when the implementation process is over and when one can begin the normal maintenance of the TQM process. It depends on the organisation, and the effectiveness of the design and action plan. Under most circumstances, a well executed innovation approach for TQM implementation should be providing measurable results within one year to eighteen months.
5 - 190
CHAPTE FT 5
PILE ERENT
LOST OF FOGURES, GRAPHS AND TA LES
Figure 5.1 Eight critical factors for TQM implementation 5-195 Table 5.2 Leadership styles and team maturity 5-198
5- 191
NG ENVORONM ENT
CHAPTER 5
GEM
5.1 DNTRODLOCTBON
The level of awareness of Total Quality Management has increased considerably over the last few years. There is widespread consensus that TQM is a way of managing organisations to improve their overall effectiveness. There is less agreement as to what are the key elements of TQM and what are the critical factors that influence the TQM implementation process. Organisations differ in their approach to TQM. Some focus on specific areas such as quality management systems or statistical process control, whereas others take a holistic approach and attempt to implement TQM covering all the key areas.
This chapter examines the TQM implementation process and identifies the critical factors that determine the success of this process.
5.2 CRilTilCAL FACTORS FOR TOM OitfiPLEMENT TOON
An extensive literature survey was carried out to identify the critical factors necessary for the successful implementation of TQM. The writings of the quality gurus (Crosby 1979, 1984; Deming 1982, 1986, 1993; Feigenbaum 1983; Garvin 1987, 1988; Groocock 1986; Ishikawa 1982, 1985; Juran 1988, 1989, 1994; Oakland 1989) and several implementation case studies were considered (Barker 1991; Cook 1991; Cullen 1991; Curtis & Boaden 1988; Dempsey & Hesketh 1988; Harvey 1989; Houghton 1991; Porter & Hird 1989; Rees & Rigby 1988; Sugden & Parker 1989). The organisations reviewed as the case studies were clearly influenced by the ideas of Crosby, Deming, Feigenbaum, Ishikawa and Juran.
5 - 192 From these writings and the case studies, it is possible to identify eight critical factors in the TQM implementation process that are common to successful TQM implementation.
1 Management behaviour: Clear leadership and vision is required and senior management must demonstrate a clear commitment to TQM and be actively involved in the TQM process. Management should set an example by managing quality as a key strategic issue and supporting continuous improvement.
Policy management: Policy management is a system in which top management establishes a corporate vision of quality and a results oriented company policy.
Organisation for TQM: TQM requires an organisational structure which demands and harnesses the full potential of the workforce. A team structure provides the means of involvement and the power for quality improvement. The hierarchical structure with a facilitation role provides a clean line of authority for setting goals and reviewing progress.
Employee involvement: Involvement in the TQM process is a key determinant of a successful programme. Until everyone is involved in the process of quality improvement, there is a major cost of lost opportunity being carried by the organisation.
Communication for TQM: Communication provides the means of raising quality awareness and involvement and reinforcing the message. It is also critical as a means of publicising achievements and recognising contributions to quality improvements.
Training and education: Training and education should cover all employees as part of an ongoing process, with the scope and depth tailored to suit each group's needs.
5 - 193 7 Quality technologies: Quality technologies, such as measurement, quality costing and benchmarking provide the techniques to identify opportunities and solve problems. They enable continuous improvements and reductions in variation to be achieved.
8. Process management and systems: A key part of any TQM strategy is the management of processes. A documented quality system, as part of the total quality strategy, contributes to this by managing the organisation's processes in a consistent manner.
The eight critical factors (Figure 5.1) identified above can be compared with two other assessments of the critical factors of successful TQM implementation. Saraph et al. (1989: 810-829) have attempted to determine the important factors for quality management using a questionnaire technique and factor analysis. The following eight critical factors were identified:
0 The role of management leadership and quality policy;
0 The role of the quality department;
0 Training of employees;
0 Product/service design;
0 Supplier quality management;
0 Process management;
0 Quality data recording;
0 Employee relations.
The Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award (1995) identifies a similar list of critical factors. As part of the award procedures, examiners assess the performance of the organisation against seven criteria:
Leadership; Information and analysis; Strategic quality planning; Human resource development and management;
5 - 194 Management of process quality; Quality and operational results; Customer focus and satisfaction.
The similarity of these three sets of critical factors for TQM is evident. There are, however, a few major differences. Quality results are a measure of the success of the TQM process and not a critical implementation factor. Customer satisfaction is an implicit goal of the TQM process. Similarly, product/service design, identified by Saraph et al. is implicitly accepted by all organisations on the TQM route.
Figure 5.1 Eight critical factors for TQM implementation
Source: Own compilation
5 - 195 5.2.1 Management behaviour
Top management must play an active role in implementing the systems approach to Total Quality Management. They must discourage the work force from cutting corners when it comes to the quality of what they do on a daily basis. The idea of producing products quicker and cheaper should not supersede the idea of making them better. While producing products quicker and cheaper in a major determinant of short term competitive edge, better products and services are invariably the determinant for long term survival. When the systems view is implemented effectively, faster and cheaper production cycles can very well exist with better and more profitable products.
Pulat (1994:44) argues that strong management leadership is the most important element of the TQM implementation process. Strong management leadership is however, not only required of the top person in an organisation, but also of all direct reports of that person. As core members of the corporate team, they must regularly meet with the customers and the suppliers of the organisation. Their personal involvement and visibility in developing and maintaining an environment that is conducive to quality excellence is needed for TQM to succeed. Lower level leaders may help in this process through scheduled and unscheduled talks and active engagement in goal setting, planning and performance reviews.
In the current industrial and financial environment the implementation of the TQM process is one of the most complex projects that an organisation can undertake, because of the need for all employees, including top management, to accept the cultural change. It is well accepted that changing things is much easier than changing people; nevertheless, the management structure has to take the visible leadership from the top, involving everybody in the organisation in achieving good quality. It is also advisable for top management to concentrate on the approach of effective problem-solving at the early stages of a TQM process in order to understand the organisation's strengths and weaknesses (Badiru 1990:36). In many ways the problem-solving approach is the easiest and cultural change is by far the most difficult aspect of the TQM process.
5 - 196 Often during the problem-solving analysis stage it is usual to discover that many of the problems which have affected company operations over a long period are not specific to the point of emergence, but in fact have originated from basic company-wide difficulties. As a result, the major problem-solving resource has to be redirected at the basic problem area of the organisation's activity. Furthermore, it can be obvious that many of the problems experienced can be traced through the management structure of the organisation to board-level activities (Kanji & Asher 1993:103). In general, the TOM process helps to prevent problems occurring in the organisation and therefore the problem-solving phase provides a beneficial insight into the TQM process.
A problem in larger organisations is that top management cannot always get to everybody. Things get passed down from level to level and can be misunderstood (Vasilash 1989:51). TQM is always led from the top of any organisation, and it is therefore important to avoid a situation where it simply stays at the top. It should be each individual leader's responsibility to propagate TQM within his/her jurisdiction, and this must be achieved satisfactorily. If it is not achieved, there is a risk of the process degenerating into yet another "flavour of the month".
The success of an organisation often depends on the top managers' single- minded approach to dealing with company problems. Obviously, for some organisations TOM means a major change in management practice, and it is invariably difficult to implement over a short period. However, to make a significant change in management practice it is necessary to educate managers in their understanding and approach to TQM. Once they have mastered the principle and practise of TOM, they can demonstrate their total commitment and take the lead in the TOM implementation process.
According to Robson (1989:71) and Hardes (1992:46-47), demonstrations of commitment from the top management are essential, but they are not altogether enough. Certainly the whole of the management training and development process in the organisation will need to be reviewed, and probably redesigned around the principles and practices of TOM. The prevailing management style in
5 - 197 many organisations is still, at best, consultative and is often still autocratic (Perigord 1990:xi-xiii). TQM calls for the progressive development of truly participative and delegative management styles, in line with the increase in personal responsibility for meeting the agreed to requirements of customers now and in the future.
Literature on TQM seldom addresses issues of organisational change management or situational leadership. Conventionally, TQM processes start with the assumption that employees will participate and take on extra responsibilities, if the appropriate environment and stimuli are provided. This simplistic assumption fails to recognise that teams vary in maturity and need to be approached differently. Hersey & Blanchard (1982:149-155) propose four basic team groups, and suggest different styles of leadership for each group (Table 5.2). Also refer Chapter 2.4.3 for more detailed discussion on situational leadership.
Table 5.2 Leadership styles and team maturity
TEAM TU RIMY APPROPRIATE CHARACTEROSTOCS 46) LEADERSHIP- STYL lEAIDERSHIPiiSTYLE Unable and unwilling Telling High task, low relationship Unable but willing Selling High task, high relationship Able but unwilling Participating Low task, high relationship Able and willing Delegating Low task, low relationship
Source: Adapted from Hersey & Blanchard 1982:149-155
This model has implications for the degree of success that an organisation will experience in TQM implementation. According to the model, leaders need to adapt their leadership style to suit the maturity of the team. A relationship- orientated leadership style would not be effective in managing a team of unwilling and incapable employees, who need to be directed in the initial stages.
5 - 198 It is imperative to ensure that quality is given the correct status within the organisation, that the main board of directors see quality as an important and integral aspect of the company mission statement; that forward organisation strategies embrace quality objectives; that quality, in fact, becomes the only way of life within the organisation (Kanji & Asher 1993:108-109).
The required management style must be one which embraces the following seven attributes (Kanji & Asher 1993:109).
hands on, value driven;
where values are set by the highest management level;
where management show that they mean what they say;
where management clearly state beliefs and values;
where management have an obsession with and feeling for product and service quality;
where management do not ever walk by poor quality and ignore it;
where management live by a set of values.
The whole organisation must be prepared to receive this important management message before the subsequent stages of the correct quality system and process management can realise the benefits which can be attributable to them. The constancy of purpose to achieve quality must not only be exhibited by the main board of directors. It is essential that the same constancy of purpose flows down to all those in management roles.
Payne (1991:28) has proposed that there are two key processes in the management of a TOM culture. These are:
5 - 199 O leading;
O communicating.
For leaders to influence the behaviour of others they must have clear beliefs and values of their own. Thus an important aspect of leadership in the creation or adaptation of a culture is the communication of a strongly-held vision and modelling of values and behaviour espoused in the vision. Following this initial phase of cultural development, the leader's role is more concerned with identifying and setting goals consistently with the vision and modelling how these goals are to be achieved.
The management of a TQM culture can be viewed as an attempt by management to control how employees feel as well as how they behave in the workplace. It can be seen as a form of emotional discipline. However, as Van Maanen & Kunda (1989:43-103) observe, although managers may define what is given, the managed define what is taken. Thus, key aspects of TQM, such as recognising the importance of the customer, must be successfully communicated by senior managers in their daily interaction and communication with employees.
Payne (1991:26) believes that a programme aimed at improving customer satisfaction and total quality may well succeed in changing attitudes and behaviour. For organisations adopting TQM it is important to understand that the term "customer" refers to the internal as well as external environment.
Changes in the external environment, while impacting on the internal culture of an organisation, may be dampened owing to the stability of the organisation's culture. Thus, where rapid change occurs in the external environment, the requisite change within the enterprise may not be forthcoming. If service to customers is important to an organisation, beliefs about the rewards and costs associated with providing customer service need to be addressed. In addition, employee behaviour needs to be addressed by a change in work practices and the technical system used to deliver service to customers. This cultural change needs to be engineered, given strong leadership and managed carefully (Williams, Dobson &
5 - 200 Walters 1989:39).
While TQM promotes the notion of internal and external customers and the value of employees as a resource, many organisations adopting TQM appear to have some difficulty in translating this to employee equity. Employees seek equity for their involvement in and commitment to a TQM process in a similar way to external customers expecting equity in the exchange of money for products and services. While some progress has been made at a supervisory level and TOM facilitation has been recognised as a valid role for supervisors, with shopfloor employees as internal customers, the same cannot be claimed for mid-level managers. Thus for many TOM processes, incongruence between espoused values and values in operation is a problem. In particular, modification to the reward system, to include recognition and praise when appropriate, seems to be a major issue for employees.
Employee commitment to the objectives of the organisation and employee satisfaction with the TOM approach are considered essential to the successful implementation of TOM. Therefore, the requisite climate for a top management led culture change is necessary before implementing a full-scale TOM process.
The concept of corporate culture appeared during the late 1970's. It was a response to a fundamental concern for companies: how to mobilise all personnel, and, in particular, create an organisational framework based on an unique "identity" to which each person could relate. In other words, construct an ideal image with which everyone could easily identify, and then mobilise the entire company on the basis of new values.
Every company, and every geographic unit within the same company, has a culture of its own - a set of values, beliefs, myths, symbols, rituals and images that are described by employees in their own unique terminology. The company's past, its habitual behaviour, its personnel policy, and often its product, each exert an influence. Likewise, logos, the aesthetic characteristics of the product, its "nobility", the decor, advertising messages, the speeches of top managers,
5 - 201 internal memoranda, booklets, introductory brochures, and annual reports are all symbols that create an "atmosphere", a "tone". The term culture is considered to mean the governing processes, the process for relationships and interactions, and the other transactions between the members of a particular organisation. Corporate culture can be defined as being a coherent set of attitudes common to all fulltime employees within a working environment. It is therefore the sum of all the constants that are accepted by everyone. These constants may be values, beliefs, or rituals.
Corporate culture can be studied in a manner that includes the following steps:
base the study on the experience of fulltime employees; eliminate the influence of external constraints; take into account the history of the company; convey the reality rather than intentions or desires; obtain top management's encouragement; obtain acceptance by employees.
The purpose of the study may be to select avenues of communication that are consistent with overall policy and respond to expectations of personnel.
However, one must bear in mind that, in an organisational entity and living system as complex as a company, a process for improvements must be set in place. A new logo, new decor in offices or factories, a new aesthetic design for products, an internal publicity campaign - each of these occurrences demonstrates to employees that top management intends to change and develop the company. However if there is no alternation in behaviour - particularly in management style - apart from developing new symbols, the operational reality of work life quickly becomes inconsistent with the image desired by top management. Even more seriously, employees feel deceived and consider this "cultural" initiative an extravagance on the part of top management, which simply wishes to improve its image with the general public, or be seen to be the bandwagon of change towards TQM.
5 - 202 The change in culture required for successful TQM implementation, can only come by example and through action by top management and managerial staff.
5.2.2 Policy management
Policy management is a system in which top management establishes a corporate vision of quality and a results-orientated company policy. The vision and policy are then translated into specific goals, and those goals are disseminated horizontally and vertically throughout the organisation for further appropriate modification and eventually full acceptance. All the organisation's resources are then made available to achieve those goals.
Policy management translates top management's vision into process-oriented, manageable, and monitorable approaches. There are nine steps in the policy management system.
1 Determine policy and direction
To determine the organisation's policy and direction, top management has to consider the company's needs, problems, and prevailing business environment.
The identified needs of the organisation may be to increase sales, increase profits, and provide quality products or services to be viewed favourably by customers and society. External customer needs may be on time delivery of products that perform to their expectations at a reasonable price. Internal customers may experience the need to be satisfied with their jobs, enhanced self- esteem and a feeling of belonging in the organisation.
The business environment issues may be determined to be a growing number of competitors, technological improvements in the industry, adaptability to new materials, and export opportunities available by ISO 9002 accreditation.
2. Select objectives and fix targets
5 - 203 Bearing in mind the company's needs, resources, and technical constraints, top management has to identify the objectives of the organisation. The objectives may include:
meeting the needs and expectations of customers;
developing and implementing a quality management system;
continuous improvement;
managing quality effectively and efficiently;
sharing and gaining of knowledge.
Performance indexes have to be developed for quantifying the progress in achieving each objective. Using these indexes, top management will be able to compare monthly and yearly achievements against goals set under company policy and direction.
Develop and select items
Since objectives can be met using many different means, top management has to determine which means to use. In this process, each objective can be developed into several implementation items (measures). Since it is often impossible to implement all of these items, it is necessary to evaluate the importance of all the items and to select a manageable number for implementation.
Deploy organisation's objectives
Departmental managers have to discuss the company policy with their staff members and with all the employees in each department. During this process, the policy is made more sound and awareness of it will grow, which will help to achieve a higher acceptance rate. Departmental objectives and means have to
5 - 204 be developed in relation to the organisation's objectives.
Schedule items
Department wide lists of implementation items are to be prepared and the steps needed to achieve these objectives have to be developed. The time needed to perform the tasks in each step has to be determined and used to compile a schedule for timely completion of selected items.
Plan monthly activities
Since it is difficult to set up a precise, detailed plan for an entire year, the selected items can initially be scheduled on a monthly basis. Where necessary, activities can be scheduled on a weekly or daily basis to help reduce the gap between plan and results.
7 Conduct monthly evaluations
At this point, the organisation proceeds from planning to execution and control. To achieve a high success rate in policy implementation, progress in implementing the plan has to be evaluated at regular intervals to compare current status with the interim target. These evaluations, called the "forward-looking, action-oriented evaluations", are performed to determine the level of achievement and the next steps to take.
8. Conduct top management reviews
Reviews are conducted at two levels: the departmental level and the organisational level. During these reviews performance of each department is assessed and reports are prepared and reviewed in departmental meetings. Measures are then developed for those areas in which the targets were not met.
This top management review may cover:
5 - 205 how extensive the gap is between the plan and the results;
what activities need to be implemented in the next month, and how to implement them;
revisions in policies and implementation items necessitated by changing market conditions.
9. Conduct a year-end evaluation
At the end of the year, a list of accomplishments, unfinished tasks and outstanding issues are prepared. The reasons for gaps between the plan and results have to be identified. The year's experience can also be used to improve the quality of the policy management system itself.
A well designed policy management system will assist top management to focus and direct the management behaviours required for the TQM process.
5.2.3 rganisation for TC)illi
To successfully implement TQM, the existing organisational hierarchy must be transformed into the team that will make TQM a reality.
Assess need for consultant
The first step is to address a widely debated topic in the TQM arena: to hire, or not to hire, a consultant. The answer to this question depends on a number of factors including an organisation's size, intrinsic talent, culture and tempo, to name a few.
Larger organisations frequently hire consultants to design and debug a process before a major "roll-out", due to basic economics. If it takes one to two years to
5 - 206 deploy a major new initiative throughout an organisation, it is important to "get it right the first time". Changes in direction and focus confuse management and the workforce, and arm personnel with sufficient ammunition to forestall the program.
If the organisation has a cadre of internal consultants and trainers who feel comfortable at the front of a classroom, it can save a lot of money. The challenge for these internal people is to create the focus and discipline to proceed on a given course. A consultant can accomplish this by charging exorbitant rates! When word gets around that "the consultant" will be on site on the first of each month, people within the organisation scurry to meet these milestones. With exceptions, it is very difficult for an insider within an organisation to create this discipline. The exceptional cases eluded to stem from an organisation's culture. If the prevailing attitude is one of get the job done or we can do it, and top management are used to creating a certain tempo and focussing on other major corporate initiatives, they will be able to implement TQM - assuming the correct skills base is brought to bear.
Consultants are specialists. The benefits from the application of their expertise to a specific situation .usually exceed the cost. Their credibility and direct hands- on experience provide a faster and smoother transition toward TOM. Experienced consultants have encountered and overcome the barriers and pitfalls of implementation; they possess detailed knowledge to minimise problems. For these reasons corporations routinely hire consultants.
Until a few years ago, many organisations sought consultants to provide extensive introductory training on TQM. This is no longer the case. Today most organisations do extensive preliminary research on their own. Furthermore, when they do hire a consultant, they seek either a well-defined specialist or a generalist.
• Companies planning to implement TOM, or larger companies dealing with specific problems (eg. ISO 9002 implementation), hire specialists to fill a specific need, a niche. Smaller companies seek generalists who can do everything from developing a strategic plan and facilitating team sessions, to conducting customer
5 - 207 surveys, and so forth. They cannot afford the cost of the specialist, nor can they afford to bring in a steady flow of consultants to address the details of their operation.
A consultant, whether a specialist or a generalist, should be able to assist in forming expectations of results. A popular response to the question, "When should I see results?" is, "It depends!". As it turns out, experiencing results does depend on many things. But, after spending time within the company, consultants should be able to suggest what kinds of results the company should expect to see and when.
It is important to reemphasise this point because management does have expectations, and without a satisfactory answer from the consultant, they will maintain their own expectations as the standard. If it takes too long, or if the magnitude of the first success is inconsistent with these expectations, bad things can happen. Typically, these bad things take the form of a breakdown in confidence between the top management team and the consultant. Worse yet, it can result in a change-over from one consultant to another. In this case, everyone loses. Changing consultants part way into the TQM implementation process is a big decision, resulting in a substantial cost in both time and money for the organisation. More important, this action will be viewed as a discontinuity by the workforce and managers looking for a reason to circumvent the initiative. If top management loses credibility in this area, the costs can be immeasurable.
Steering committee
A steering mechanism is required to guide and provide the various quality improvement teams with direction and assistance where necessary. This mechanism is referred to as the TQM steering committee and typically consists of:
. the CEO;
0 the organisation's functional managers;
5 - 208 selected line and staff managers;
union representatives;
the TOM facilitator.
The steering committee is charged with the responsibility to oversee, direct and review the entire quality improvement process - from design, through the implementation period and until TOM becomes the way of life in the organisation. The steering committee has the responsibility to implement policy, to develop and implement the TOM plan, and to create, empower and support the departmental TOM teams. The steering committee also reviews, analyses and improves processes within the organisation with the aid of the departmental teams and the TOM co-ordinator. The greatest responsibility of the steering committee is to remove barriers between functional entities within the organisation and facilitate communication to show support and overcome any resistance to the change that will inevitably be encountered.
More specifically, the major functions of the steering committee are to:
be a cross-functional forum for consideration of operational improvements which are likely to affect more than one department;
formulate the quality policy;
0 establish a project system, choose breakthrough projects and assign teams to them;
identify needs for training and plan the training;
be, and be seen as, the champions for the principles of TOM.
The steering committee is a formal team with a team charter detailing its:
5 - 209 purpose;
boundaries within which it will operate;
members;
frequency of meeting;
measures of performance.
During the implementation phase, the steering committee should meet at least two-weekly to review progress and to address any difficulties relevant to the implementation process. If a consultant is involved with the implementation, the consultant will be a member of the steering committee for the duration of his/her assignment with the company.
TQM facilitator
Facilitators are commonly used in TQM implementation as trainers and guides to help the quality teams and the managers to adapt to the new system. It is also possible that the facilitator may initially be a consultant, but it is recommended that a senior member of the organisation fills this chair as early as possible during the implementation process. As long as an outside person acts as facilitator, the whole change process may be regarded as belonging to the outside party and the workforce may find it difficult to accept ownership of the TOM process.
Facilitators must be exceptional people. They must understand the TOM process very well so that they can help develop the departmental quality team leaders. They must have the respect and trust of all the traditional functions - unions, employees and management. Some guidance on the traits or characteristics desirable in this person, adapted from Jablonski (1995:96), are:
credibility;
5 - 210 a track record of successfully introducing innovation and achieving organisational commitment;
known to be team players and have the leadership capacity to bring together the thinking of the group;
good interpersonal and communication skills;
a strong personal belief in the participative ethic;
capability to constructively confront the status quo and still work effectively with those in position of authority;
self-secure and able to maintain clear thinking in conflict situations;
a long term commitment towards the company.
Facilitators have two key roles within successful TQM implementations:
providing support and direction to improvement groups; training personnel who are involved in the improvement process.
Successful companies do not assume that improvement groups can deal with any implementation problem that may arise without special training. Instead they have prepared facilitators in the skills required to support these groups in a structured manner.
Facilitators must be capable of recognising how to support such groups at different stages in the process. Facilitators providing support to improvement groups can be counter-productive by providing either too little or too much facilitation. Too little facilitation generally results from inadequate support within the management structure, whilst too much often results from inadequate training provided to the facilitator.
5 - 211 Hand-in-hand with achieving the love of change is the training of managers, supervisors, project leaders and team members at every level. They will need help in understanding TOM and how to lead the transformation. They need to understand their new roles as defined within the new vision of the company. New skills, such as group and meeting management, the problem-solving process and problem-solving techniques, and project planning and control are required. These requirements are often overlooked by senior management. The TOM facilitator has the responsibility to identify these needs as and when they occur, and to arrange the necessary training and coaching to satisfy these needs timeously.
Implementing TOM requires a committed team, focussed on a managed change in the organisation, to achieve measurable results within a specified period - normally 12 - 18 months.
5.2.4 EmpOoyee invoOvernent
Employee involvement refers to the degree to which employees in a given organisation or department stay informed and make decisions about their work. Employee involvement is influenced by an organisation's (or group's) culture, management style, and employee preferences. Employee involvement levels range from very little to almost total involvement with self-directed work teams calling for a very high level of involvement. Although to some extent descriptions of this sort are arbitrary, they can provide a baseline to compare with employee involvement in individual organisations. With this understanding, determination of what must be done to increase this level to assist and benefit TOM implementation can begin.
The TOM steering committee should be involved in initial explorations. If it decides to address this issue in a feasibility study, it may want to ask a representative sample of employees to estimate the level of involvement in their department. In some cases, someone from outside these groups may need to be brought in to provide perspective and facilitate discussions.
5 - 212 The following six levels of employee involvement begin at the minimum level seen in organisations today, and stop just short of the level at which self-directed teams operate. These are not development stages that an organisation must go through in sequence during the TQM implementation process. Nor are higher levels automatically better. It is up to each organisation to find the level that works best for a given situation, department or phase during the implementation process.
Level 1: Managers make decision on their own, announce them, and then respond to any questions employees may have
At this level, employee involvement is defined as listening and asking questions; employees are involved neither in making nor approving decisions. Typical activities include:
the regular scheduled meeting in which managers bring employees up to date on regular operations;
the special meeting in which managers announce new development, like the introduction of a TQM strategy for improved company performance;
the "press conference" meeting in which employees can voice their concerns and/or request information about events.
Management expectations. Managers expect that this level involvement will produce conformance to decisions made by them.
Employee needs. This level of involvement only meets employees' need for information concerning their work.
Advantages. This level is a fairly speedy and efficient way to disseminate information, and it keeps employees from wasting energy ferreting out rumours. Also, if employees believe managers are being honest and open, it develops a sense of trust between the two groups. 5 - 213 Pitfalls. It can fail to uncover- and can often cause - employee alienation and even rebellion, and it places the entire burden of decision making on managers, without any input from employees.
Level 2. Managers usually make the decisions, but only after seeking the views of employees
If level 1 is typified by a press conference type of meeting, a typical level 2 activity is a round-table discussion. The key difference is that managers seek the views of employees on problems and issues before making a decision, although they do not necessarily agree to act on these views.
Management expectations. Managers expect that this level of involvement will give them information they can use in making management decisions, and will reassure them that employees accept these decisions.
Employee needs. This level of involvement satisfies employees' needs for a limited degree of interaction with the decision makers in the organisation (versus involvement in the decision-making process itself).
Advantages. The advantages are:
0 managers have access to the opinions and views of employees (including technical experts with special expertise) and therefore can make better decisions;
0 employees tend to feel more involved in the decision-making process than they do in level 1, and they are therefore more likely to accept and endorse management decisions wholeheartedly without having to take responsibility for them when they don't work out;
. decisions can still be made quickly since employees have no vote in the decision-making process.
5 - 214 Pitfalls. Because at this level of involvement there is no specific purpose beyond getting employees' concerns and ideas on the table, the dialogue can turn into time-wasting gripe sessions. Employees may also resent having their ideas taken over and carried out by others. This level of limited, two-way communication can also be misconstrued as "total employee involvement", guaranteeing that no further levels will be explored.
Level 3. Managers create temporary employee groups to recommend solutions to particular problems.
Level 3 represents an increase over level 2 with selected employees (often from more than one department) formally assigned to come up with solutions to particular predefined problems, rather than simply offering their ideas. Task forces are typical of level 3. The key elements of this level are:
. the problem has been predefined;
employees carry out this assignment in addition to their regular work; and
° once the group makes its recommendations, it is disbanded.
Management expectations. Managers expect real commitment - in the form of expert and effective contributions towards the solution of a specific problem - from the employees in these special groups.
Employee needs. This level of involvement provides employees with opportunities to receive recognition for their efforts.
Advantages. The advantages of this level are that managers can use the expertise of their own employees and avoid having to pay for outside help, and that management can bring just the right combination of expertise to solve a problem.
5 - 215 Pitfalls. Employees can be squeezed between the demands of their jobs and those of problem-solving groups. Appointing a special group can become a substitute for taking action, because the group itself has no authority to act upon its recommendations. When their assignment is finished, employees can feel disappointed and let down.
Leve0 4. Managers meet with groups of employees on a regular basis to identify problems and recommend solutions
Level 4 is like level 3, with two important exceptions: groups are permanent, and they identify problems as well as recommend solutions. Quality circles typify this kind of involvement. Groups operating at this level are usually led by the employees' supervisor; employee participation is, for the most part, voluntary and is perceived as an add-on to regular work. While this type of involvement is still outside the regular management structure, the organisation often appoints facilitators to train these groups and to serve as a link between work groups and managers with the authority to implement employee recommendations.
Management expectations. Managers expect real employee commitment to seek out and solve productivity, quality, safety and quality-of-work-life problems.
Employee needs. The primary employee need met by this level of involvement is the opportunity to play a real part in identifying and solving problems of concern to them.
Advantages. Employee creativity unleashed by this greater level of involvement can result in supervisor problem-solving efforts during the TQM implementation process.
Pitfalls. Because groups at this level are outside the traditional management system, they may not have enough power to make much of an impact. Also, to remain in existence, they constantly need to find new problems. If the problems disappear, they have nothing left to do but disband.
5 - 216 Level 5. Managers establish and participate in cross-functional problem- solving teams.
This level combines the cross-functional aspect of level 3 (typified by the task force) and the permanence of level 4 (typified by the quality circle). Often members will be "peak performers" from several departmental quality circles. They form a permanent, cross-functional group that typically meets less frequently but for longer sessions than a quality circle. The group may have enough people from different departments to be able to break into subgroups to work on specific problems.
Management expectations. At this level, management expects to see interdepartmental cooperation throughout the organisation and improved coordination and productivity organisation-wide as a result.
Employee needs. This level of involvement meets employees' need to have some influence on policies and procedures that go beyond their own departments.
Advantages. Managers and employees can begin to understand the issues and concerns of other departments, and of the organisation as a whole.
Pitfalls. As more people from different parts of the organisation work together, group issues can flare up, strengthening barriers between departments instead of eliminating them.
Level 6. Ongoing work groups assume expanded responsibility for a particular issue, like cost reduction, quality impr•vement and employee participation processes.
At this level, problem solving is integrated with employees' daily job responsibilities, or rather, one aspect of them, such as service quality or job safety. The traditional management structure hasn't changed, but within it employees have more responsibility to find ways to improve how they do their
5 - 217 jobs. The rationale is that when it comes to their jobs, employees are the experts, and given a specific focus for their improvement efforts, can come up with the best solutions.
Management expectations. Managers expect that a top priority issue or problem will receive concentrated attention. Managers expect employees to take the initiative for this process, leaving managers to function as coaches.
Employee needs. Whereas in level 5 employees had a measure of influence over organisation wide policies and procedures, in level 6 they have the opportunity to exert total control in the smaller arena of their jobs.
Advantages. With control, employees have the chance to make small but critical improvements in their work that can pay off in productivity increases and real quality improvements. Furthermore, being held responsible for their efforts tends to increase their commitment and level of contribution. Finally, this level offers organisations an opportunity to get a flavour of what self-direction feels like without having to make extensive changes in their existing management structures.
Pitfalls. This approach can seriously threaten those supervisors and middle managers who are not equipped by either temperament or training to take a less directive, more facilitative approach with their employees.
Once the steering committee has reached agreement on the present level of employee involvement, and the level it thinks it would like to move to, to facilitate TOM implementation, it needs to consider the steps to make this shift possible. These could involve new procedures, training, and other less direct efforts to create a more supportive organisational environment.
A TOM-based approach to increasing organisational effectiveness sets into motion many complex organisational and personal changes that have to be considered while planning the change. Such an approach changes the roles
5 - 218 traditionally assumed by management, union and employees. It requires a different union stance and different employee attitudes toward the company and their work. These attitudes do not change so much by talking about them but come from the experience of working together in a different, more collaborative way.
In unionised organisations, the support, commitment, and active involvement of the union are important for success. In any unionised company, the employees have "hired" the union to represent them. If the union tells employees not to cooperate, many will not.
Experience has shown that it is difficult to maintain an effective change effort if the union resists participation. The best efforts tend to arise from joint union/management commitment. This is best exemplified through joint planning and implementation.
Historically, unions have reacted to management plans and decisions, and their constituents have seen them as their defenders when management decisions are viewed unfavourably. This stance has allowed unions to be highly visible and active advocates for their constituents. The emerging union role has been to work with management as co-planners, decision makers, and implementers.
As a co-planner of change, unions become involved in decisions and plans as these are being developed. The unions predetermine the impact on their constituents and work with management to develop the best approach. This role establishes the union along with management as an advocate of a decision or of a point of view. This can be a very uncomfortable position for unions, especially on controversial issues.
Increasing employee understanding of and input into decisions that affect them greatly reduces the union's risk of being seen as in collusion with management. As employees become more involved in decisions that affect their work, it becomes more obvious that union and management are working together to
5 - 219 benefit everyone.
The surfacing of concerns of all parties and the development of ground rules and safeguards can be the key in the union reaching an agreement on TQM implementation. The focus on the win/win goals of product quality and employee job satisfaction are rallying points that all should be able to support.
Union support for TQM implementation may vary, depending on its earlier experiences. In most organisations, previous successes lead to strong support by unions. However, some organisations have had "false starts" - this is, efforts not living beyond one year. This causes union leadership to view any attempt to change as just another management gimmick that will not work. It is of real importance that the benefits related to the TOM process are well communicated to all union shop stewards and officials to preempt any negative feelings prior to implementation.
Unions may actively oppose participative efforts if it views them as management efforts to alienate employees from the union. Unions must be satisfied that the converse is true, and management can demonstrate this attitude by involving the union in the goal setting, planning and implementation process.
Both management and union must be educated about the benefits to the company, to the employees, and to the union. Management and union leaders must be committed to using every employee's talents to the fullest extent possible and to making the organisation a better place to work. The union cannot be committed only to the human outcomes, nor can management seek only economic outcomes.
If managers and employees do not have the opportunity to influence the changes, they may be limited or encapsulated by those who see little opportunity to shape the future direction. Participation by a broad spectrum of stakeholders in identifying issues and planning for their resolution is paramount to building the widespread commitment and support needed for successful implementation of the TQM process.
5 - 220 5.2.5 Communication for TOM
Organisations implementing TOM require improved communications to support the improvement process. Traditional "through the proper channels" types of communication are inadequate because they are slow, cumbersome, and sometimes inaccurate.
In a TQM environment people need to communicate across organisational levels, functions, product lines and locations to solve current problems, avoid new ones and implement change. Though threatening to some managers, this type of cross- organisational communication must be encouraged.
Well developed communication channels are characterised by the following three factors (Porter & Parker 1993:19):
regular communication with staff using a variety of media;
communication viewed as a two-way process, with channels for feedback available;
communication viewed as an ongoing process, with consideration given to ways of reinforcing the concepts in the future.
When an organisation plans to implement TQM, it is necessary to plan how the employees will be informed about the change event and how it will impact them.
The communication plan provides a structured framework for the effective and efficient delivery of messages that:
inform;
influence;
5 - 221 O direct;
O resolve; and
O provide feedback for individuals and groups who are directly and indirectly impacted by the introduction of the new improvement process into the business.
The communication plan supports the change event by:
decreasing uncertainty and increasing acceptance of the change event;
facilitating ownership of the change event;
increasing the probability of cooperation when change in implemented;
enhancing morale before, during and after change occurs;
reducing misinformation caused by rumours and lack of understanding;
assisting in reaching new performance levels in a shorter period of time.
These benefits will increase change acceptance and decrease unnecessary costs incurred by the organisation while it is adapting to the change, eg. decreased productivity and morale.
Publicity contributes to ensuring the success of the TQM implementation process. Publicity in this context refers to the use of posters, pamphlets and newsletters. This communication channel lends itself to creating the correct atmosphere for culture change, so that improvements can then follow. Highly publicised change campaigns are often very successful in increasing awareness, but also run the risk of damaging the organisation's credibility should the campaign prove
5 - 222 unsuccessful. On the other hand, the reverse is often true for less publicised campaigns.
An effective communication plan can accomplish the communication goal of the change process by providing accurate, useful and timely information. Specifically, it should:
exploit existing communication channels in the organisation;
convey accurate and useful information to targeted receivers;
O present information in a timely fashion relative to key change events, eg. conversion, project start and milestone dates, and improvement goals to be achieved;
provide feedback channels to evaluate the success of the change process;
provide a means for evaluating communication success;
. foster commitment to the change event by creating an informed organisation.
Everyone in the organisation must participate in the change and improvement efforts. Crucial but important techniques that can be used to encourage participation include:
recognise and publicise team and individual accomplishments contributing to the improvement process;
share success stories and disseminate good ideas applicable to other parts of the organisation;
5 - 223 implement a suggestion systeth that acts rapidly, provides feedback and rewards implemented suggestions;
encourage the formation of quality circles, problem "hit squads" and other improvement teams.
Work is a form of theatre. Structures and props help people enact it and understand it. They are part of the process of creating meaning.
Quality circles and teams are structures commonly used in participative management processes. They focus group attention and make for good communication.
Quality circles and teams atomise organisations. They recognise people's need to belong (for "affiliation") and they focus on clear tasks. There are many ways to build powerful communications around them: special uniforms, badges, emblems, mottos, or mascots; social events such as golf days, darts contests or picnics; tailor made reward systems and training courses.
Quality circles and teams are communication media. They should be leveraged in every possible way. It is worth remembering that the most important objective of any communications programme is to encourage innovation, learning and growth. Flexibility and cooperation must be encouraged, imagination must be fostered, and networks must be allowed to form and reform in the most organic way possible. Communication must take place not just within circles or teams, but between them too.
A communication strategy is often very helpful to provide structure to the communication plan. An 18 point strategy is proposed.
1 Determine available budget and resources for communication strategy.
o Consult TQM facilitator to establish budgetary parameters
5 - 224 Confirm allocated resources with TOM facilitator
Establish project deadlines.
2. Develop communication objectives which will:
decrease uncertainty and increase understanding of the change event - INFORM;
promote agreement on the need to change - INFLUENCE;
facilitate ownership of the new process - RESOLVE/FEEDBACK;
increase cooperation and support during the implementation - DIRECT.
Identify the audience to whom the communication will be directed.
Define specific high level information requirements, per audience, that support predefined communication objectives.
Identify specific key messages to be sent, per identified audience, which are consistent with the high level requirements:
- Messages that INFORM, include:
what the change is, including mission, goals, and objectives;
why the change is being implemented;
who will be responsible for implementing the change;
o how the change will happen.
5 - 225 Messages that INFLUENCE, include:
direct, anticipated business benefits;
how the change will support the business mission and vision;
success stories;
direct benefits, eg. increased skills, participation, job satisfaction and customer satisfaction.
Messages that RESOLVE objections:
level of management commitment, approval, support and allocation of resources.
Messages that DIRECT, include:
implementation approach and deadlines;
exact responsibilities and deadlines for each audience;
training arrangements;
support activities.
6. Identify available formal and informal communication media/channels which will enhance communication to the intended audience.
Written media may include:
0 memos;
5 - 226 0 newsletters;
0 personal letters;
0 notices on bulletin boards.
Audio-visual media may include:
0 videos;
audio cassettes.
Face-to-face communication may include:
0 one-on-one interviews/meetings;
0 group meetings or presentations;
0 site visits.
Communication channels may include:
0 regular department meetings;
0 green areas;
0 briefing groups;
0 management briefings;
0 TQ-hours;
0 quality circle meetings.
5 - 227 7 Evaluate effectiveness of available media currently in use in the organisation.
evaluate media coverage of identified audience;
evaluate audience attitudes to the use of media;
evaluate previous experience with media;
evaluate cost of media against contribution of message to project success;
evaluate overall estimated media cost in terms of available communications budget.
8. Select media based upon evaluation, ensuring that the selected media target the identified audience effectively with due regard to cost efficiency.
Select media which support the:
objectives of the communication;
time frame and milestones;
intended audience;
probability of acceptance of the message;
complexity of the message.
9. Develop feedback mechanisms to facilitate two-way communication.
develop reply slip attachments to printed communications.
5 - 228
develop feedback response forms for audio visual media.
10. Develop evaluation mechanism/strategies to evaluate effectiveness of communications.
develop evaluation response forms for all communications;
develop telephone evaluation surveys;
determine frequency and timing of evaluations;
allocate responsibility for conducting evaluations;
ensure that the results of the evaluations are used as input for adjusting the communication strategy;
11. Identify developers for the actual communication of individual communications.
Identify potential developers with required skills in:
0 printed media;
0 audio visual media;
0 presentations;
0 group facilitation.
Determine the availability of identified developers.
Identify available subject matter experts from within the project team.
5 - 229
Allocate responsibility for the development of specific messages to developers and/or subject matter experts.
12. Identify senders of messages.
Identify individuals who have:
credibility in the eyes of the users;
influence over users;
reasonable grasp of the subject matter;
good presentation skills.
Allocate responsibility for the sending of specific communications.
13. Determine strategy for quality assessment and final appraisal of all communications prior to communication strategy implementation.
Obtain approval in terms of:
content and accuracy;
organisation's values and protocol;
organisational standards;
audience literacy.
Allocate responsibility of eliciting approval to one individual.
14. Determine exact timing for specific communication for the duration of the
5 - 230 implementation process.
- Time messages to coincide with:
o process launch;
start and end process phases;
anticipated periods of low morale;
o key milestones;
logistical imperatives (training, support phases);
high incidence of rumours;
o high incidence of objectors;
high incidence of uncertainty;
anticipated achievements.
15. Consolidate activities from previous tasks (1 to 14) in the form of a communication plain matrix.
Arrange the plan by objective.
Arrange messages per objective in chronological order.
Indicate the following information on the communication plan:
objectives;
5 - 231 O target audiences;
O messages;
O media;
O feedback mechanisms
O developers;
O senders;
O timing (dates).
Submit communication plan, together with a detailed cost breakdown, to CEO for final approval.
Manage implementation process communications in terms of the approved communication plan.
Develop messages.
Distribute/communicate messages.
Review feedback.
Review evaluations.
Incorporate results of feedback and evaluations into the communication plan.
18. Review communication plan effectiveness and efficiency and update the plan where necessary on'an ongoing basis.
5 - 232 Review actual vs planned budget.
Evaluate success with which objectives are met.
This communication strategy structures the method of communication but not the content. It is designed to open up communication channels, while at the same time controlling the flow of information and protecting the participants. Managers cannot manage and the implementation process cannot succeed if all the people concerned do not have access to accurate information. This communication strategy is not a panacea, but it will direct the flow of necessary information to enhance the whole implementation effort. Although there will always be some difficulties that will need a different and more situation-specific approach, most of the problems and fears related to interpersonal communications can be solved using this strategy.
Communication is of central importance to the development and maintenance of cultural and corporate identity. This is because language provides the "vehicle" for the creation of meaning and common understanding. In addition, although individuals who have internalised the values of the organisation are likely to engage in cooperative and spontaneous behaviour in support of the stated aims and objectives of the TQM process, it is still necessary that they be given positive reinforcement (eg. recognition) for their efforts. A lack of recognition and praise for a job well done is often of serious concern to employees. Effective communication is of vital importance to the reinforcement of organisational values and goals during the TQM implementation process.
5.2.6 Training and education
Through the life of manufacturing management, technical matters have overshadowed human issues. Human issues, in general, are perceived as too complex and erratic to be analysed methodically. Reflecting this bias, operations textbooks discuss technical topics such as facilities planning and line balancing extensively, while many leave out or scantily address the importance of human
5 - 233 resources to the production systems. It is no surprise, then, that technological advancements in manufacturing have evolved around elimination of labour from the factory floor. Although cost justification appears to exist in replacing workers with machinery the cost-benefit analysis does not incorporate the many cerebral contributions that committed employees can make. By limiting attention to the physical capabilities of the work force, it is commonly concluded that automation extirpates many headaches related to the vagaries of human behaviour, labour unions, and government regulations. Furthermore, automation is supported on the ground that it bring about speed and consistency in performance, causing improvements in both quality and productivity.
Against such a background, it is rather ironic that the application of artificial intelligence to manufacturing is becoming a popular topic. If intelligence is so helpful to manufacturing in its artificial form, then why are the benefits of the real intelligence so often overlooked or ignored?
TOM, a process of continuous improvement through the involvement of all employees, is designed to engage workers' minds with the managerial aspects of their jobs. To be competitive, manufacturers should count on the ideas and judgement of production workers, as well as their physical efforts. Intense international competition along new dimensions - eg. rapid product introductions, flexibility, and reduced lead time, coupled with technological advancements, reduced inventories and the blurring of lines between functional areas and between types of manufacturing processes - are some of the trends that are forcing a reassessment of workforce issues and the topic of education and training of all employees on a company wide basis.
Effective functioning of a flexible manufacturing system requires workers who are better educated and more sophisticated than those they replace. In fact, the required skills and job characteristics would resemble those of white-collar workers. Flexible automation calls for skilled workers who can frequently change its parameters and adapt to it. Flexibility means that many jobs entail more than a set of activities to be continuously repeated. Therefore, managers and industrial
5 - 234 engineers can no longer prescribe the work procedures. As a result, collaboration and team work would replace traditional supervisory responsibilities.
Aside from personality traits that influence a worker's willingness to become an enthusiastic member of a continuously improving organisation, workers' technical knowledge and training play important roles in the success of the TOM process. Work groups are most effective when team members are multi-skilled and have a good understanding of more than one job. Such requirements place special emphasis on the degree and nature of on-the-job training that workers receive. Specifically, training programmes tailored to the technical, administrative, and psychological needs of workers must be designed. Although the new TQM-breed of workers are likely to show the desire and willingness to take charge of broader jobs, South African manufacturing firms cannot assume that formal academic education has adequately catered to the worker's technical and managerial skills. The TQM philosophy strongly urges the use of on-the-job training for inculcating in all workers organisation-specific skills and an understanding of the whole operation.
Training and education in the TOM implementation process can be based on experience and peer role models. An effective approach is to train the leaders of an organisation first and then let them train the managers who report to them. Those managers then explain the TOM process to their staff and train the quality teams. This technique can have many positive results. It puts the responsibility for learning about TQM squarely on the shoulders of leaders and managers. Also, it is important that the TQM message comes from the most senior manager, the CEO, and not from an outsider/consultant who may be in the organisation for only a brief time during the initial phases of the implementation process.
Quality teams and team leaders will require a large amount of initial training, and the coaching process becomes very critical. Employees are not normally experienced at conducting meetings, brain-storming problem causes and solutions, or implementing actions to solutions. They will need close support and coaching without domination or intimidation as the quality teams begin to operate.
5 - 235 It may also be effective to use some of the better team leaders to train others. It may also be helpful for members of one team to visit other teams as guests. Consultants, when used, should be in the background after the early stages of the implementation process. If consultants are used in the training process, a co- trainer - either the TOM facilitator or another manager - should assist with the ongoing training and coaching process.
All organisations learn, but some do not learn fast enough to survive. In today's world in which knowledge workers and managers are becoming a key ingredient of success for organisations, the ability of an organisation to keep up to date by learning is more important than ever. Rapid changes affects more and more aspects of business: development cycles in products ranging from computer chips to potato chips are being compressed, control over intellectual resources is becoming more important than control over raw materials, and the nurturing of knowledge - not able to "learn" - are in great danger of failure. The rate at which individuals and organisations learn may become the only sustainable competitive advantage, especially in knowledge-intensive industries.
Transforming organisations in ways that favour learning, responsiveness and innovation is becoming a major aspect of corporate purpose all around the globe. Organisations are adopting features that favour learning out of economic necessity, as a by-product of installing information technology, or in response to demands from restive employees for challenge in their work. Often, some organisations do not connect the surge in performance they experience with the features they have introduced. This is unfortunate, because as such organisations consciously adopt such features, in a planned fashion, the full benefits of the learning organisation can be captured.
A TOM focussed learning organisation is conceived as one able to sustain consistent internal innovation or "learning", with the immediate goals of improving quality, enhancing customer or supplier relationships, or more effectively executing business strategy through the involvement of all employees, and the ultimate objective of sustaining profitability.
5 - 236 Successful TOM implementation is characterised by three organisational characteristics which equip it for the learning requirements of the TQM process.
First it must make a commitment to knowledge. A very important aspect of this commitment involves the selection of people. Very often organisations hire people expecting to train them in all they need to know. The organisation acquires no learning at all in this transaction. It may also suggest to people hired in this way that nothing worth knowing exists outside the organisation. This is the antithesis of the learning organisation; it teaches, it does not learn.
Another aspect of commitment to learning involves the development of learning internally through a variety of means. Research is one such mechanism; others include discussions or seminars intended to discover what individuals have learned and to record it for use by others. An organisation committed to learning will systematise what it has learned by codifying it and making it accessible to others, by embodying it in TQM practices and procedures, and by publishing much so that others outside the firm can critique its accuracy and value.
Second, a TOM learning organisation must have a mechanism for renewal within itself. Departments and other units of organisations continually fall into bureaucratic rigidity. They cease to adapt; to learn. They become impediments to the success of the organisation. It is not just a matter of leadership or even of a few individuals within them, it is the whole organisation that is at fault. In many instances, the individuals continue to have great potential - it is the system in which they are imbedded which is at fault. In looking at organisations like this, one is sometimes driven to wonder, "How can the whole be so much less than the sum of the parts?" The TQM process enables the learning organisation to intervene in such situations to renew and revitalise itself.
Such a mechanism includes the power to abolish or transform (which ordinarily exists - at least formally - in a business organisation), a systematic method of identifying when the need exists (which often does not exist in an organisation), and an established procedure for taking large-scale action (for example, adding
5 - 237 or transferring many new people at once to the department so that a new critical mass is created).
Third, successful TQM implementation requires an openness to the outside world so that it may be responsive to what is occurring out there. This may be accomplished in various ways because there are many different kinds of knowledge a TOM organisation has to acquire. For scientists and engineers, access to new developments in their field are crucial. Managers require knowledge of how the business environment is changing from periodicals, briefings and periods of formal education; the rank and file needs training in new technology and processes. For the organisation's staff as a whole, an openness to the changing needs of customers and suppliers is required.
Every individual in the organisation, from the newest entry level employee to the CEO, needs to be involved in TQM training. The fundamental philosophy underlying TQM and a particular organisation's implementation of it must be shared and discussed with all members of the organisation if a common understanding of TQM goals and objectives and the means of attaining them are to be achieved.
Training should not be viewed as a "one shot" effort. Like TOM itself, training in the form of refresher and advanced courses must be viewed as a continuing improvement process.
Besides the fundamentals of TOM, individuals must be given the opportunity to pursue additional, specialised training that will provide them with the tools and skills they require.
Depending on the group - and the individual - the training might range from soft topics (communication skills, interpersonal dynamics, team building) to hard topics (statistics, accounting, engineering). Most individuals will require and want a combination of topics.
5 - 238 Everyone must participate in the improvement efforts. The person in any organisation that best understands his or her job, and how it can be improved, is the one performing it. Several techniques that can be used to encourage participation include:
recognise team and individual accomplishments contributing to the improvement process;
share success stories and disseminate good ideas applicable to other parts of the organisation;
encourage risk taking by removing the fear of failure (easy to say, tough to do!);
encourage the formation of quality circles, problem "hit squads" and other quality improvement teams;
implement a suggestion system that acts rapidly, provides feedback and rewards implemented suggestions;
Organisations implementing TQM need ongoing training and educational programmes which share four characteristic features.
Training has to be viewed as a continuous process for the organisation, offering an opportunity for reinforcement of the TQM concept.
Training has to be focussed so that employees receive appropriate courses at the appropriate level of detail for their need.
Training must be planned for the future to include the development of further TQM skills and techniques.
Training materials customised to suit the particular organisation enable
5 - 239 employees to relate the course examples to the particular activities of the organisation.
The timing of training and educational courses for managers and their subordinates emerges as an important issue. For managers to be able to give the necessary support and reinforcement to their subordinates, their training must be correctly phased. The training of managers with their subordinates promotes teamwork and can avoid giving TOM the label of "for management only".
The most successful TOM implementation processes are those which require management to train their own staff eventually. There are several advantages in using this method of teaching:
. managers and supervisors themselves become leaders in quality;
. respect is gained from subordinates;
the reliance on external expertise is reduced.
Just as TOM is a continuous journey, so is education about quality and continuous improvement. Everyone needs to learn about TOM. The questions management must deal with include: who must learn what, how and by when. Although there may be a wealth of knowledge about quality, there is still probably more written about it than is known. There is now an endless supply of alternatives for educating anyone willing to listen and pay the price. The organisation's steering team will need to establish criteria in deciding which approach best fits the organisation's needs. One axiom of quality is that "it is learned best by example". A powerful message is sent when top management can really teach the principles, answer the hard questions, and demonstrate the desired behaviours.
5.2.7 QuaOity technoDogies
There is a very simple, fast way to establish the personality of an organisation -
5 - 240 any organisation. All one has to do is look at the way it measures itself and the priorities that are set on each measurement. A financially driven organisation will have measures that focus on things like production costs versus target, after sales service costs, profit and compliance to budget. An organisation that is quality driven will focus on measurements like customer satisfaction level, poor quality costs, first time yields and customer complaints per unit sold. A resource oriented organisation will measure things like inventory turns, value-added per employee, inventory costs and cycle times.
A healthy, TQM focussed organisation has a balanced measurement system. Within this balanced system, priorities are placed upon measurements that relate to the customer. For example, market share, customer satisfaction index, competitive price and reliability. The second priority measurements focus on the organisation's performance. For example, productivity, poor-quality costs, percent successful new products, value-added per employee and return on investment.
Measurements are helpful tools to guide an organisation. They can never replace good judgement, but they can greatly improve the decision to be made. Essentially, measurements can be divided into three categories:
1. Performance measurements:
return on assets;
profits;
percent product purchased;
costs;
inventory turns;
cycle times;
5 - 241
after sales service costs.
2. Process improvement:
percent defective parts;
poor quality costs;
process capability;
first-time yields;
competitor comparisons.
3. Forecasting:
market trend analysis;
product costs;
customer expectations;
new product requirements;
budgeting.
Each of these three categories have unique requirements associated with them, each of which must be considered when designing a measurement system. The measurement system must be robust enough to provide guidance in all three categories and for any level in the organisation.
As important as measurement is, by itself it is worthless. Unless an effective feedback system exists, measurement is a waste of time, effort and money.
5 - 242 Specific feedback enables an individual to react to the data, and correct or prevent any problems.
A major problem with most processes is that performance is measured only at the end. In most cases, this provides little relative feedback about individual activities within the process or, when it does, it is too late.
The organisation should establish measurement points close to each activity so that the people performing each separate activity receive direct, immediate, and relevant feedback. Delaying measurement only allows additional errors to be made.
During the TQM implementation process, management is responsible for providing sound measurement systems, and appropriate feedback, to assist everyone in the organisation to do their jobs better - during the implementation as well as in the future. Management signals what is important by measuring its results. Many people figure that if it is not measured, why do it? Consequently, every important job can and should be measured. Although, theoretically, each task should be measured and reported to the individual performing the task, this is not always practical. The best way to start the measurement system is to examine each of the organisation's stakeholders' expectations and be sure that those key needs are being measured and reported. Typical stakeholder measurements are:
customer satisfaction - external customers;
value added per employee - management,
Job security - employees;
return on investment - investors;
increased tax base - community.
5 - 243 The second priority is to examine the critical process flowcharts, and identify those activities that significantly impact total process effectiveness, efficiency and adaptability. Relevant measurements for these critical activities, as well as for the total process, can then be established.
Reviewing the internal customer satisfaction level will identify a third set of measurement priorities, focussing on activities that are not meeting internal customer expectations.
Fourth priority is given to activities that require significant resources. Performance should be measured in terms of effectiveness and efficiency and expressed in physical terms (eg. time to perform a task, cycle time), or in monetary value, allowing a number of resources to be combined (eg. value-added costs, labour costs).
The fifth priority is to measure the performance of each individual and provide personal, confidential feedback to each employee. This data is essential to individual excellence.
The best person to do the measuring is the person performing the activity. There is immediate feedback, and he or she should have the best understanding of the job. In cases where the self-inspection error rate is too high, the people performing the activity can check each other's work. This is also a good way to exchange ideas and to begin standardising.
The organisation should never rely on the external customer to be its last inspector, but if the internal process fails, a data system that collects this information and reports it back, so that the internal process and measurement system can be corrected, must exist as final feedback.
When establishing a measuring system, the organisation will be working with two types of data: attributes data and variables data.
5 - 244 ❑ Attributes data
This kind of data is counted, not measured. Generally, attributes data requires large sample sizes to be useful. It is collected when all that is required to know is "yes" or "no", "go" or "no-go", or "accept" or "reject". Examples of attributes data include:
Did an employee arrive at work on time?
Was the letter typed with no errors?
Is a department operating below budget?
Did the meeting start on schedule?
In general, attributes data are considered separately from measurement data because they have a certain irreducible discreetness that measurement data do not possess. With measurement data, the discreteness of the values is basically a matter of choice. It can be manipulated by, for example, choosing a smaller unit of measurement. This is not the case with attributes (or count) data, which are based on the occurrence of discrete events, and so consist of integral values. This discreteness is, therefore, a characteristic of the data, and must be taken into account when establishing statistical control charts.
Statistical control charts of attributes data include:
the ;7-chart for individual values and a moving range, used when the average count is large enough to prevent the discreteness of the counts from significantly affecting the control chart limits;
the np-chart for data based on binomial counts;
the p-chart for data based on binomial counts;
5 - 245 the c-chart for data based on Poisson counts;
The 0-chart for non conformities per unit area of opportunity.
❑ Variables data
Variables data is used to provide a much more accurate measurement than attributes data provides. This involves collecting numeric values that quantify a measurement and therefore requires smaller samples. Examples of variables data include:
Number of times a phone rings before it is answered.
Cost of courier mail.
Number of hours to process an engineering change request.
Monetary value of inventory.
Number of sick days per employee per year.
Statistical control charts are powerful tools for detecting uncontrolled variation.
The most effective control chart for variables data is the X - and R-chart. The premises of the )7:- and R-chart is that while the measurements, averages and ranges of collected data have different distributions, these different distributions are related in certain ways when the measurements originated from a process that is stable. Any variation outside the calculated control limits indicates an undesired out-of-control event for the process being measured, and calls for an intervention from an authorised operator.
The various applications of statistical quality control (SQC) and the closely related statistical process control (SPC) can be extremely beneficial to a wide range of businesses. Both involve ways to measure deviations or variability in the
5 - 246 processes used in manufacturing materials, parts, and products. They involve a family of different means of determining the variation from a specified quality norm based on a statistical analysis of the process - and then using techniques such as probability theory to redefine and further improve the process. These techniques are not as complicated as they may appear, and they can be extremely useful.
One of the primary objectives of implementing TQM is to reduce the losses that are caused by waste or poor quality. Poor quality costs the organisation money, while good quality saves the organisation money. Many organisations do not measure the cost of poor quality; and if it is not measured, it cannot be controlled or reduced.
The poor-quality cost reporting system is only one of the many tools needed in a comprehensive, organisation-wide TQM process, but is it an important tool, since it directs management attention and measures the success of the organisation's efforts to improve. It also provides management with the necessary tools to ensure that sub-optimisation does not have a negative effect on the total process.
Poor-quality cost is defined as: all the cost incurred to help the employee do the job right every time, the cost to determine if the output is acceptable, plus all the cost incurred by the organisation and the customer because the output did not meet specifications and/or customer expectations.
Poor-quality cost provides a very useful tool to change the way management and employees think about errors. Poor-quality cost helps by:
Getting manage ent attention. Talking to management in monetary terms provides them with information that they relate to. It takes quality out of the abstract and makes it a reality that can effectively compete with cost and schedule.
Changing the way the employee thinks about errors. Employees need to understand the cost of errors they make.
5 - 247 Providing better return on proble -solving efforts. Poor-quality cost monetarise problems so that corrective action can be directed at the solutions that will bring maximum return.
Providing a means to measure the true impact of corrective action and changes made to improve the process. By focussing on poor- quality cost of the total process, sub-optimisation can be eliminated.
Providing a simple, understandable method of measuring what effect poor quality has on the organisation and providing an effective way to measure the impact of the improvement process.
Providing a single measurement that brings together effectiveness and efficiency measurements.
Benchmarking is regarded as another very important requirement for successful TOM implementation. Benchmarking is the process of continually researching for new ideas and methods, practices and processes, and either adopting the practices or adapting the good features, and implementing them to obtain the "best of best". Benchmarking is basically an objective setting process. Benchmarks, when best practices are translated into operational units of measure, are a projection of a future state or endpoint. In that regard their achievement may take a number of years to attain. The benchmarks may most importantly indicate the direction that must be pursued rather than specific operationally quantifiable metrics that are immediately achievable. A benchmarking study may indicate that costs must be reduced and customer satisfaction levels increased or return of assets increased. In addition, the concentration of best practices supports the general direction that must be pursued with specific insights into how the benchmarks can or should be attained. The conversion of benchmarks to operational targets translates the long-term actions into specifics.
Process benchmarking is a systematic approach or process to drive change into an organisation. It arrives at change by doing process-to-process comparisons
5 - 248 and developing data about performance output levels for the process. In other words, it is the search for those practices that lead to superior performance, and as such contributes greatly to the success of the TOM implementation process. The centre of the benchmarking study is an attempt to define the processes that are critical to competing and/or improving critical performance metrics and then comparing and analysing processes against other best-in-class organisations on a worldwide basis. From this analysis should come a definition of gaps/inadequacies in the process and determination of cause which then should be corrected so as to drive the TOM process.
Benchmarkers follow a systematic effort to drive change. They are, in fact, developing the enablers and understanding the obstacles. More important, they are building a transformation and implementation plan for the organisation, based on the benchmark data and analysis. In addition, the benchmarking process and effort will typically generate a wider range of options to improve processes and capabilities than available with other approaches.
An organisation can benchmark at a number of levels. It can benchmark internally for a multi-location facility, against other firms in its industry, or competitors in other industries. Benchmarking can be done regionally, on a global basis, or by best-in-class. Whatever option is used, however, there has to be a potential payoff. Benchmarking efforts should generally focus on identifying the best anywhere.
Many organisations turn benchmarking on itself. They benchmark their benchmarking. They work from the premise that in a world of continuous change what they most need is to manage change, shorten the time needed to make positive change, and bring about change in a direction that will show results with a minimum of stops and starts and navigational manoeuvres. They need to learn from the best what others may be doing, while sharing with some of them what they are doing.
Finally, organisations can take the notion of benchmarking and drive it into their
5 - 249 suppliers. One of the questions an organisation might ask of its supply base is have they done a competitive analysis to understand where they stand against competitors and can they provide evidence of whether they are the best in their class? Do they have a systematic benchmarking effort that will drive them to sustained levels of excellence as a long term supplier?
It is also important to realise that benchmarking is not some instant pudding approach that leads to excellence. Organisations must first cultivate a culture that allows change and break-through thinking. If an organisation is only beginning their TOM efforts, it is not advisable to try to copy immediately what the leading world class firms are doing. At such an early stage the organisation may not be fully prepared to implement the full power of these approaches to drive bottom line results.
It takes time for the TOM cultural change process to evolve. Short-term thinking has to be discouraged. The cost-versus-benefits of TOM implementation is not a straightforward method of predicting future cash flows. Some outcomes of TOM are immediately apparent, from the attitude changes of empowered workers to the improved products being produced. These items are but the tip of the TOM iceberg. The intangible components of TOM are hard to value and to measure. How much more is a proud, trained, eager and satisfied worker worth? What is the value of a worker competent in all quality technologies and able to detect new problems as they occur - even pro-actively keeping problems from occurring? Some of these assets are indeed difficult to price. However, the use of quality technologies such as SPC, quality costing and benchmarking can contribute significantly to determining relevant measurements to guide the TOM implementation process.
5.2.8 Process management syste s
TOM rests first and foremost on the fundamental beliefs, values and convictions of the organisation's leaders. It requires an unflinching pursuit of long-term customer satisfaction through the systematic improvement of all products,
5 - 250 services, and processes. TQM relies on soft concepts like leadership, respect, trust and intrinsic motivation. It also relies on principles that are difficult or impossible to measure.
With these caveats in mind, it is important to acknowledge the value of quality management systems during the TQM implementation process. These systems provide frameworks within which to measure and audit the performance of an organisation along its endless quest to improve quality. Although these frameworks can supplement management's commitment to quality improvement, they cannot replace it.
A quality management system integrates all elements required by an organisation to continuously improve customer satisfaction through better products, processes and services. There is no universal prescription but a number of benchmarks are available that provide operational definitions of TQM. These benchmarks include recognised standards such as International Standards Organisation Series (ISO 9000/9004), British Standards Institute BS5750 and ANSI/ASQC Q90/94.
ISO 9000 is essentially a code of practice which has been developed by the International Standards Organisation for the European Community, but has since become recognised internationally. This code highlights all critical elements which should be addressed and formalised by companies wanting to institute a quality management system.
In South Africa the South African Bureau of Standards (SABS) has been appointed as the representative body with the responsibility of assessing /auditing the conformance of organisations to the requirements of the code. This is done through preliminary audits to help organisations to obtain ISO 9000 listing, as well as compulsory audits to ensure that organisations comply with their written quality management systems.
5 - 251 ❑ ISO 9000 aernents
Management responsibility
The inherent philosophy of ISO 9000 is that quality improvement starts at the top and that it is management responsibility to get it implemented and to ensure that it is maintained. Against this backdrop the code requires that management shall define and document its policy, objectives and own commitment to quality. They should also ensure that this policy is understood, implemented, and maintained at all levels in the organisation. This requires that management provide the necessary policy and guide-lines under the following headings:
Quality policy
Organisation for quality management
responsibility and authority verification of resources and personnel management representative
Management review
Quality system
It is a requirement of ISO 9000 that participating organisations implement and maintain formal systems for quality management covering all aspects of their business, not just quality assurance. This quality system should include all elements which are required for managing quality effectively. In broad terms the documentation required to describe the quality system can be divided into the following:
Quality manual
5 - 252 Documented system procedures
Documented work instructions
Contract review
The overriding factor of ISO 9000 is to ensure that an organisation meets customer requirements all the time. Contract review reflects on the actions an organisation will follow to help them provide a quality product/service. It determines all which needs to be done in order to meet the customer's requirements, and identifies all important aspects of the customer's needs before, during and after execution of the customer's order or request; this obviously also entails determining whether the organisation has the capability to meet all requirements within a mutually agreed time frame.
Design control
This is a very important section for those organisations which develop products for themselves or tailor make products by design for customers, research and development departments, and product engineering departments. This section does not cover what the drawing office does. Design control entails the checks, trials, and balances an organisation takes to ensure a quality product from the conception of an idea, to prototype, to trial production batch in the market, final specifications, and acceptance of the first production batch or product by the customer. Protocol management may be necessary to ensure that all those involved participate and sign acceptance of decisions taken.
1=1 ocument control
ISO 9000 is a documented management system. Document control provides the guidelines to ensure that the documentation which drives the organisation's processes are always dealt with in an appropriate way. The organisation has to establish and maintain procedures to control all documents and data that relate
5 - 253 to the requirements of this code of practice. These documents have to be reviewed and approved for adequacy by authorised personnel prior to issue.
Two key elements of this code are:
Document approval and issue control
Document changes and modifications.
The kind of documents which need to be controlled are as follows:
0 Policies
o Drawings
o Blueprints
o Test procedures
Inspection instructions
Work instructions (operating procedures)
o Quality manual
Quality management procedures
Forms that measure quality of inputs and/or outputs.
❑ Purchasing
The code specifies that the organisation has to ensure that purchased products
5 - 254 conform to specified requirements. The following elements all contribute to quality purchasing:
Assessment of sub-contractors and suppliers
Purchasing data - clearly specifying what is to be purchased, with guarantees and receiving checks
Verification of purchased products - ensuring that product received conforms to the purchase requirements
Monitoring of suppliers' performance and changes.
Customer supplied product
This section of the code specifies that the manufacturer has to establish and maintain procedures for verification, storage, and maintenance of customer supplied products.
Product identification and traceability
An important facet of quality management is that an organisation should develop the ability to trace back material right through the entire process: receipts, production, delivery, and installation, right back to the supplier of the raw material or component. Where, and to the extent that, traceability is a specified requirement, individual product or batches shall have an unique and recorded identification.
Process control
The code requires that the production process is documented completely, not just in terms of the broad overall process, but also with regard to detailed work instructions, the way all aspects of the process should be controlled and measured
5 - 255 against standards, the criteria for workmanship (standards), as well as how and when approval should be given for the use and application of processes and equipment. The purpose of process control is therefore to ensure that the production process consistently produces acceptable quality products or services.
❑ Inspection and testing
The purpose of inspection and testing is to ensure that a quality product is provided at the end of the line. It is possible to distinguish three dimensions with regard to inspection and testing.
Receiving inspection, which requires that critical incoming supplies are inspected and verified as conforming to specifications defined in purchase orders or per supplier agreement, before it is used.
In process inspection and testing, which ensures that product in the process conforms to requirements. Non conformances should be identified as early as possible. Types of tests which may fall into this category are:
set up specifications; first piece inspection; specific inspections or tests by the operators; fixed inspection stations at set intervals; patrol inspections by inspectors.
Final inspection and testing is to finally ensure that the product meets all specifications.
An important element of this section is that records should be kept to prove that all elements of inspection and testing, as stipulated in the procedures, are continuously applied.
5 - 256 Inspection, measuring and test equipment
The purpose of this element of the code is to ensure that the correct inspection and measuring equipment is used at all times, that it is maintained in the appropriate way and that records are kept to show that it is handled in a controlled manner. A very significant requirement is that calibration of test and measuring equipment should meet national recognised standards where appropriate.
Inspection and test status
The inspection and test status of product shall be identified by using markings, authorised stamps, tags, labels, routing cards, inspection records, test software, physical location, or other suitable means, which indicate the conformance or non conformance of product with regard to inspection and tests performed. The identification of inspection and test status shall be maintained, as necessary, throughout production and installation of the product to ensure that only product that has passed the required inspection and tests is despatched, used or installed.
Control of non conformaning product
Non conforming product has to be identified and appropriate decisions taken as to what should happen to it. These decisions should obviously fall in line with documented procedures which should indicate when non conforming product has to be:
remarked;
accepted with or without repair by concession;
used for alternative purposes, or;
rejected and scrapped.
5 - 257 The code does not address quality costs as a measurement tool for controlling non conformance. This is where an effective integrated TQM process will compliment ISO 9000 by measuring the cost of non conformance, the cost of corrective action and the cost savings of improvements.
Corrective action
This element of the code could be seen as the engine for continuous improvement. It requires that appropriate procedures and practices be implemented which should identify and resolve non conformance on an on-going basis, so that errors are permanently fixed to prevent re-occurrence.
Handling, storage, packaging and delivery
With ISO 9000 the focus is not purely on the production process - it stretches further, and encompasses handling, storage, packaging and delivery. In this context all four of these aspects may apply not just to outgoing product but also to incoming product and product moving between departments.
Quality records
Quality records have to be maintained to demonstrate achievement of the required quality and the effective operation of the quality system. Pertinent sub-contractor or supplier quality records shall be an element of these data.
All quality records have to be legible and identifiable to the product involved. Quality records shall be stored and maintained in such a way that they are readily retrievable in facilities that provide a suitable environment to minimise deterioration or damage and to prevent loss. Retention times of quality records shall be established in writing. Where agreed contractually, quality records shall be made available for evaluation by the manufacturer for an agreed period.
A very important aspect of quality records is that the system in place should
5 - 258 clearly demonstrate that the required quality is being achieved and that the quality management system is working effectively. The organisation has to demonstrate that it reviews the information in order to avoid repeat errors. For this reason the following types of quality records are normally kept:
O Inspection data
O Test data
O Qualification reports
O Audit reports
Material review reports, eg. customer supplied product verification
Calibration data/reports/records
Quality cost reports
Non conformance and corrective action reports
Training records and statistics
Statistical records - performance measurement information.
This is an important element of ISO 9000. These records are hard evidence to prove that the processes are in fact working in all its dimensions.
❑ Internal quality audits
Once the quality management system has been implemented it is a requirement of the code to have regular internal quality audits to verify that quality activities comply with planned arrangements and to determine the effectiveness of the
5 - 259 quality system.
The results of these audits should be brought to the attention of management personnel having responsibility for the area audited to ensure corrections are effected. This procedure must be seen as a tool for identifying opportunities for improvement and not as a policeman action.
Training
Well defined job specifications per job function needs to be drawn up. These will be the standard to which people are assessed and development plans are made, executed and evaluated for effectiveness of training. The correct, effective on-the- job training skills are essential in providing quality products and services.
Statistical techniques
The purpose of this element is to ensure that the organisation measures and analyses all the critically important elements in the company which effect quality and performance. Examples are as follows:
Company-wide quality cost analysis reports
Company-wide performance statistics, reviewed monthly by the operational committee
Customer complaints reviewed to show that the trend is a declining number of complaints and to highlight improvement opportunities
Projects are prioritised cost effectively to ensure best business performance
Strategic plans are monitored and reviewed monthly to see that goals are met.
5 - 260 Servicing
This section relates to after sales servicing and preplanned maintenance of equipment which could affect the quality of product. This also refers to customer service in solving complaints and warranty policies.
After initial assessment and approval by the SABS of the quality management system of an applicant in accordance with a stated part of ISO 9000, the applicant's name is included in the SABS list of suppliers whose quality management systems comply with ISO 9000. A certificate giving the name, address and the commodity or range of commodities or services is issued to each listed supplier. The listing does not relate to the relative quality level of the product(s) or service(s), but merely to the quality management system controlling the product or service.
Looking at ISO 9000 as a part of the TOM implementation process, it is obvious that the value of ISO 9000 listing lies in the synergy created by the preparation, accreditation, and the continuous self-auditing of the whole quality management system. The reason for this is that these elements, firstly, promote understanding of the importance of improving quality (as shown by the cost of quality), and secondly, they provide employees with the opportunity to continuously rectify, or prevent, quality problems.
5.3 CONCLUSION
Any attempt to implement the TOM process in an organisation is faced with one of the most complex tasks ever likely to be encountered. As a form of organisational culture change, TOM requires a variety of skills and methods which have not been the traditional educational and experiential fare of the typical leader.
Organisational change is based on changing the mind-sets, or paradigms, of the people in the organisation. Paradigms explain why employees perceive reality
5 - 261 according to culturally-determined meanings and guidelines. Armed with paradigms, employees approach the work environment and interpret what they see and experience according to their shared understandings. When organisations begin the process of change necessary to adapt to the conditions, environments, and markets of this, and the next, decade, it will be necessary to adopt a paradigm more suitable for the global community. TQM is being heralded as the paradigm necessary for this organisational transformation.
TQM is a form of organisational change and development, and is one of the possible ways to prepare any South African organisation for the global competition and operating environment of the 1990/2000's. If managers can understand the holistic nature of TQM as a way of conducting business and running operations, then they have already begun to develop the conceptual foundation necessary for change. Managers can test their TQM understanding and commitment by asking four critical questions during the implementation process.
1 is TOM a basic cornerstone of the business plan, operating policies, and mission/vision of the direction the organisation wishes to take now and in the future?
If TQM is considered an add-on or a luxury, then it will probably have an early implementation failure. To be successful, TQM must become a new way of managing, not a secondary operational strategy.
2. Are the managers in the organisation prepared to empower their employees?
TOM is based on the transfer of operational decision-making power from the top of the hierarchy to the bottom. The authority to make decisions is a domain frequently guarded by many managers.
5 - 262 Is the CEO prepared to empower the managers who report to him/her?
Empowerment involves the transfer of decision making and problem solving concerning work process issues to those people who actually do the work. Empowerment, as an element of TOM success, is best realised in quality team activity. Managers who develop effective quality teams have taken the time and effort to build the trust and support necessary for their employees to be able to function in this non-traditional organisational process.
Is the organisation willing to redesign its systems of management information, accountability and performance evaluation in the organisation?
TOM is primarily concerned with the quality dimension; therefore, it requires accounting and information systems that support the generation of revenue as well as cost containment. Traditional accounting methods which provide reliable data for decision making and strategy in the areas of employee and consumer satisfaction are either very elementary or non- existent except for cost controls in areas such as labour, materials and overhead expenses. TOM organisations have to establish means to measure and account for non-traditional areas such as consumer satisfaction, operational quality and effectiveness, and other TOM goals.
The eight critical factors model for TOM implementation serves as a universal road map to TOM implementation. It provides a systematic approach to build a fundamental understanding of customer's requirements, process capabilities and the causes for gaps between them. A road map differs from a prescription. People who are unfamiliar with a route use a road map as a guide for getting from point A to point B. On the other hand, a prescription specifies requirements that must always be followed in exactly the prescribed way and sequence. The hub of the model is continuous improvement of all processes, products, and services
5 - 263 in the organisation. The goal of the model is customer's delight in the organisation it chose to do business with.
5.4 SUMMARY
This chapter examined the TQM implementation process by means of an eight critical factor model for TOM implementation. The model is focussed on satisfying the customer through continual improvement, by providing the employees with the tools required to develop and implement improvements in everyday activities.
An example of the TOM process in a South African manufacturing environment is presented in Chapter 6.
5 - 264 IERIEN s ENT
CHAPTER 6
ANAGE
SYNOPSIS 6-266
LIST OF FIGURES, GRAPHS AND TABLES 6-267
6.1 INTRODUCTION 6-268
6.2 DISCUSSION 6-269
6.2.1 Background of EMSA 6-269
6.2.2 EMSA cares for its employees 6-272
6.2.2.1 Equality in the workforce 6-272
6.2.2.2 Health, safety and environmental protection (HS&EP) 6-277
6.2.2.3 Training and education 6-281
6.2.3 The TOM process at EMSA 6-284
6.2.3.1 Employee involvement 6-284
6.2.3.2 Continuous improvement 6-297
6.2.3.3 Customer focus 6-300
6.3 CONCLUSION 6-303
6.4 SUMMARY 6-304
6 - 265 S ENT
CHAPTER 6
AGE TO
SYNOPSIS
EMSA has made an enormous effort for total mobilisation of its workforce in renewing company culture, eliminating imperfections and striving for continuous improvement. The company has successfully implemented TQM to combine quality, productivity and cost reduction together to achieve quality products and services at the lowest cost. Continuous improvements in product quality and customer focus has resulted in reduced electrode consumption and significant cost savings by its customers.
The company has been a NOSA NOSCAR plant since 1988 and has received the highest safety rating awarded by Union Carbide Corporation (USA). This commitment to safety and environmental protection contributed towards the low labour turnover of 4,14 percent in 1995. Employees appreciate the concern for their health and safety demonstrated by the company in providing them with a safe and healthy work environment.
Teamwork, under leadership of the general manager, forms the basis of all daily operational activities and the focus is clearly on continuously improving everything they do.
EMSA's management firmly believes that TQM can only be achieved through people and care of people is considered as an essential element in achieving operational improvements. Employees participate in all efforts to continuously improve productivity, quality, and customer satisfaction.
EMSA believes that there is no "safe" way, no "quality" way and no "productive" way to perform a task, only the "right" way. If the task is performed "right" it will be safe, high quality and productive.
6 - 266 ENT
CHAPTER 6
TOTAL UTY GE
LIST OF FIGURES, GF. PHS AND TABLES
Table 6.1 EMSA RDP policy 6-276 Table 6.2 EMSA health, safety and environmental 6-278 protection policy Graph 6.3 Lost time injury frequency 6-278 Table 6.4 Agenda for monthly HS&EP meetings 6-279 Table 6.5 The EMSA quality circle policy 6-285, 286 Table 6.6 EMSA vision 6-290 Table 6.7 EMSA vision practices 6-291 Table 6.8 EMSA values and practices 6-292 Table 6.9 EMSA Total quality management policy 6-293 Figure 6.10 EMSA team structure 6-294
6 - 267 CHAPTER 6
WITIMANAGOVI. CAP
6.1 INTRODUCTION
TOM put EMSA, the only graphite electrode producer in Africa, firmly on the road to continuous improvement. So much so that the company received, amongst others, a gold award in the National Productivity Institute's productivity improvement competition, an ESCOM Effective Energy Design award for developing a new energy efficient process, NOSA NOSCAR awards for achievements in health, safety and environmental protection, as well as showing an increase of 600 percent in net income over the past 10 years.
EMSA, a joint venture between Samancor and UCAR Carbon Company (International), is located in Meyerton, in the province of Gauteng, and manufactures artificial graphite electrodes and carburisers for the steel, metallurgical and chemical industries. The company was founded in 1965 and has grown from a modest beginning to a progressive company satisfying the total South African market's demand for graphite electrodes.
This chapter describes the background against which TOM was implemented at EMSA as well as the benefits resulting from an holistic approach to TOM in a South African manufacturing environment. All information was sourced from interviews with key personnel and relevant documents provided by them.
6 - 268 6.2 DISCUSSION
6.2.1 Background of EMS
As early as the 1950's graphite electrodes started to play an important role in the South African economy. The management of Samancor (or Amcor as it was then known) correctly perceived the situation and started to work towards the establishment of a graphite electrode manufacturing facility in South Africa.
From the very beginning it was realised that the necessary technology would have to be obtained from an existing graphite electrode producer. Samancor was also very keen for the proposed facility to be as independent of imported raw materials as possible and therefore desired that the electrodes be manufactured from pitch coke which presumably could also be made locally.
In the metals and alloy field Samancor enjoyed very good relationships with the Union Carbide Corporation who was the leader in the graphite electrode industry. Samancor invited the Carbon products division of Union Carbide to become a partner and to provide the technology in a proposed local graphite producer.
For two reasons, Union Carbide declined the offer. At that time, Union Carbide's policy was that they would only enter into a joint venture if they had both financial and managerial control. Samancor, however, would not agree to this, as they wished to control the operation. Furthermore, Union Carbide did not have much experience in making graphite electrodes using pitch coke.
Union Carbide advised Samancor that during the second World War, a West German company, Sigri Elektrographit GmbH, successfully produced large quantities of graphite electrodes using pitch coke and suggested that Samancor approach Sigri, who were then the second largest graphite electrode producers in the world, for the technology.
Sigri was indeed interested in supplying the technology and becoming a partner
6 - 269 in the proposed graphite electrode producing company.
By the time (early sixties) that an agreement in principle had been reached with Sign, South Africa's total annual usage of graphite electrodes was approximately equal to the quantity used in one week in South Africa today. This was regarded to be far too small for the establishment of a viable electrode manufacturing facility.
In the mid-sixties, the local demand for graphite electrodes had grown sufficiently to support a small sized manufacturing facility and thus, 30 years ago, EMSA was established as a joint venture between Samancor and Sigri. The design and construction work of the plant was started in March 1966 on the farm Kookfontein in the district of Vereeniging. It is located on the same farm, and north of, Samancor's existing ferro-alloy and phosphate plants. EMSA began machining imported electrodes in January 1967, and full manufacturing of graphite electrodes, from raw materials to finished product, began in April 1968. The designed capacity for the EMSA plant was 4900 metric tons per year, producing electrode sizes up to 450 mm in diameter.
During the first few years after start-up, many teething and product quality problems were experienced. These problems, including the fact that EMSA was one of the smallest graphite electrode producers in the world, resulted in a poor financial performance by EMSA.
In the late 1960's !scar, then the mother company of Samancor, adopted a revolutionary steel melting technique and decided to build a very large, ultra- modern electric arc furnace steel melt plant at their Vanderbijlpark facilities. Two 150 metric ton "Ultra High Powered" (UHP) furnaces were to be installed, which would consume approximately the same quantity of graphite electrodes as all the other South African users together.
It was very important for EMSA to be able to supply this additional electrode demand required by 'scot-, as it would have enabled EMSA to virtually double its
6 - 270 output. This would reduce EMSA's high fixed cost per ton of product and thus hopefully materially improve its financial performance.
Iscor's new UHP furnaces were designed to considerably increase the steel production per unit time and furnace area. The UHP technique required graphite electrodes of a considerably higher quality than the ordinary grade electrodes which had been used until that time in all South African steel furnaces and which were manufactured and marketed by EMSA.
EMSA's specialist advisors could not supply the necessary technology for the production of UHP graphite electrodes. Thus, to ensure further growth and to meet the country's demand, the agreement with Sigri was terminated in March 1971. A new joint undertaking was entered with Union Carbide Corporation in October 1971. Union Carbide was not only the largest producer of graphite electrodes in the world, but also developed the UHP melting technique in the USA. Union Carbide pioneered the development of the first UHP graphite electrodes for use in modern industrial furnaces. Designed to conduct the enormous amounts of electricity required for UHP steel making furnaces, graphite electrodes maintain their strength and shock resistance at temperatures high enough to melt metal.
Modem manufactured graphite is essentially a crystalline form of pure carbon. By varying such characteristics as the size, number and orientation of carbon- graphite crystals, it is possible to produce a wide range of products suitable for a diverse range of applications. When considering the unique properties of graphite, it is easy to understand why this remarkable substance has so many practical uses. Graphite does not melt and is stable at 3 000 °.C. In fact, as the temperature gets higher, graphite actually increases in strength. Also, graphite can be manufactured in a very pure form, and it is non-reactive with most chemicals. It has high thermal conductivity and shock resistance, good electrical conductivity, and is self-lubricating.
The super grade graphite electrode of large diameter (600 mm) required by the UHP technique also required a special raw material, namely petroleum needle
6 - 271 coke with a low coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE). Union Carbide had access to low CTE needle coke and was an ideal partner to take EMSA into the future. The new partner in the business was responsible for the transfer of technology and the supply of raw materials to manufacture UHP graphite electrodes. Between 1971 and 1976 a great deal of management time was spent on planning new facilities and implementing Union Carbide's technology. In actuality, until 1977 Union Carbide attended only to the technical expertise of the undertaking and had no real influence on its management regarding personnel matters.
Between 1972 and 1981 the capacity of the EMSA plant was raised to the current 30 000 metric tons per year. This included the installation of a new forming facility, baking furnaces, an impregnation plant, graphitising furnaces and an extended machining facility. EMSA today is a fully integrated business and through the dedication of its people and growth in the local market for graphite electrodes and related products, has become a financially viable and successful business. Today the company is owned on a 50 : 50 partnership basis by Samancor and UCAR Carbon Company, previously the carbon products division of Union Carbide Corporation.
6.2.2 EMSA cares for its employees
EMSA can be regarded as a progressive company that has for many years provided well for the basic and security needs of its employees. Since 1977 the creation of a system of equality, a safe and healthy work environment, and the development of all employees has become a priority.
6.2.2.1 Equality in the workforce
In 1977 EMSA became a signatory to the Sullivan code of conduct (Sullivan 1979 : 67), since one of the share holders, Union Carbide was one of the original Signatories of the code in that year. The nature and scope of the management of multinational and international corporations in South Africa entered a new era with
6 - 272 the implementation of the Sullivan code of conduct. The aim of this code of conduct, designed by the American civil rights leader Dr Leon H Sullivan, was to achieve the equality of white and non-white workers in South African corporations directly or indirectly controlled by American corporations.
The Sullivan code of conduct consists of seven principles which are aimed at bringing about changes in the organisation in order to achieve equality in the workplace (Sullivan 1980: 5). Pretorius (1988: 116-117) categorises the seven principles into two groups:
El "Principles to ensure equal opportunity between whites and non-whites in and outside the work environment where the two groups are in direct contact or competition". This includes integrated facilities (principle 1), training to prepare non-whites for, and promotion of non-whites into supervisory and management position (principles 4 and 5), and the elimination of laws and practices that prevent social, political and economical justice (principle 7).
El "Principles to ensure equal opportunity between whites and non-whites in and outside the work environment where the two groups are not in direct contact or competition". Examples are equal and fair employment practices (principle 2), equal pay for all employees doing equal or comparable work (principle 3), and the improvement of the quality of non- white employees' lives outside the work environment (principle 6).
Progress in achieving the requirements of the Sullivan code was measured by an independent auditing firm, Arthur D Little, Inc (Cambridge, Massachusetts). Compliance to the code was expressed as Rating 1 (full compliance), Rating 2 (good progress) and Rating 3 (needs improvement). Since 1977 the following changes have been made to achieve equality for all EMSA employees:
toilet facilities are fully integrated;
6 - 273 a modern cafeteria and a washroom with integrated facilities were built;
all employees have the same pension and group insurance benefits;
all employees qualify equally for housing subsidies;
non-white and female appointments were made, in technical, clerical, supervisory, and management positions, on the principle that the appointed person has the necessary capabilities to meet the demands of the position;
the right to free association is recognised and employees belong to the union of their choice;
EMSA has contributed to development of the communities where its employees live by providing water, schools, and educational opportunities to children of employees;
all employees receive equal remuneration for the same or comparable work;
there is no difference between the wage scales for white and non-white employees.
The implementation of the Sullivan code formed an integral part of the management function of every manager and supervisor in the company. During 1988 EMSA achieved a Rating 1 for the first time and retained this rating yearly until 1994. After the abolishment of apartheid and the democratic election of a new government in April 1994, the statutory requirement for American companies with operations in South Africa to report annually on the Sullivan code of conduct is no longer a requirement in terms of the US legislation.
6 - 274 However, EMSA continued with a social responsibility programme aligned with the Reconstruction and Development Programme (RDP) during 1995, and will continue to do so in the future. EMSA's commitment to equality and affirmative action in the workplace is clearly displayed by its Reconstruction and Development policy, Table 6.1.
A significant portion of the annual expense budget is allocated to projects directed at providing better education, primary health, and community services to disadvantaged communities.
South Africa is at the turning point in its history. Private sector involvement is crucially important in keeping the fabric of its fragile society together. In 1993, EMSA received the Professional Marketing Review (PMR) Social Upliftment Corporate Care Award for the company's contribution to social upliftment in South Africa. The judges were very impressed by EMSA and its employees' quantitative and qualitative efforts to realise equal opportunities, wealth and justice for all employees and the wider community. EMSA's programme consists of four main sections, namely: social justice, education of non-employees, training and development of employees, and community development.
EMSA's corporate care projects encourage all employees to suggest activities in which the company can become involved. All managers, heads of departments, and union representatives are members of a Social Upliftment Steering Committee, which meets monthly to discuss the progress of current projects and to evaluate proposed projects. The committee also identifies community specific projects. Members talk to employees, visit school communities, institutions and associations, identifying group and individual needs.
EMSA believes that by caring for its people - both in the workplace as well as in the community where they live - an environment is created where all employees naturally contribute to the welfare of the company in its quest for continuous improvement of all its services and projects.
6 - 275 Table 6.1 EMSA reconstruction and development programme policy
PURPOSE STATEMENT
To provide equal opportunities, wealth and justice for all. poLicySTATEMENT
The EMSA Reconstruction and Development Programme will facilitate sound productive reconstruction and development and will always strive to increase the productivity pool of the country, and to contribute to equal opportunities, wealth and justice for all people. The programme will further facilitate the non-segregation of races in/at all facilities, equal opportunities and equal and fair employment practices for all employees, irrespective of race, colour or sex. All employees will enjoy freedom of association.
The UNISA minimum pay level (MLL) will at least be met for the lowest paid jobs at EMSA.
Preference will be given to the upliftment of EMSA employees and their families.
BOUNDARIES/CONSTRAINTS
Money / Manpower / Time. sFscpc sTRAT.g.plE.
Equal pay for equal work.
Equal access to benefits within company policies and rules.
Training and advancement
Employees will be trained according to the company's people development and training strategy and policy. Continue with the advancement and recruitment of disadvantaged people with the ultimate objective to fill at least 60% of all management and staff positions with people from a disadvantaged background.
Recruit and appoint only well qualified and competent people (best applicant) who would need minimum training and assistance to be successful.
Facilitate an environment whereby disadvantaged appointees are assisted and trained by current employees.
Non-employee education
Financial and non-financial support for non-employee education will be in line with the national population demographics.
Community development
The company will strive to increase the percentage purchases from non-white owned businesses.
Financial and non-financial support for community development will be in line with the national population demographics.
Source: EMSA management : 1995 (a)
6 - 276 6.2.2.2 Health, safety and environmental protection (HS&EP)
In 1978 EMSA received a National Occupational Safety Association (NOSA) four star rating and in 1982 management set the goal of winning a NOSCAR award. A NOSCAR award is the highest award made for safety by NOSA. The ongoing improvement in the safety achievements of EMSA includes a five star rating in 1983, regional winner in 1984, national winner in 1987 and the company's first NOSCAR award in 1988. The communal goal contributed greatly to encouraging a spirit of team work and achievement. Safe and pleasant work conditions were created for all employees. Top management is personally involved in six-monthly self audits, monthly HS&EP meetings, and all enquiries into serious and potentially serious injuries and incidents. Management's commitment to the creation of a safe and healthy work environment unquestionably played a decisive role in creating a positive attitude and safety awareness among employees. This can be illustrated by E MSA's excellent safety achievements and the large number of employee HS&EP suggestions (on average 200 per year) that are implemented annually.
During 1995, performance in HS&EP affairs once again was excellent and EMSA retained its NOSCAR status for the eighth consecutive year. The company also featured in the launch issue of NOSA's safety newspaper, "Workers Life", directed at the hourly paid workforce in South Africa (NOSA 1995: 6-7).
EMSA was the first graphite facility to achieve a Union Carbide HS&EP "Meets" rating in 1990. This is the highest rating awarded, by independent auditors, when evaluating a company's HS&EP procedures and practices and comparing them to the standards prescribed by Union Carbide. This rating was again confirmed following an audit by UCAR in 1993 during a 3 yearly follow-up audit.
The main objective of EMSA's HS&EP programme is to continuously reduce the probability for injuries. The EMSA HS&EP policy (Table 6.2) clearly shows the company's commitment towards achieving this objective. According to this policy, line management is responsible to ensure continuous improvement in the safety
6 - 277 of all employees.
Table 6.2 EMSA health, safety and environmental protection policy
EMSA:HEALTI+1; SAFETY:AND ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTIONPOLICY
The success of our business depends upon the prevention of accidents, occupational illnesses, deterioration of the environment and the strict compliance with established HS&EP legal and policy requirements.
Compliance to established laws, UCAR Carbon HS&EP Policies and the NOSA safety system will be accomplished through establishing clear policies, procedures and standards within EMSA with an emphasis on simplicity.
Line management is responsible and accountable for achieving and maintaining HS&EP excellence within their areas of responsibility.
Continuous improvement of our HS&EP program will be promoted to remain competitive and to retain a position of leadership in industry.
Source: EIVISA management : 1995 (b)
A direct measure of the success of the drive towards reducing injuries, is the number of man-hours worked without a lost workday case (LWC) injury. The company works approximately 1,2 million man-hours per year. The goal is to work 1 million (or multiples of 1 million) man-hours without a LWC injury. This goal has been achieved 16 times in EMSAs history! Since 1976, the 2 million consecutive man-hours without a LWC injury has been achieved on three occasions. The record for man-hours worked without a LWC injury stands on 5,76 million man- hours! Continuous improvement in the frequency of lost-time injuries since 1972 is shown in graph 6.3.
Graph 6.3 Lost time injury frequency
Source: EMSA management : 1995 (c)
6 - 278 HS&EP training is provided on an ongoing basis. All managers, heads of departments and supervisors received in-depth training on the Occupational Health and Safety Act during 1995. This act differs from the preceding Machinery and Occupational Safety Act in that the protection of the health of the employees is included in the new act - something which has been part of the EMSA HS&EP programme for many years. Ten percent of all employees are trained, on an annual basis, in NOSA prescribed training courses and first-aid. All employees belong to departmental HS&EP committees. These committees meet monthly, using the standard agenda shown in Table 6.4.
Table 6.4 Agenda for monthly HS&EP meetings
AGENDA FOR MONTHLY,:HSAIE:P.MEETINGS
Approval of previous minutes Matters arising Injury/incident statistics and review Audits Goals progress Housekeeping trophy Plant Offices Topic of the month Item of the month Annexure II follow-up HS&EP training Review of HS&EP manual Transport Review committee report back Incident recall HS&EP suggestions Off-the-job safety
Source: EMSA management : 1995 (d)
Items 10 and 11 on the agenda are aimed at providing a short training session on a selected item of the EMSA HS&EP procedures and programmes. These items are scheduled to cover all the procedures and programmes with all employees over a three year period.
6 - 279 HS&EP films or videos are shown monthly to all employees. During this one-hour session, serious incidents and all injuries during the preceding month are also discussed. Photographs or videos of the incident/injury are shown to create an awareness of the situation to prevent reoccurrence.
EMSA is dedicated to preventing atmospheric pollution in the community where it operates. Specifically, EMSA strives in its corporate and personal actions to:
avoid unnecessary contributions to air pollution;
meet or better existing air quality standards in cooperation with the air pollution control authorities and with the community;
. minimise atmospheric emissions from processes through the use of the best affordable technology;
. support research and monitoring into atmospheric phenomena so that the most cost effective pollution prevention strategies can be devised.
In recognition for its contribution towards air pollution prevention, EMSA received the National Association for Clean Air's (NACA) Corporate Award. NACA, a comprehensive authority on air quality in South Africa, bestows this prestigious award for exceptional contribution to the prevention of air pollution on a national basis to an organisation with a history of commitment to clean air.
This look at EMSA's successful HS&EP programme leaves little doubt that one of the greatest contributions to the attainment of its high degree of total safety results from its systematic approach and outlook; all stages of design, manufacture and operation, the people - equipment - material - environment sub-systems are considered as interrelated interdependent components of the overall system. Safety at EMSA has come to mean freedom from the people - equipment - material - environment interactions that result in injury to personnel, damage to equipment, time loss or any down grading of the company's objectives.
6 - 280 6.2.2.3 Training and education
The importance placed on education and training is evidenced by the substantial amount of money spent on this topic during 1995, namely 6 percent of EMSA's total wage bill.
Until 1979 training was given mainly to top and middle management. This included training in the Union Carbide management principles and systems, the Kepner Tregoe problem-solving and decision-making techniques, and negotiating skills. After a full time training manager was appointed in 1979, training programmes were implemented for potential supervisors and for the development of all hourly employees.
At present, employees receive, on average, 10 working days training, in various subjects, during the calendar year. This training includes:
0 adult basic education and training;
0 total quality management;
quality circles training for leaders and members;
statistical analysis, SPC and experimental design;
justice for all;
0 industrial leadership;
0 labour relations act;
0 occupational safety and health act;
0 first aid;
6 - 281 O 23 NOSA courses;
O forklift operators course;
O crane operators course;
O slingers training;
. apprenticeship training and education.
All employees are encouraged to improve their education levels by enrolling for degrees, diplomas and high school certificates. Financial assistance is given to all employees studying towards recognised qualifications at accredited institutions, provided that the field of study is relevant to the company and the employee's future prospects in the company.
The Manpower Training Amendment Act, which came into effect during 1990, provides for the establishment of industry based training boards to take over the administration of the apprenticeship system from the Department of Manpower. The training boards had to formulate conditions of apprenticeship which provide for a competency-based modular training system as opposed to the time-based system used in the past.
A system of accreditation was introduced. This involved the evaluation of training institutions or employers to determine whether they can function as a training body and produce trained artisans who comply with set standards to the industry.
EMSA was granted accreditation during 1993 to train apprentices in the trades of electrician, fitter, fitter and turner, and welder. This accreditation was granted to EMSA by the Metal and Engineering Industrial Education Training Board.
EMSA also supports education and development programmes in the community and for children of EMSA employees.
6 - 282 0 Junior Achievers: This programme exposes children from all cultures to an equal opportunity environment. The 10 week educational programme is presented by EMSA to senior high school children from the community to teach them how to organise, operate and manage their own business.
Mentorship programme: A resident professor at a local university is sponsored to mentor post graduate students from the disadvantaged community.
Adopted schools: Needy schools in the community are assisted by providing the basic equipment necessary to ensure an acceptable level of schooling for the attending children. EMSA artisans are also involved in maintenance activities at these schools.
0 Supplementary classes: These classes are presented by a local university, and sponsored by EIV1SA, to matriculants from the disadvantaged communities. The classes are presented to matriculants in preparation for their final exams.
EMSA believes that a trained and educated workforce is an informed workforce, and as such are able to make better judgement decisions, as and when required, in both the workplace and in their private capacity as members of the community.
From this background study of EMSA, the character of the company very clearly constitutes itself as being one of caring for, and serving of, its employees. It is obvious that the company recognises the potential greatness of the people in and around it, and that it wants to serve (or give) in such a way that this potential greatness may be realised. This perspective is extremely important because it shows that serving people does not mean being servile; it means doing the things required to make the other person greater and not the things that will evaluate only the self. From the company's point of view, this also means not tolerating mediocrity. Serving the other does not mean to allow him equality with the worst in himself, but to create the circumstances where he will rise to the best in himself,
6 - 283 in other words, where he will start acting with generosity, courage and care towards everybody in the immediate environment.
6.2.3 The TOM process at EMSA
In chapter 4, a model to define the elements of the TQM process was proposed. These elements were defined as:
0 employee involvement: the active involvement and participation of all employees, in a multi-functional capacity, in all improvement actions are considered to be a fundamental element for the achievement of continuous improvement;
0 continuous improvement: the continuous improvement of productivity, quality, profitability, safety, environmental protection, asset utilisation, knowledge, and processes are essential in the advent of competing in the global market;
customer focus: customer is defined as being an internal or external user/buyer of any product/service provided by the organisation, and also as the owners/shareholders of the organisation who are directly affected by the success (or failure) of the organisation.
The TOM model provides the structure for a systematic analysis and evaluation of the TQM process at EMSA.
6.2.3.1 Employee involvement
EMSA was one of the first companies in South Africa to implement quality circles. As far as can be established, EMSA was the first organisation to successfully involve hourly-paid black workers in quality circles (Barnard 1993: 186). The quality circle programme was implemented slowly and systematically. The decision to implement quality circles was taken at the end of 1981 and a quality
6 - 284 circle policy (Table 6.5) was formulated and approved by top management even before management communicated with employees on the proposed implementation of quality circles. This was done to ensure that top management reached consensus on the objectives of the programme and to affirm from the outset management's commitment to quality circles.
Table 6.5 EMSA quality circle policy
EMSA QUALITY: CIRCLE POLICY
Employee input into the day-to-day operation of the job(s) is considered to be an important element in the successful operation of the company. A quality circle program is one method of effectively obtaining that input and as such is endorsed and fully supported by management. DEFINITION
Quality circles are small groups of employees who meet on a regular basis to discuss their work problems, analyse causes of these problems and recommend solutions to management, and in areas within their jurisdiction, to take action to implement solutions themselves. Normally, a circle will consist of from 4 to 10 individuals from the same or related work area. PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF QUALITY CIRCLES
To conduct continuous analyses of operating problems using the proven techniques of a quality circle program within the company. The principles described herein apply to all activities (engineering, administrative, manufacturing, etc) in the company. PRACTICE AND PROCEDURES
Management will support circle activities by:
Allowing company time for regularly scheduled committee and circle meetings.
Providing adequate meeting areas and materials.
Providing effective publicity for the program via the EMSA newsletter, bulletin board notices, etc.
Replying to circle recommendations and requests in a timely manner.
Implementing approved circle recommendations expeditiously.
Respecting the autonomy of circles, eg. not intentionally independently resolving a problem that a circle has undertaken to solve.
Circles will ....
6 - 285 Circles will:
Assure that each member has a voice in the operation of the circle.
Set up schedules for meetings and presentations within the framework of known company workloads.
Not address the following subjects: benefits and salaries employment policies personalities organization-wide policies.
Have the option of accepting or refusing problems submitted from any source.
Have the opportunity to present periodic reviews of selected projects to top management.
Source: EMSA management : 1995 (e)
Information sessions were held with heads of departments, supervisors, artisans and all hourly employees during which the following topics were discussed:
background of quality circles;
the EMSA quality circle policy;
the implementation plan;
training.
A full time coordinator was appointed to coordinate all quality circle activities and to provide the relevant training to circle leaders and members.
The first quality circle was formed in September 1982. It consisted of black and white boilermakers and welders and was known as the Fab circle. During the pilot phase, September 1982 to February 1983, six quality circles were formed and management decided to proceed with the quality circle programme. The following important factors were taken into account in this decision:
six quality circles were formed during the pilot phase, and an additional
6 - 286 four circles were on the brink of being formed;
during the pilot phase, the six circles made eight presentations to management, who were very impressed with the enthusiasm and creativity of the members;
two of the eight projects had already been successfully implemented;
the cost of implementing all eight projects would be R6 800 for an annual saving of R15 000.
The quality circle programme has been functioning effectively ever since. At the end of 1995, 29 quality circles were active with a membership of 218. Since 1982, 267 quality circle projects were successfully implemented with a resulting annualised saving of approximately R2,6 million. When the magnitude of savings is examined, it must be taken into account that 179 of the quality circle members are hourly paid employees, many of them being semi-literate black employees, whose lack of advanced problem solving skills makes the achievements of their quality circles even more significant and applaudable.
The main goal of implementing quality circles was to raise employee morale with the belief that it would contribute to increased productivity. EMSA's management is aware of the difficulty of determining what contribution quality circle participation has made to raising morale, since there are other factors that influence it simultaneously. One of the most important variables is the influence of external political pressure brought to bear on black union representatives. Unions in general are opposed to any programme aimed at increasing productivity, since they believe that it will lead to a reduction in job opportunities and to strengthening the capitalist system.
EMSA management, however, reasoned that, although it is difficult to measure the contribution of quality circle participation to an improvement in morale, there is sufficient literature and case studies that prove that employees in general have the
6 - 287 need to belong to a group, to use their minds as well as their hands, and to receive recognition. Quality circles give employees the opportunity to become part of a group, to use their practical capabilities for problem-solving, and to receive recognition for their contribution. Quality circle activities thus lead to employee satisfaction with a consequent improvement in morale. The fact that participation in EMSA's quality circles is totally voluntary, with no monetary reward attached to participation or achievement, also means that only those employees who derive satisfaction from these activities will remain active members. The growth and continued existence of quality circles could thus be seen as an indirect indication that quality circles contribute to improving employee morale.
Quality circle participation also leads to improved productivity because members carry out their routine tasks with more enthusiasm and interest. Members are continuously trained, learn how to solve problems and make decisions, and develop a better understanding of the operation and cost structure of the company. This enables employees to execute their daily tasks more effectively and with greater understanding. EMSA's management realised that this improvement in effectiveness with which employees carry out their day-to-day activities would make the greatest contribution to increasing productivity in the long term. The implementation of quality circles is still regarded as a long term investment in EMSA employees.
Additional to the improved productivity that results from quality circle activities, union representatives, and members, learn what problem-solving and decision- making techniques comprise, what consensus decision-making means and how the organisation functions. This could make union negotiations much easier in the future and lead to more realistic expectations.
EMSA managed to implement quality circles successfully and to involve lower level employees in the problem-solving and decision-making process. This lead the way to the implementation of TQM and for a new organisational culture.
A TQM programme based on the Deming philosophy was introduced in 1987.
6 - 288 !mai (1986: xxv) defines TQM as organised, gradual, unending improvement activities involving everyone in the company - management and workers - in a totally integrated effort towards improving performance at every level. This improved performance is directed towards satisfying such cross-functional goals as quality, cost, scheduling, manpower development and new product development.
During December 1987, the plant manager wrote a memorandum to the managing director regarding the implementation of TQM at EMSA:
"We should not encounter any major obstacles in the process of shaping a new culture in the plant organisation since we have bee practising a more participative management style and encouraging innovation for the past five years". (Barnard 1993: 182).
The success of the quality circle programme made a great contribution to the creation of the new culture. Employees were used to participating in problem- solving and decision-making and have confirmed that management is sincere in its intention of establishing a participative management culture. This lead to mutual trust between management, employees, and union representatives. Trust in the workplace has serious implications for an organisation's ability to compete effectively in the global economy.
Formal training in the Deming philosophy was presented to all managers, heads of departments, supervisors and union representatives. Table 3.5 (p 3-73) is a summary of Deming's 14 points of quality improvement for management. Points 6 and 13 emphasise the necessity of training and development of employees and point 5 highlights the importance of the principle of never-ending improvement in everything a company does and produces. All three these points have already been addressed through participation in the quality circle programme. Employees were offered the opportunity for training and development and to contribute to never-ending improvements of EMSA by means of proposals on projects for improvement and solving work related problems.
6 - 289 During 1988 EMSA management formulated the EMSA vision and introduced it to all employees. The vision is reviewed regularly to ensure that it remains current and applicable to the present operating environment, and that it remains fully aligned with the corporate UCAR vision. The most current revision (Table 6.6) took place during the second half of 1995 and included a new global approach for the organisation as a whole.
Table 6.6 EMSA Vision
EMSA VOVON
This Vision statement is an expression of what we strive to be as a global company. For each of us to identify with this Vision requires considerable personal commitment. Realizing the Vision calls for innovation, inspiration, and dedication
We know where we are going and why
Every person is informed, and empowered, enabling us to reach our common goals.
We have pride of ownership in our jobs
Our environment encourages each of us to make our maximum contribution. Participation through team work enables every individual to be involved in, dedicated to, and benefit from the success of the business. We listen to and trust each other.
We continuously improve everything we do
Our dedication to total quality makes EMSA the high-quality, low-cost performer. Adaptability and innovation are vital parts of our continuous improvement effort.
We set the standards
Customers are the key to our success. They recognize us as the industry leader based on the value we deliver with our products and service.
We provide excellent value
We consistently provide attractive growth of shareholder value while meeting our commitment to our communities and employees in matters of health, safety, and the environment.
Source: EMSA management :1995 (f)
6 - 290
Concurrent to introducing the EMSA vision in 1988, management also introduced a set of vision practices (Table 6.7). This vision practices are, in essence, a code of conduct aimed at creating a corporate culture focused on the vision. The vision practices support and encourage creativity and employee involvement in problem- solving and decision-making.
Table 6.7 EMSA vision practices
.. . EWISA PRACTICES
Managing people by regularly communicating goals, strategy, changing priorities, and so on.
Helping people to understand how their jobs contribute to the overall effectiveness of your work unit.
Allocating resources in accordance with business priorities.
Being willing to make difficult decisions.
Demonstrating commitment and persistence in attempting to serve customers better.
Knowing the motivation and goals of the customers.
Being innovative and creative in response to business conditions.
Solving problems rather than escalating the problem upwards.
Giving employees a clear-cut decision when they need one.
Responding in a non-defensive manner when others disagree with your views.
Demonstrating high personal standards.
Encouraging innovation and calculated risk taking in others.
Encouraging your subordinates to initiate projects they think are important.
Supporting and reinforcing new ideas and techniques developed by employees.
Treating with an open mind requests to change plans and goals when circumstances seem to warrant change.
Being able to develop new, creative approaches and alternate solutions to problems.
Encouraging employees to take responsibility for actions and results, creating a sense of ownership.
Trusting your subordinates to do things right.
Giving your subordinates feedback on how they are doing their job.
Communicating your views honestly and directly during discussions with subordinates about performance.
Utilizing recognition and non-monetary rewards as well as financial compensation, to reward excellent performance.
Recognizing the value of bringing together people with different opinions.
Understanding which decisions can be made alone and which decisions need to involve others.
Evaluating the views of others according to their knowledge and competence.
Behaving in a way that leads others to trust you.
Emphasizing co-operation as opposed to competitiveness among members of your work group. Source: EMSA management : 1988
6 - 291
Table 6. 8 EMSA va lues and practices
...... : . . . • . DRIVING VALUE: MEETING EM POWERMENT/TEAMWORKI...... : BIAS: FOR ACTION ...... :: C..ON . TINUOL/$. ... IMPRO.VEMENT: ....• • LONG-TE.RM :FOC US. ' : : :.:::: ...•. :. ::: •:: ACT GLOBAL CUSTOMER NEEDS . . INVOLVEMENT . .' ...... • . • • • • • ••' .... '••• ''''' -2 ''8 Y 11,TriEg P..5E22 - .,zgg,,..8 <15.6aES".0. W2°22022= gEM5-g§ .438-.060.. ra'am2g4=mm so.2L V,i.NE17211 2 p Eg22s;2 tf."%sc- 8t028.6.21E8 T231W.g2 Z(3.2 u 20:00,1 4EE:2 -. L0 2gig21g,E Ta-.5-"6-22,64'',8 a0E20,..a s224.ssgms 2 B , MO0 ....E.e.o ti 0-5 E2 6 06.2m8022% 2 rEg : 02.22 s.L,2m0B. VE2 020. 8. ,,,0 E2a9.222:14 2g.?..2-°g2D6 222-8-027'2s 8 Eo,a53,-.E., .EE=0-.66 ,F211Z.g.? ?M2D8C? '7)gt00:= WfA iI§raill 0 .. Iiiihiliii 1IDOAiiiifi g ir58EWM4t 02-4";2os EragglMi m °' "3=ET.m.g . 1 -2 -. 3 24 (1,7§g7225 Z.E.,,c. 2g3m2B- tn . -00,09g0ia2= gE 2'4= o 0m WA: 8-6 ?.01-220” goE6--s22 g14 ° gT0,0g 2eB0°2° 1, . .18_ 2 018824E5 t , -F.T.173s 2o 2 t 2 2'222E022 F 0 6 c.am, 8 11 °2Th?--A2'8 28EsaETa e. r - . Tii 2E". 9 t 22i: 2.g2B0 ,71M2U E 1 gE A, 6 - ii;;. 3 - - .Eml 282 , - 22 . ,..0m 2 8280 28 -68 bo. 600 2=2 C2 S17 08. 80- o- 5 . 22g;) 2 4 2g4 , 2=i 62 022 2 0 ',,!1 .0 - w 22 to _6 2. -02 ,,,E a ‘ 2 '. E. 4 -2 . = 1 2 t - a3 m . 25A ? 2 . - i E :e 2:2 ■ gm8 . " .1 2 E. ti: = a t E " a a . 0 i6 C 2 2 2 0 0 0 E e t w e - . ' .o in A 2- w-.. "5.'11. -`2 410, BV a %11Ti S6. 12 ... 17,2 . I aa 1=70 . DE 2 2o 2 6 BE a .. 1 to os s. g zi=g; ...,,,,, ,Rse _ 1, ..0,T,„ g EgEr, W N.''' m: E .gE c § GUS 0 0 gEA ,3 " " 22 "2 o8 .= 2 E., t. 0, -.- .4 uf 2 ,_ E 8coz .0 .8%2 2 3 . g 22 q. , m= 028 .1 , . .0 I -. , . 2 1 2., E E-2 - g 0 8 e- El 2 'C ,_ ii 0 >. . T. . 0- 0 .o . '
, - 7, , -1 s - E l °. c, g - '; 8 2 . c ' . 0 , ., a 2 ' , ' 1: 2 a20 -0 . " 3 s2 z. 2g .... 1.L1214 Bt ti ° 0 s 0 g22 gml . 6.2 U 5. 2 To6 0 811 -ga .ma, .00 4 " 6 -292 wa41 9 AZ . wt 2, 2t % m g g .E m g -g- g; ggr 8 0 r8 ,1 = g §/... 32 0= E' CB m .8 .7, , 2 , rg ' B ; . 1 - ,,, 3 E s ..› 2:- rt. 2.Eg n. rgitIE 2 weE 0 gli. c 02 0 2 m -.. = g.E 2, ,7,? 5, .0 es5 0 cm .D0V, . O .;.826 Et .m.go .222 . , !2 - . s . .0 ..5 ..5 - 2 . .' 15 -- - 4' 5 0 c 8.2 ,T,, E0 ..s, 00 d i ... , t 0 S 2 - -2 223 w.2 . 1 B 2 " , 3 ,- 8 m 0 >.. sma m«0 0,F, 2E: 23o , 2 82 m . L 0z .2E) 0,00 . , - ,
3 1 -. ! 1 .;.. 1; z.g itg .2 .,, 2 4.-- g T V >.1 E L 0%, .. a gt ..• a 2 0 .5 37 3 . sm .. SE - -m.2 ._,_ ES 2 2 2,7,0.= mtum 11. 2 2- . 2S >, 0 21P g 0 g1 m g E 0 2 gg oa s .0 0 'V 4- 211 0 mmd2 ,%Ega 0, 6_,7,_ =4 .g e . .820 ., E . ' -=*%Z . , s - g E," .... t ..E - 2 2 OE B 222.s 0, 2,:g 0 tvi E ,.: 0 E 6 0 2a a 0 o No ' 0 em 0 .2 , ' ' , , . .2 ,'1 .0 91 DV IA3 _le -y7 2.. ' T, 1 2 ;2 1 2 at t6 2 16 EL B2 it; u) 2 u ›, 2E m rig ., % 3f5 2 .- q. 20 ET E e2 ..36 0 am E 0 62 .0 :F= a., - 4.. 2 E .x sa 22 ,0 2%0 2 2 i 4. 0 g eeT 02 =“ 0, 8 2 o 05,g 5 61.. . 6 .Eg = °- 0 )i wi , . 74 -0 - . « s. - .cTArd m=c0E w 7 1 '1 =- 0 0 ,5 02 ..E2m ; O>..E0 .c020 c al 7,22 0 .81, .1-r " .. 12 2a2 2, - 2227, -.4 2 E0 i5 -.- l mu .8 5. c, tEo. 208 8 8›.m 0- E..0 E= ota2 2 E§0 00.1. .g5s .0-= 3g .,-: gg me„ > 0 0: .0 - ,
1.0.- zcl .5 0 . • 10 ;2, ma fg! HMI!in-of in2 - , 1.1 ' 05 0 020s m ,, ;3 = 2g 0EE CL 2 0 i“, g; ;'; 72 to 5, .T 5,m 202
2 2 . -°6-2 ! 0, s.... ,, - 2 . - 92 E 0,.. com . E m- o m/ L E .1 m20, 22 .-cO gll 2. ? 0 90 , 2 . ,_, 0 03 ..16 . li . . ,
EW t " 2gA -5-00 z.2 2g, D.g Bz5 wt ,, 0 0 ° = r 11 2. 2 c 2 '1 0-0 EB = ' o 2 - ..00 62 T
'
2000 I .1.. - .,2 _0. S° 43 0 g „, g2 a.5 gsg 2 P gri mA 2 0 E .2566. !?) 1 " -7 C S 2 0 1,,m T -- P -s5a 222 2 m200 1215a 21522 .h. ; 0= E 5 0 E>2=._ E 2 . ' -.-. 0= 22 7 2.1 4 -5. E - 7-‘ m2 -=',.. ! E t g E . °-- 0 0 Et 4T, Ea -c F- i' 1 82 a E =70 .2 s 8 ,o J 1 .3 3 ' .. -1, 15 % 0 m 0 2 g g o . SIg c. 0 03/5, 8 20 c.2 age 000 22 ) l .§ ,4:2 °.-... m. 8E -8 i 0 m i Zo 2 =zEn t !;!" E.E .2 2. 0 „,g§ 0.2 ll -. : ...i. E = . 0 6 m . O T Source: EMSA management Cu During 1996, the vision practices will be replaced by a set of six corporate values and practises. These values and practices (Table 6.8) were formulated to: support the vision; drive the actions required to satisfy the vision; provide a simplified, more detailed description of the core beliefs which drive the organisation. After implementing the EMSA vision in 1988, the TQM policy (Table 6.9) was formulated to support the vision and to fulfil the requirements of the SABS ISO 9002 listing and UCAR quality standards. Table 6.9 EMSA Total Quality Management policy EMSA TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT POLICY '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' EMSA is committed to continual, never-ending improvement in Total Quality. It is EMSA's goal to provide our customers with value and service to meet their needs at all times. By maintaining constancy of purpose, with improvement of competitive position through Total Quality as a primary operating objective, and by using the powerful tools of Statistical Process Change, we shall make quality improvement a way of life and gain the long-term advantage that comes from reliable products. The company quality policy is thus directed towards achieving the following objectives: To provide customers with an assurance, that is to say a high level of confidence, that the graphite products supplied to an order will comply with an agreed specification (or will perform satisfactorily). To minimize the risk of failure or faulty performance of any product under specified or normal service conditions, for a predetermined period of operation. To contribute to the profit objective of the Company by optimizing the direct costs of quality assurance against: the cost of potential losses, defects and wastage. the implicit value of perceived goodwill and credibility. To improve communication between all departments and functions. To improve managerial and technical skills and to instill the need for self-discipline and attention to detail in all personnel in conducting the activities of the Company. To increase quality assurance awareness in all Company personnel and to create an environment that will lead to the daily pursuit of better quality on the part of every person in the organisation. Source: EMSA management : 1996 (b) 6 - 293 Groups play a particularly significant role in Elk/ISA. The successes of the quality circle programme guided management into forming formal groups, or teams, at different levels of management to address specific needs. The EMSA team structure (Figure 6.10) consists of six main groups. Figure 6.10 EMSA team structure Source: EMSA management : 1995 (g) Business team The business team consists of the general manager and the eight functional managers reporting directly to him: human resources finance marketing production quality HS&EP engineering and maintenance pipeline (production planning and materials) 6 - 294 The business team meets once per week to communicate and to formulate policy and strategy. Operations team The operations team consists of the production manager, process managers, and heads of departments. This team meets weekly to communicate decisions from the business team and to share problems and opportunities present in the facility. TQM steering team The TQM steering team meets once a month and consists of the business team, operations team, TOM coordinator, quality circle coordinator, and union representatives. This team formulates policy about training and all small group activities. The review of TOM procedures and progress in quality improvement are standard agenda items for the monthly meetings. The TOM steering team also appoints breakthrough teams to address specific and urgent quality issues. Breakthrough teams The TOM steering team appoints breakthrough teams on an ad hoc basis. According to Juran (1964 : 2) a breakthrough is "... change, a dynamic, decisive movement to new, higher levels of performance". The aim of the breakthrough teams is thus to permanently improve existing standards. These teams are appointed to work on complex and often multi-disciplinary projects. In contrast with quality circles, membership of these teams is not voluntary and the team is dissolved as soon as the problem has been solved. Control teams Control teams are permanent teams and meet at least once per month to 6 - 295 work on the never-ending improvement in total quality. Every department has a control team consisting of the head of the department, supervisors, members of the quality assurance department, maintenance and engineering department and also representatives from the shop floor. These teams make extensive use of statistical techniques to gather data and to show progress in their improvement efforts. Quality circles Quality circles consist mainly of hourly and supervisory personnel. Membership is voluntary and there is no financial reward associated to suggestions or improvements implemented by the circles. Circles meet two- weekly in working time to work on the improvement of any work related issue, relative to their area of interest, selected by the circle's members. Every Friday there is a "Total Quality Hour" during which a control team is given one hour to make presentations to management. This weekly session is attended by all members of the business and operations teams. The control teams are rotated to give each team the opportunity to make three presentations per year. Shopfloor workers participate in the presentation of projects in which they are actively involved. The objectives of the Total Quality hours are the following: to prove management's commitment to never-ending improvement in quality. All employees can see that management is prepared to devote time to listen and respond to their proposals; to ensure that control teams are working on projects that are focused on the goals and vision of the organisation; to ensure continuous improvement in the activities of each department; 6 - 296 to give control teams recognition for their contribution to continuous improvement at EMSA. The EMSA team structure also makes it possible to deal with the communication needs of the organisation. The need for two way communication is stressed during all team meetings and all employee proposals are dealt with in an ordered fashion. Communication between all departments and functions has been further improved by the introduction of a quarterly state-of-the-business meeting where the general manager addresses all salaried employees. The production manager then addresses all hourly paid employees to convey the same information to the rest of the workforce within 24 hours. It is clear that every employee at EMSA is involved in the problem-solving and decision-making process, and has the opportunity to participate in group activities. The benefits of the experience and training that employees gain from group activities will be illustrated in the discussion on continuous improvement. 6.2.3.2 Continuous improvement Since 1972 a very active Operations Improvement Programme (01P) has been in effect. The overall objective of this programme was to look for opportunities to reduce operating cost and to improve overall operational productivity. During 1986/1987 production demand approached production capacity in four of EMSA's five production processes. This situation resulted in excessive overtime being worked in an effort to meet production schedules. Support functions, eg. maintenance resources, were also stretched to the limit and the low operating efficiency in the forming facility had a negative impact on product quality and uniformity. EMSA decided to address capacity deficiencies in the forming, baking, 6 - 297 impregnating and graphitising facilities through efficiency and unit capacity gains. Multi-disciplined breakthrough teams were established to increase capacity by investigating potential improvements and to limit capital expenditure as far as possible. These teams had regular meetings and action plans were formulated to implement identified improvement projects. The success of the forming team is reflected by the reduced set-up and change- over times achieved in the forming process: a die change which had previously taken about five hours was significantly reduced to only sixteen minutes! Added to this significant increase in facility capacity was an improvement of 20 percent in overall facility efficiency. A electrode length improvement programme achieved advancements in the baking process by improving the packing methods used in order to avoid end deformities. Further improvements in the baking process were attained by increasing payloads and faster furnace turnaround, achieved through the use of cooling bays, to remove electrodes from the furnace to cool, and thereby reducing furnace occupancy. Capacity improvements were made in the impregnation process by double stacking short electrodes in the autoclaves. After extensive trial work it was found to be possible to reduce the cycle time of the impregnation cycle by approximately 8 percent. Until 1987 EMSA had been operating two different graphitising processes. The one made use of current technology and the other was the original process used when the plant was erected in the late 1960's. The latter was more time consuming, required larger loads and greater expenditure on electricity, there was greater risk associated with the production run, and electrodes produced were of inferior quality. A decision was taken to remove the old conventional furnaces and to replace them with smaller furnaces thereby shrinking space requirements and increasing facility payloads. The shorter firing cycle enabled the process manager to schedule furnace firing times so as to take advantage of cheaper electricity 6 - 298 rates. The more uniform firing cycles and the smaller furnaces further enabled EMSA to produce rush lots more readily. Production costs were further reduced when it was realised that carbonaceous waste, which had previously been dumped into landfills, could be sold as a by- product. The market for dust waste, sold as pellets or bagged dust, extends from the steel industry to the building industry and the product is used to increase the carbon quality of manufactured goods. Significant developments have been made in the use of computer technology. Prior to 1993 EMSA operated a mainframe computer system. This system has not been open to the manipulation of data and was thus unfriendly for useful data retrieval. This resulted in employees using personal computers extensively to compile reports. During 1993/1994 the whole plant was networked into an AS400 computer system. EMSA has always had a version of MRPII, however, as it was a mainly manual system, the company has not been able to benefit from the real advantages of MRPII. Under the new AS400 system the large amounts of paper floating around have been reduced and data is captured at the source. These improvements have brought EMSA to the point where it has implemented a fully integrated production planning and control system - EMSA is currently working towards reducing in-process buffer inventories through better scheduling and improved production processing cycles. A large portion of the savings resulting from reduced in-process inventories will be allocated to building finished goods inventory to reduce delivery lead times and to assist customers to reduce their inventory levels with minimal risk of stock-outs. Many years of direct employee participation in day-to-day operating decisions has stimulated the leadership qualities, personal initiative and original thinking required to manage EMSA's operations. Despite a substantially reduced labour force EMSA has managed to achieve significant labour productivity increases. Given a production demand of 18 136 metric tons in 1983 compared to 27 973 metric tons in 1996, labour productivity improved from 27,7 metric tons per employee in 1983 to 58,8 metric tons per employee in 1996. 6 - 299 Throughout the implementation of TOM at EMSA, management has assured employees that no retrenchments would be effected as a result of productivity improvements achieved. General consensus is that this is the reason why the active trade unions in the plant have not objected to productivity improvement programmes and have understood that these improvements have contributed towards employment security. The reduction in labour force has been achieved by natural attrition and voluntary separation packages. Over the four year period, from 1987 to 1991, efficiency improvements of approximately 20 percent were achieved in EMSA's forming and impregnating facilities, and capacity improvements of just over 20 percent were achieved in the forming, baking, impregnating, and graphitising facilities. Annual savings amounted to R4,3 million over the same period. The capacity improvements enabled EMSA to avoid further capital expenditures on plant and equipment with resultant cost avoidance of R7,2 million between 1988 and 1990. As a result of these improvements, EMSA has been able to keep within plant manufacturing capacity up to 1995. The first additional capacity will be added towards the end of 1996 as a result of a significant increase in product demand forecast for 1997 onwards. The success of EMSA's continuous improvement effort is further evidenced by the savings resulting from the 01P. During 1995 these savings amounted to a significant 2,9 percent of total plant costs. The achievements realised through EMSA's continuous improvement of all aspects of the business, through the involvement of all employees, serves as clear commitment to the concepts of TOM by EMSA management. 6.2.3.3 Customer focus EMSA is the sole producer of graphite electrodes in South Africa. The demand for graphite electrodes is largely dependant on the demand for steel which is produced via the ultra high powered electric arc furnace process. For this reason 6 - 300 the company's product is directly dependent on the derived demand of the steel industry. These factors have a very definite effect on the strategy which EMSA has formulated to be effective in its environment. Strategic management requires a balance between environmental opportunities and the company's resource base. Since both are continuously changing, the profit growth balance of an organisation also changes continuously. This dynamic situation challenges the survival of every business, but it can also be a renewing process for businesses that can identify environmental opportunities within their resource capabilities (Kollat, Blackwell & Robeson 1972: 10). As EMSA can do very little to increase sales to customers directly, due to the derived demand situation of its market, it has opted for a pull marketing strategy. Rather than attempting to address the problem at the primary level, it has opted to approach the situation at the secondary level by providing a technical service to arc furnace operators. This service is directed at the EMSA: customer to reduce furnace operating cost by more efficient use of graphite electrodes. To enable the customer to reduce the consumption of graphite per ton of steel produced, EMSA's technical service engineers, employed by the marketing department, call on the customer not to sell electrodes but rather to provide a technical service to the customer to ensure that the furnace is operating efficiently and that graphite consumption is kept to the minimum. Further, arc furnace specialists from UCAR visit South Africa regularly to advise EMSA's customers on new furnace technology and to assist with any operating inefficiencies they may be experiencing. These service activities result in the customer reducing the amount of graphite electrodes consumed per ton of steel produced. It may be argued that this approach to customer satisfaction causes a reduction of graphite electrodes sold by EMSA. This is quite correct in the short term, but EMSA's approach has a long term focus. The long term goal of this strategy is to ensure that the electric arc furnace process remains more cost efficient with respect to all other processes of producing steel. 6 - 301 When analysing the statistics of the steel industry it becomes very clear that this strategy has resulted in the expected benefits, to both the electric arc furnace operators as well as for EMSA. During the period 1990 - 1995: graphite electrode consumption decreased by 17,2 %; total steel demand increased by 1,08 %; electric arc furnace steel demand increased by 22,8 %; EMSA electrode sales increased by 13,4 % (Source: EMSA management); It is clear that the electric arc furnace method of producing steel has gained' preference over the other methods of steel making. This trend is expected to continue, and even to increase, as the older steel shops are being replaced with new, modern ultra high powered electric arc furnaces. Being the only producer of graphite electrodes in South Africa implies that EMSA's customers are almost completely reliant on EMSA's ability to supply quality products on time. EMSA has thus always kept large quantities of inventory. Both contractual and gentlemen's agreements have been entered into with customers to the effect that EMSA is committed to reliable supply of product at all times. The reduction of processing lead times since the introduction of TOM has increased the confidence of EMSA's customers in its ability to supply products timeously. EMSA has received various certificates, citations, recognition awards, and letters of commendation related to customer satisfaction from its customers. Some customers have gone so far as to submit articles on EMSA's customer focus to newspapers and magazines. The following is an extract from one such article, published in 21 publications (Davies 1992 : 1): 6 - 302 "As more companies tighten reins, Atlantis Diesel Engines and Atlantis Foundries have been quick to appreciate that one of their suppliers, EMSA (Pty) Ltd, has gone out of its way to educate them in the most efficient and cost-effective use of its products. "EMSA has also kept the price increases of its electrodes and recarburisers well below the inflation rate through its commitment to continuous improvement. "Since EMSA is the only producer of these products in South Africa, they could be complacent about their customers", says Mr John Davies, senior general manager of Atlantis Foundries. "But this is not so. They are aware of the long-term benefits of good customer relations and have introduced a [TOM] policy that brings them closer to their customers. "EMSA's recommendations following the evaluation of our melting practices and operations, resulted in a reduction in the amount of electrodes in our arc furnaces. "This was done by reducing the amount of electrodes used per ton of metal from 5,1 kg to 3,2 kg. Since this is one of the most expensive products used by the foundry, our savings are great." Significant improvements in product quality and uniformity resulted in reduced graphite consumption and major cost savings by EMSA's customers. The fact that the company has maintained its market share, even in the face of a growing threat of foreign competitors trying to enter the South African market, is a clear indicator of very high level of customer satisfaction. 6.3 CONCLUSION The active involvement and participation of all EMSA's employees in problem- solving and decision-making is regarded as essential for the achievement and maintenance of a low cost producer status. Employees are actively participating in EMSA's voluntary quality circle programme. Currently 48 percent of the work- force are active members of this programme. A team based system of control and breakthrough teams is provided as a structure for employees to contribute to TQM by continuously looking at ways to improve systems, processes, services, and products supplied to internal and external customers. 6 - 303 Participative management is one of the cornerstones of the EMSA TQM process. Management provides leadership and direction and only where necessary is directly involved in the planning, control and execution of activities. However, once the strategy is defined, the authority for execution is delegated to the employees best qualified for the execution of the projects or programmes. Regular feedback sessions, in the form of Total Quality hours, are scheduled for communication purposes and to ensure that the overall strategy is maintained. Continuous improvements in product quality and reliability has resulted in reduced electrode consumption and great cost savings by EMSA's customers. A clear indication of customer satisfaction is the fact that EMSA has maintained its market share, even in the face of increased international competition. 6.4 SIAM RY In this chapter, a multinational South African company, EMSA, was used to illustrate the TQM process in a South African manufacturing environment. The TQM process at EMSA was examined and analysed according to the TQM model proposed in Chapter 4. In Chapter 7, the experience gained and lessons learned, in the quest for continuous improvement, during the past decade will be extrapolated to sketch the future requirements and challenges of the TQM process. 6 - 304 CHAPTER 7 TO MAGI LE SYNOPSIS 7-306 LIST OF FIGURES, GRAPHS AND TABLES 7-307 7.1 INTRODUCTION 7-308 7.2 E1SIPOWERED TE MS: ELEW, TING TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT TO A NEW LEVEL 7-309 7.2.1 Wealth creation - a prerequisite for growth 7-309 7.2.2 Making the transition to an empowered team-based organisation 7-316 7.2.2.1 Group and team taxonomy 7-319 7.2.2.2 Converting to empowered teams 7-325 7.2.2.3 Continuum of empowerment 7-331 7.2.2.4 New roles for managers 7-340 7.2.2.5 Benefits of empowered teams 7-344 7.3 CONCLUSION 7-348 7.4 SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEA F CH 7-350 7.5 SUMMARY 7-350 7 - 305 ENT CH PTER 7 TO SYNOPSIS South African organisations are facing new and often disturbing challenges. The power of modem production capabilities and the efficiency of global transportation have heightened competition, threatening many organisations and present ways of marketing. Yet the traditional ideas of commitment to serving customers and working together are the keys to meeting new challenges. Fancy slogans and hype will not create productive organisations. Organisations have to review their pledge to work together to serve others. TQM initiatives have increased organisations' emphasis on and commitment to teamwork and team development by orders of magnitude. Teamwork has been demonstrated to be the single consistent strategy for continuous improvement in quality and for increased competitiveness. The movement towards empowered teams has taken on the proportions of an avalanche roaring through organisations and sweeping most traditional resistances before it. Traditional distinctions between supervisors and employees, management, and labour are being swept away, but where these distinctions still remain, they account for most shortfalls in the performance of organisations. The challenges that organisations face to remain competitive are enormous. The competitive game is tough, and it will - without question - get tougher. The organisations that will be winning are those that are using team development and empowered teams to make the leaps in innovation, quality, and efficiency that they must make to contribute to wealth creation and growth - both of the organisation and its employees, and the country as a whole. Empowered teamwork is what leverages the potential of an organisation into superior results. It is the vehicle for integrating information, technology, competence, and resources - starting with the human. TQM is the fundamental requisite for continuous improvement. When further enhanced by empowered teams, it can leverage the potential of any organisation to unimagined levels of sustained superior performance and continuous improvement. Serving others helps to develop human potential. Co-operative teamwork stimulates spirited controversies, lively support of individuals, and honest discussions of conflicts. Creating this kind of teamwork is possible. Man's capacity to work together distinguishes it from other species and helps account for its dominance. Management needs to capture traditional team work and put it to work meeting untraditional challenges and conditions. Professionals with diverse training and orientations, people from different countries and cultures, and employees in different cities must work together to solve new, complex problems under the pressures of budgets and time constraints. Expansive knowledge and persistent work are needed to develop procedures, skills, and forums of organisational teamwork suitable for the next century. 7 - 306 ENT CHAPTER 7 TO TA MA GEM LIST OF FIGURES, G PISS AND TABLES Figure 7.1 STAR system 7-332 Figure 7.2 Team development continuum 7-337 Figure 7.3 Progression of empowerment and responsibilities 7-337 7 - 307 CH PIER 7 SAGE 7.1 INTRODUCTION TQM is sweeping the industrialised world, and with good reason. TQM is helping to remove unnecessary and costly waste, to locate and eradicate sources of error, and to provide the consumer with reliable products. It also makes people's jobs more meaningful. TQM makes common sense. Serving people is both an obligation and a privilege; it is the foundation for a humane society. In a world that delivers quality service, parents entrust their children's development and welfare to teachers and administrators; patients in hospitals confidently rely on physicians and nurses to help them recover; and consumers are assured that manufacturers develop effective, safe products. People who serve well enhance the quality of the lives of others. For an organisation, serving customers is a moment of truth, an opportunity for the company to demonstrate its credibility and capability. Delivering value to customers earns the organisation respect and ensures that customers will return. It also binds employees together in a meaningful common mission; it is the essence of a shared vision and the ultimate "bottom line". This chapter summarises the study and shows how managers and employees, in the current TQM environment, can work together to elevate TQM to a new level of magnitude to serve customers well when approaching the year 2000 - a new century with new demands, challenges, and opportunities. It provides the rationale for investing in work relationships, stipulates the nature of productive teamwork, and describes how to develop empowered teams throughout the 7 - 308 company hierarchy. It shows how developing people and "bottom line" success go together, and how service within the company is needed for effective service with customers. 7.2 ERED TEAMS: ELEVATING TOTAL QUALITY MAN GEIVIENT TO NEW LEVEL 7.2.1 Wealth creation - a prerequisite for growth South Africa is at a very interesting stage of its human resource and economic development. The perspectives of the 1990's are crystallising into a scenario that will be fundamentally different from anything yet known, and with such speed that it leaves one breathless and perhaps a bit perplexed. O re-1980 Up to the end of the 1970's, South Africa had an enviable record of labour peace. Many believed this was because it was based on a structure of intimidating, powerful management who had limitless control of their "subjects" - the workforce. This was true only to the extent that the workforce was a disorganised, perhaps voiceless, group. It is also true that it gave expression to and entrenched an unhealthy and disconcerting "commodity" view of labour which is very difficult to counter at operational management level, despite its rejection at corporate executive level. But it is certainly not true to the extent that it is interpreted as having been based on a solidly autocratic group of slavedrivers of a chain gang. No-one has such limitless power of his fellowman. Already, in those what today may seem as primitive and crude times, there must have been a smattering of sound leadership which kept the average employee reasonably content, albeit on much lower expectations that today, and on a kind of perverse paternalism that kept people small and immature. 7 - 309 But for it to have been sustainable to any extent, without massive, perhaps even revolutionary response from the broad employee mass, there must have been at least an element of legitimate power. 1980 - 1990 This period saw the growth of employee structures in the form of organised unions and their umbrella bodies. To many, this has represented the panacea of human resource development because it creates a comfort zone wherein relationships can be defined according to set parameters. However, the growth and development of trade unions was a solution sought as much by management as it was by the growingly frustrated employee. Without doubt it was also a necessary step in the South African history of labour relations. But what this period did was to entrench the "structural view": that sound industrial relations are achieved merely by playing the game according to certain rules established by people who run those structures. It has also, of course, promoted centralisation and power group formation, with perhaps the worst spinoff being that of fuelled expectations. Those who continue to seek long lasting industrial peace in the structure of our time, whose focus in on, and preoccupation with, the debate between the high profile representative bodies at the top, run the risk of missing the next critical and highly exciting wave that is growing by the moment. . 1990 and beyond The decade of the 1990's is witnessing a singular focus on the critical role of individual relationships in the workplace. It can be seen in the growing emphasis on reassessing the role of leadership; on empowerment; affirmative action; participative management; quality circles; TQM, and all the other plethora of modern management jargon. Unfortunately, many relegate these wonderful concepts and processes to unauthentic techniques that do little more than 7 - 310 enhance suspicion and try to entrench the old order of control, but this time through manipulation rather than strict, narrowly defined procedures and systems. It has to be realised that emphasis on relationships in the workplace goes far beyond techniques. It must be genuine, deeply felt, and not merely addressing behaviour or styles. The exiting thing about this era is that it will eventually make super structures far less relevant than they appear to be today. This is something that has always been implicit in the Japanese management style, but when really considering it, the true achievement of Thatcher's battles with the unions in the United Kingdom was not that she strengthened anti-union structures, but indeed that she weakened the union structures, thereby allowing for greater emphasis on individual relationships in the workplace. The other, perhaps most exciting dimension of all of this era, is that it will create those conditions that will finally allow South Africa to address the economically critical development of human resources at individual level; and, more importantly: encourage and empower each individual to give the best of him or herself. Clearly there can only be one overriding economic aim: "the creation of maximum sustainable wealth." The decade of the 1990's has also dawned with greater consensus about achieving this. However, it also urgently demands that some popular assumptions that are often held out as leading to wealth creation be revisited for clarification. Skills development: only true to the extent that it encourages individual aspirations. The Soviet Union put the first man into space and East Germany has had a very skilful workforce. - Systems: the most misleading assumption is that a system automatically leads to maximum wealth creation. It is often assumed that a free 7 - 311 market, or a capitalist system automatically creates those conditions where individuals aspire to their highest potential, or that a socialist system automatically discourages people from giving the best of themselves. Low government participation or low tax rates Minimum government intervention Self interest and competitiveness The profit motive. A favourite focus for the free market protagonists. Mineral resources. Japan clearly proved this to be irrelevant. A quick glance at the performance records, or wealth generating abilities of various countries shows that all of the popular assumptions about what makes for maximum, sustainable wealth creation does not hold true on their own. The key that has been identified, to be a prerequisite for maximum sustainable wealth creation is the development of human potential with strong values and commitment (Hammer 1995: 103-105; Harrington 1995 : 269; Wilson & George 1996: 10-13). In chapter 2, TQM was defined as: "... a management philosophy that seeks continuous improvement in all processes, products and services of an organisation. It requires a solid customer focus, a preventative approach to quality, a profound understanding of variation, decisions based on measurement, and the creative involvement of employees at all levels". Many people believe that economies are about things, and not about people. The most popular misconception is that the whole economic structure revolves around money. What is missed in these arguments is that markets are made up of 7 - 312 people, and the transactional base of society is in fact one of people serving people. Even in a TQM organisation, it is possible to find the working environment to apply undue pressure on resources, conflicting ideologies largely about systems, and societies that are mostly need driven and not value driven. This is the result mainly of the imbalance between expectations and aspirations. Expectations are those things people believe to have a right to simply by being born into, or working in, a specific society or organisation. Aspirations are those things people realise they have to work for or achieve for themselves. The former translates into a "take" on the economy and the latter a "give". Clearly, the more given, and the less taken, the more likely the economy will be to generate surpluses and wealth. The converse is also true. South Africa not only has growing expectations that are translating into a "take" from society and destroying wealth, but it also has a critical gap between expectations and what the economy can deliver. This has serious implications: economically, politically, and socially. There is probably a lot more hope than many may think in bridging the seemingly endless gulf between management and the employee. If South Africa is to survive at all as an economic force that can meet the demands placed on it, then it simply cannot tolerate this gap, let alone that ideological differences widen further and continue to spill over on the workforce. There is at least one point that all can agree on: South Africa has to create maximum wealth to ensure a prosperous future, and that all other issues have to be made subservient to the overall aim of creating maximum wealth. A broader focus on wealth creation allows management to recognise its key contribution towards enriching the employee, shareholder, and community not only through taxes, but also as a servant to the market and in its response to the needs and wants of mankind. 7 - 313 It also puts emphasis on leadership and empowerment because it makes logical sense to uplift the partners in wealth creation to adulthood and maturity. Management should care for employees because they are indeed the most valuable part (as illustrated by any value-added-statement) of wealth creation. One of the key elements required for this broadened focus is leadership. Implementing a shift in focus not only implies being more comfortable with something that brings meaning and spirit to an enterprise, but it is also simply a question of recognising and communicating the truth. Popular discontent with the South African establishment, with the leadership at the workplace and with the state, has made the debate around the legitimacy of the current status quo the single most important current concern. And rightly so, since the outcome of this debate will have fundamental implications for the future of the sub-continent and the well being of its inhabitants. Unfortunately, must of what goes into the current debate is based on a misunderstanding of the nature of discontent, and on precisely what is creating a workforce who distrust their leadership. Coming to grips with the issues of trust in management has been a major problem. Misunderstanding, and a lack of broad, worthwhile research, confused by external forces and facile assumptions that often reflect the vested interests of those involved, have compounded the problem. However, extensive and fundamental research concerning the problem of trust in management was conducted under the auspices of the Chamber of Mines research organisation and confirmed by ongoing survey work by Schuitema Associates (Schuitema 1994: 13-15). This research has disproved a number of popular misconceptions regarding trust. For instance, it was found that factors such as rates of pay, working conditions and service, and the so-called racial problem were not the fundamental issues affecting trust at all (Schuitema 1994 : 12). Rather it was found that trust in management was either granted or withheld on the basis of very simple, absolutely imposed criteria. These criteria were 7 - 314 concerned with whether management was seen to have an interest in employee welfare, and whether this interest was demonstrated by the quality of management's attention to employee grievances and problems (Schuitema 1994 : 15-25). Management stood or fell on the basis of these criteria. Where the manager was seen to have an interest in employee welfare he was entirely trusted, but where this was not seen to be the case he was entirely distrusted. To bring meaning and commitment into the workplace and to address misconceptions and rising expectations, management has to address some critical elements. A leadership style that is authentically nurturing, uplifting, and empowering will accept that this goes hand in hand with information disclosure and enhancement of this information. The foundation of understanding should be focused on the key elements of: market principles, including basic laws of supply and demand; wealth creation and distribution. It must be underpinned by an ethical foundation that states: that economic success comes from economically active individuals giving more than what they take. An organisation - wide set of business principles should encompass the following: serving the market is its overall purpose; the main goal is to create maximum sustainable wealth; the employee focus is at all times to enhance their wealth creation 7 - 315 potential; there should always be a fair return for risk; reduction of company complexities; enhancing productivity; 0 enhancing employee awareness of company issues. Service unites employees, managers, and customers in co-operative relationships. Many hourly paid workers, for example, do not find it rewarding to work hard to give shareholders a fair return on their investment, but they can take pride in producing a high-quality, high-value product or service. Then they proudly introduce themselves at gatherings and relish the gratitude of satisfied customers. But when their product is of inferior quality, they hide their employment, suffer the criticisms of friends and acquaintances, and blame their managers. They stand divided from managers and customers. The concept of co-operative, empowered team relationships is the central organising principle that will give a company credibility and make it consistently responsive to customers. These relationships provide a unifying thrust that improves customer satisfaction and will ultimately lead to the desired levels of wealth creation and growth. 7.2.2 Malking the transition to an empowered team-based organisation Most employees manage: a house with financial obligations; rearing and parenting children; founding, managing, and maintaining any number of social, religious, and activity-centred groups, institutions, and organisations. The fact that they do not do this on the job is more a statement of management assumptions than the motivation of workers. What employees do at work was once an extension of what they do at home. With modern work organisation there 7 - 316 is complete separation of these two spheres. They need not be separated completely. People can still gain emotional gratification from their work, and the people they work with, just as they do from their family and neighbours. Integration of people into meaningful work groups completes the emotional cycle for many people and gives them the security and gratification that is necessary to obtain high productivity. A basic assumption for the next level of TQM, is that the art of managing is in empowering individuals and groups to do what they already do for themselves in their private lives. The need for empowered teams may be the result of several issues that organisations now face. Market forces may be squeezing employers so hard that the need for profound change in the way the workplace is managed is seen. Perhaps reformed regulations, the new labour relations act, or challenging labour negotiations show the weakness of traditional management structures. But, even in the current TQM environment, the traditional, century-old system of managing employees, in which the daily evidence of waste and inefficiency is ignored, or at best tolerated, is still the norm. Many organisational leaders are tempted to blame workers for problems. People will be laid off or transferred and managers reorganised to gain more control over failing enterprises. At times, contemporary organisations appear remarkably like the old Soviet Union under Brezhnev rule. The worse things get, the tighter the control - and the less is actually spoken about the true condition of the company. The empowerment embraced by the empowered teams concept is in many ways an organisational Glasnost. Opening up corporate life to all so that workers can fully participate is, for most people, a wholly new way to work. This is not the first management technology to suggest solutions to the management morass. It started with statistical quality control in the 1960's, total quality control in the 1970's, and quality circles in the late 1970's. The 7 - 317 participative management concepts evolved into TOM during the late 1980's with a corresponding improvement in productivity, quality, and customer satisfaction. It is widely accepted that the opportunities for management to increase productivity, improve morale and company loyalty, and to improve quality, will not be realised by simple techniques. Rather, what is required is a further extension to the current TOM technologies and processes. Like any technology, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. For example, the invention of the steam engine was the impetus for developing railroad technology. The steam engine was simply a technique for moving railroad stock. That technique has long since disappeared in favour of highly efficient and powerful diesel electric engines. This new addition to the TQM technology makes permanent and penetrating change possible. Implementing empowered teams requires the concurrent development of the human resource infrastructure which will support team behaviour. Compensation, recognition systems, performance appraisal, union-management relations, marketing, purchasing, accounting, and many more will all be dramatically affected. The old human resource technology was designed to control individuals (not groups), to manage people closely, and to ensure compliance with a centrally planned corporate economy. To simply designate empowered teams and not change the old mind set is a formula for disaster. Where the complete new management technology is implemented, teams have a high probability for success. When the new technology is not confirmed with a total system change, the team concept is due for failure. The lack of supporting human resource technology is the primary reason teams have had great difficulty getting a foothold in bureaucratic organisations such as large corporations, agencies, and government. These organisations tend to have centrally administered reward and recognition systems and centrally planned economies, which are not easily changed at the local or team level. Unless the entire organisation, from the top all the way down, moves to change its human resource technology, it is unlikely teams will add any great long term value. 7 - 318 Empowered teams is about changing the patterns of communication in organisations. It is about teaching employees and managers how to take control of their own culture and destiny. It is about Glasnost in the workplace - treating teams and people like full partners in the business of doing business. 7.2.2.1 Group and team taxonomy Team is one of those easy little words people use all the time, thus causing an expansion of its definition. Many managers say "My group is a real team" or "I believe in the team concept and that is how I run my organisation". Any grouping of people is not necessarily a team, nor is every team an empowered team. Metaphors could be built from sports teams and symphonies, examples could be found of coaches and conductors who cover the gamut of styles from autocratic and dictatorial to democratic and self-directed. More goes into the development of a team environment than most managers dream. To set the record straight, the difference between a team and the more common work group will be clarified. The approach is to examine the continuum of group structures, moving from the traditional leader-focused work group to a vision of an empowered team. Type 11 : Leader centred/leader focused The traditional work group is highly leader dependant (Wilson et al. 1994: 60). It has a manager who is responsible for goal setting, decision making, making job assignments, performance appraisals, and, in many organisations, hiring and firing. The work is generally segmented into many different parts, and no one person really sees the entire process or finished product, except the manager. The manager is often a person who was promoted because of job performance, not necessarily because of the ability to manage a group of people effectively. The manager is often good at the work and knows more than most others about that work. The manager may involve the work group in decisions, ask them to do other things a team might do, but is still in charge, and when leaving, the next manager can 7 - 319 supervise in any manner of choice. The group has only the authority the manager gives it. They are not seen as an entity which has a core identity independent of the manager. Decisions and assignments all go through the manager to some degree, and, more often than not, the manager can choose that degree. The group serves in an advisory capacity only, and then only at the behest of the manager. Regardless of how much the manager wants to think of the group as.a team which works together, the inescapable fact remains - the manager is in charge. This fact reveals the true nature of the work group. If the method of work is so dependent upon a single person, there is little hope of the group becoming a true team. Type 1 work groups function well when the work is highly routine and unchanging in a low-wage, low-skill environment. When production techniques and technologies include a predominance of simple manufacturing processes and the worker has very little opportunity to add value or improve the process, Type 1 groups are often most effective. However, the need for central coordination along with the low skill level of workers makes this a very low and unresponsive type of group. When there are rapidly changing market conditions, this type of work design may be a liability to the organisation. El Type 2 : Leader centred/function focused These groups have historically functioned well in professional settings like advertising, engineering, law, and architecture. These groups have an appointed or assigned leader who coordinates and assign work, does performance appraisals, and makes many of the major decisions, and who is himself a specialist. The leader of this group leads the team but does not exercise the day- to-day direction a more traditional manager (like one represented in Type 1) would over a group (Wilson et al. 1994: 61). This type of manager can be totally autocratic, as the traditional top-down model 7 - 320 usually suggests, or be involving and slightly more open to suggestions from the group. Because of the creative and/or knowledge-based nature of the work, the manager's style may not be quite as powerful an influence over the group as the traditional manager's. Nevertheless, when leaving, the next manager could manage the group in a wholly different style. Once again, the work group is subject to whims or management style of a single individual. The cohesiveness of the group is dependent upon this one manager's skills and styles. Type 2 groups work well when knowledge, creativity, and central control are valued. The leader of the group provides control through job assignments, performance appraisal, and mentoring for junior members. In some cases, a group of managers may provide performance appraisals to group members. Managers become a valued resource within the organisation and the choice of leader can often play a significant role in the failure or success of the particular group. A senior group leader who has seen the process many times can provide valuable guidance for the group and provide a superior product. Some senior project leaders become legendary, and assignments to their groups are highly sought after by junior members. In the absence of highly skilled senior leader types, or an unskilled, abrasive senior partner in the group with minimal leadership skills, the results can be disastrous. Much of the success of the group depends upon the skills of the leader rather than the pooled creative ability of the group. Type 3: Leader centred/integrated-task focused In this type of group, individuals are encouraged by management to make many of the on-line decisions and are often completely cross-trained to do the work of others in the group should the need arise. Management may set goals, apportion resources, and do performance appraisals. Much more employee involvement is encouraged than in the first two group types (Wilson et al. 1994: 61-62). There may be group incentives and the group may attain a high degree of cohesiveness, especially when compared to Types 1 and 2. Japanese companies are often seen as having been highly successful with this type of management. This is typical of a TOM environment. This system depends upon large amounts of training in 7 - 321 quality tools and problem solving methods. It is a much more sophisticated structure than that of Types 1 or 2. The major limitation is that it does not fundamentally redesign the human infrastructure. It is largely skills-and process- centred, without giving sufficient attention to the human systems needed to support employee empowerment. The Type 3 system works well when the organisation shows high commitment to quality processes in every aspect of the business. This is accompanied by an environment where there is a well-engineered assembly line work process, a homogeneous work force who share similar personal and cultural goals, and labour-management relations which are carefully cultivated at every level. Type 3 groups succeed in an environment where employees are empowered through quality circles or other involvement and problem-solving forums to improve the process and ensure high quality products and services. o Type 4: Self-lleditime and task focused The fourth group is often found in project or task force environments. It is a group with a clearly defined charge or purpose, and it is time-limited. Group members may have clearly defined functions, but boundaries become blurred as goal- directedness and time pressure dictate much of the group's experience. The group may have a formal leader, but the necessarily high degree of team member co-operation often leaves the leader on the sidelines (Wilson et al. 1994 : 63-64). This is the first level of a true team, according to the self-imposed empowered team definition. The group has an identity independent of the leader, and its own set of agreed-upon norms and goals. The Type 4 group most closely resembles the much-touted sports-model metaphor, in which highly skilled players commit to play together for the season to win a championship; when the season is over, the team may disband or change a great deal before the next season. Clear goals and well-understood time constraints tend to bring cohesiveness in the Type 4 7 - 322 group. But there are no procedures in place that encourage and reinforce team behaviour after the assignment has been completed. Type 4 groups work well when there is a critical planning task to be done in a finite period of time, for example, planning a new plant or redesigning an established product to reposition it in the market place. By definition, Type 4 groups are groups with a limited lifespan, for example, breakthrough teams that disband as soon as the objective has been achieved. The leader tends to behave more like a coach, and may even change or disappear during the life of the project, yet the group continues to function, often achieving surprising results in an unusually short period of time. Persons who work in these types of groups typically experience the development of a real esprit de corps, and once they have this experience, they see it as a powerful tool to be reproduced in every work group. Management attempts to reproduce it generally fail, because the larger organisational system does not support this type of behaviour. Top management tends to use this type of group because the normal organisational structure cannot, or will not, allow enough creativity or rapid enough development. Group members are often handpicked and given exceptional authority and resources to accomplish their task. In other words, Type 4 groups are often formed to work outside the rules of the greater organisation - but are expected to go back to following those same stifling rules when the project is finished. Type 5 : SeOf-lled/task focused Self-led work groups have common, group-determined goals, make most of the - decisions about how to achieve the goal, and require little, if any, formal leadership in getting the work done (Wilson et al. 1994: 64-65). These groups are permanent, remaining together for years with only routine membership changes. They provide most of their own leadership, and managers function as outside resources. The group is responsible for a whole piece of work and is expected to measure its own performance, correct problems, and report on results 7 - 323 directly to management. The larger system encourages and rewards these team behaviours independent of the manager. Rewards are focused more on the group than the individual, and performance appraisals are done with major input from the team as well as internal and/or external customers. Management provides only major sanctions such as punitive discipline and the broadest outline of resource availability, leaving all other aspects of team functioning up to the team. In these groups members have high levels of training in one another's jobs and are often expected to rotate tasks according to the workload. Even when functional titles are maintained, the boundaries become fuzzy as members learn more and more about one another's specialities and cross over the boundaries to help. Type 5 groups, the true empowered teams, have been known to work well in some very unlikely environments. Wellins, Byham & Dixon (1994) report the successes of empowered teams in industries ranging from health care to consultancy, from beer brewing to customer service, and from heavy manufacturing to the computer industry. These successes were also achieved across international borders, and range from across the United States to Malaysia, Australia, and Ireland. From the preceding discussion it is now possible to formulate a definition for an empowered team. This definition will be used as base and reference for further discussion. An empowered team is a group of interdependent, highly trained employees who are responsible for managing themselves and the work they do in a "whole" work process. They set their own goals, in cooperation with management, and the team plans how to achieve those goals and how their work is to be accomplished. The central organising fact of an empowered team is that is has a common 7 - 324 purpose and measurable goals for which the team can be held accountable, independent of its individual members. Employees on an empowered team handle a wide array of functions and work with a minimum of direct supervision. 7.2.2.2 Converting to empowered teams There are right and wrong reasons for converting to empowered teams. A careful examination of organisational motives will tell whether such a conversion is likely to be successfully implemented. This examination can only begin by listening to the voices within an organisation. There must be a structure to this listening that will support a decision, regardless of what that final decision turns out to be. A mechanism for organisational listening can take the form of a readiness survey. Is an organisation ready for empowered teams? Perhaps some amount of preparation is appropriate. The readiness survey can be viewed as a checklist, like the one an airline pilot goes through before taking off. Listening is the method of going over that list. To continue the metaphor, the pilot is looking at, examining, listening to the air plane to ascertain its flight readiness. At the end of this process, the plane usually goes on its way. But if a problem, challenge, or contraindication is "heard", the adjustments and repairs are made, or the flight is cancelled. The point to remember: no trip is begun without some questions being asked - and answered. The questions to be asked are in the context of the above definition of an empowered team. This definition also fits the Type 5 group (self-led/task focused) discussed earlier. For an organisation to make the transformation to empowered teams, major system changes in the organisation are needed. True empowered teams require these fundamental changes to ensure their long-term survival. These system changes cannot, and will not, come overnight. Switching metaphors from an air plane to a supertanker, one can see how difficult the task of change can be. Like a supertanker at sea in a storm, the ship must be turned slowly and with great care into the wind or it may get out of control, even capsize. 7 - 325 ❑ The readiness survey The readiness survey beings by looking at the reasons for making the transformation to empowered teams. There are right and wrong reasons for the intended conversion, and a careful examination of the organisation's motives will predict the organisation's probability for success. . Four right reasons for converting an organisation to empowered teams TOM efforts and employee involvement processes have shown the power of teamwork (breakthrough teams, control teams, and quality circles). People in the organisation speak of these team efforts in favourable language and they engender more honest effort than discomfort. The organisation has used Type 4 groups (self-lead/time and task focused) many times and sees very positive results. Those results are referred to in words and actions that are positive and seem, by most of the organisation's members, to be well received. An even higher level of employee involvement will reap greater rewards in customer responsiveness and organisational efficiency. Competition has increased in the industry. The old command-and- control methods using Type 1 or 2 (leader centred/leader focused and leader centred/function focused, respectively) are too slow and cumbersome to effectively manage what the organisation wants to accomplish. Empowered teams will give greater flexibility in responding to customers, and markets. There is a great deal of potential in the workforce that is being wasted or used ineffectively. This is frustrating to the workforce because it wishes to produce a quality product and/or service as much as management does. The language used and the things said are about wanting to do more, be accountable for more, have a greater say in how 7 - 326 their work is accomplished. Empowered teams will help employees focus their efforts on value-added activities and take greater pride as they gain more control over the work they do. Empowered teams will also give increased ownership in the products made and the processes by which those products are created. iv) There is a visible need for stronger management-employee partnership. Can an emphasis on win-win cooperation, while reducing or eliminating adversarial labour-management relationships, be realised? If vast amounts of energy are focused on fighting among organisation members, competitors gain a great advantage in the marketplace. Can management and labour find a way to work together towards accomplishing the work of the organisation? If the answer seems to be yes, empowered teams could be that new way. The above are all strong reasons for making the change. More important, they are positive reasons, based on affirmative judgements, that suggest a proactive course of action. Any major change gains momentum if an organisation and its employees all believe the change is being made for positive reasons. When the discomfort and challenges this change can bring are viewed in the light of the above, solutions can be found that assure everyone's benefit. Just as there are positive, proactive, and right reasons for an organisation to "team-up", there are negative, reactionary, and wrong reasons for attempting to convert to empowered teams. Four wrong reasons for converting an organisation to empowered teams i) The organisation has downsized and there are not enough supervisors to supervise everyone. Thinking that empowered teams are an appropriate response to personnel shortfalls is the ultimate in organisational shortsightedness. With this attitude, it is impossible to 7 - 327 create the systems in the organisation which are needed to support empowered teams, and an organisation with this attitude which plunges into an empowered team structure has a very high probability of failure. The transition to empowered teams requires a massive change in the sub-systems of the organisation; otherwise the teams will rapidly wither and die on the vine. This will leave surviving managers with twice as much work as they had before! The "boss", "headquarters", or "the corporate executives" instructs the organisation to implement empowered teams. When the driving force for implementing empowered teams is based on autocratic instruction from top management, middle managers may be found to actively undermine the process out of fear for losing their jobs. When forming teams by assigning people to them, without effectively training the teams, or management, in how to use the new systems, chaos can be expected. Worst of all, top management's behaviour continues to be highly autocratic - the opposite behaviour required for effective teamwork. Most often when there is a corporate edict, it comes from excitement over the prospect of increased productivity and with little thought given to the major changes actually required to get the expected increase. The organisation's management believes its people are already empowered, and with some minor changes it is believed it can move into empowered teams. Without system wide support, a true implementation is not possible and employees will view the failure as yet another management-whim aimed at exploitation of the workforce. The transition to empowered teams to undermine unionisation. Of all the wrong reasons, this is the most sinister and can actually get the organisation into major legal troubles. When an organisation seems fearful of unionisation, there are issues that must be resolved before empowered teams can be considered. Any effort to improve quality and 7 - 328 market competitiveness will require the best of both labour and management. The energy expended in labour-management conflict puts a severe strain on the organisation's ability to prepare, design, and support empowered teams. Without positive labour relations before, an even worse climate will be the result of an attempt to try empowered teams in the workplace. Employees will see it for what it is - an attempt to preclude their right to collective bargaining. Strong, positive management-employee relationships, which can be independently documented, have to be established before beginning the team process. The transition may not be possible without them. If any of the "right" reasons seem to fit an organisation, then it is well positioned to begin the implementation of an empowered team structure. If any of the "wrong" reasons is a match, an organisation may not be ready to proceed. It must be emphasised that an organisation that is not ready for this substantial change, may do real harm to the organisation if it proceeds with the implementation of empowered teams. Implementing empowered teams is seen as the next higher level of TQM. As such, some positive indicators can be expected to be visible to show readiness for the change. Five positive indicators are listed below: A recent history (at least one year) of positive and improving labour relations as documented by some reliable independent survey or assessment. Independent documentation is important. Many management teams have little idea about the real perceptions of the workforce. Indicators like decreasing grievances or improvement on previous surveys would help in assessing this area. Companies which are enjoying improving labour relations are also building greater trust and a fund of goodwill to draw upon when converting to empowered teams. A history of management flexibility and willingness to implement 7 - 329 employee empowerment processes (eg., quality circles, TOM) with objective results. A history of management ability to stick with a process for long periods of time (eg., just-in-time manufacturing, breakthrough teams, control teams) until results are seen. Management which has a reputation for hopping on every bandwagon will not be taken seriously by the workforce. This "flavour of the month" approach to change is deadly to long-term improvements because it inoculates the workforce against any real efforts to improve the system. An already functioning "pay for performance", "pay for knowledge", or "skill-based" compensation system. Having such systems already in place makes it easier to adjust the rewards system to reinforce the new team behaviours early in the process. It is also a sign that management is aware of the shortcomings of traditional pay systems and has taken steps to bring pay in line with corporate team philosophy. A management group which has consistently involved the work force in strategic planning, workplace training, or multilevel problem-solving. When management systematically gets workers in the same room with management to solve problems and make plans, there is an opportunity for growing trust and understanding which will make the transition to empowered teams smoother. If an honest assessment of an organisation reveals no wrong reasons, and several right reasons and positive indicators present, the transition to empowered teams can be considered. Honestly looking at the results of the readiness survey should give any organisation additional information about itself. Whether or not the decision is made to implement a transition, the information should be used and acted upon. The negatives should be addressed and ameliorated; the positives should be rewarded and accentuated. 7 - 330 7.2.2.3 Continuum of empowerment Empowering a team to manage the performance of the unit implies a transition of responsibilities and duties from the supervisor or manager to the team members. A successful transition requires a plan. When a team becomes an empowered team, it assumes additional responsibility for planning, controlling, coordinating, and improving the work. In short, the team takes responsibility for managing its own performance. But how, when, and in what way? Without answers to the following questions, a team cannot really being to take responsibility for managing its own performance and the result is often confusion and frustration: which areas of its performance will the team manage? what are the standards of performance they are accountable for? 0 what are the boundaries? how will the team monitor progress? which planning and coordinating tasks will need to be done by team members? who will they be trained to do them? These questions and their possible answers are potential stumbling blocks which can all be avoided with a systematic approach to empowerment that beings with a plan. A well thought out plan, complete with measures, feedback mechanism, and defined roles, provides a framework for managing empowerment. This framework is popularly referred to as a STAR (Donovan 1994: 13). 7 - 331 A STAR system provides the critical elements needed to empower a team. These elements are: 0 accountabilities; 0 measures; 0 boundaries; 0 feedback. Figure 7.1 STAR system Source: Donovan 1994: 13 In addition, a STAR system clarifies the roles and responsibilities team members will assume for tracking, monitoring, coordinating, improving, and administering their day-to-day work. A well-established STAR system allows members to learn a variety of new skills as well as develop a broader appreciation of the work area as a business unit. 7 - 332 Step one: Designing a STAR system The first step in designing a STAR system is to decide which performance areas the team will manage. This differs from team to team. Once the key areas of performance are agreed upon, they become points of the STAR. The star shape is strictly arbitrary. If a team has only three performance areas they might use a triangle. Likewise, if they have more than five performance areas, they might use a wheel or points on a compass. Examples of STAR-point areas of performance are: 0 productivity; 0 safety; 0 quality; 0 administration; 0 personnel; 0 maintenance. Step two: Measures, boundaries, and feedback methods The second step is to decide what measures, boundaries, and feedback methods will be used in each area of responsibility. These may include: measures: first pass yield (number of units right first time); boundary: maintain at least 95 %; feedback: posted daily, reviewed weekly in team meeting; 7 - 333 goal-setting: team sets quarterly goal and management reviews. Step three: Specific team member responsibilities Step three involves deciding the specific responsibilities team members will assume to track and review performance data, plan and coordinate activities to achieve their goals, and identify and solve problems. These may include duties such as: tracking unit quality performance (SPC charts); leading team safety meetings; interviewing new team members; coordinating with maintenance on work orders. A team member who assumes planning, coordinating, and improvement duties in an area is called a STAR-point leader. Team members typically decide how the STAR-point leader responsibilities will be handled: will they be rotated? how frequently? 0 will there be a lead person for each point? will members be trained gradually as they rotate onto a point? Step four: What training is needed? The fourth step in designing a STAR system is to determine the training team 7 - 334 members will need to carry out their STAR-point responsibilities. Step five: Plan for transition The final step in the STAR system design is the transition plan. New responsibilities should be gradually implemented. One of the biggest pitfalls is to transfer too much too soon. When this happens, things fall through the cracks and management begins to pull back on various empowerments. The goal should be to start slowly and expand the empowerments as people are trained and feel confident in their new roles. The STAR system provides an empowered team with a framework for self- management. It allows team members to take responsibilities for planning, controlling, coordinating, and improving their work. Managers (especially first line managers) play an important role in the empowerment process. To play this key role, they need skills for working with their teams in building an empowerment plan (STAR) and providing the training and coaching needed for effective transition of responsibilities. They also need skills in team building and facilitation. It is important to realise that empowerment is not the first step to creating an empowered team. It is the last step! The transition beings with team building. It does not make sense to empower a group that: 0 lacks common goals; 0 cannot communicate effectively; 0 has low trust levels; 0 runs poor meetings; cannot resolve conflict or make decisions. 7 - 335 The first step is to develop an effective team and then being the empowerment process. Empowered teams are small, functional units that are structured to manage their own affairs. These 4-15 member teams are responsible for the daily routine of clocking in and out, taking breaks, assigning work, and checking attendance, and the less routine but more critical business of taking responsibility for work inputs and outputs, quality, productivity, costs, and management functions including budgets, personnel, discipline, and the very makeup of the unit itself through the hiring and firing of team members. There is no such thing as a typical empowered team. They vary in the degree of self-direction or autonomy they adopt. Empowered teams operate on a continuum with some handling only day to day activities such as scheduling and work planning, while others actually hire and terminate services of their own team members, and decide on salary levels and bonuses. Figure 7.2 illustrates the development of empowered teams from traditional leader-directed groups to true self-directed empowered teams. In successfully implementing empowered teams, an organisation starts at level 1 or 2. Within two to three years, with training and guidance, teams reach level 4. Within another year, the team may progress to level 5. By the end of five years the team should achieve level 6 and begin moving beyond to establish new directions for themselves. While there is no perfect progression of training and development activities, there is a relationship between the amount of empowerment the team has and the kinds of duties the team takes on. Though the exact progression of team responsibilities will vary considerably, it normally moves from a focus on production to a focus on production and people. 7 - 336 the progressiverelationshipbetweenempowermentandresponsibilitiesasnoted and theprogressionofskillstaskswithinanempoweredteam. earlier, tohelpprovideadegreeofstructuretheirdevelopmentactivities. Source: Adaptedfrom Wellins,Byham&Wilson1991:26 Source: AdaptedfromDDI1996:7 Figure 7.3Progressionofempowermentandresponsibilities Figure 7.3isanillustrationoftherelationshipbetweenlevelempowerment It isnormallysuggestedthattheyadoptasequentialgrowthprogressionbasedon Figure 7.2Teamdevelopmentcontinuum The leaderbasedteam most decisions Mom •towardself-directedteams Amount of empowerment The leaderis responsible that impact and makes operations the team. for daily I aily teammeetings Housekeeping Safety trainingandmonitoring Production scheduling Cross-functional decisionmaking The leaderis but theteam accountable day-to-day Quality responsibility their own. Skill andtaskprogression duties on activities for team handles Vacation/shiti scheduling II Customer/supplier contracts Equipment andsupplypurchasing Budgeting The self-directedteam Equipment andproductionmodifications Selecting newmembers responsible for planning and to theleader on aregular The teamis and reports organizing, . Rotating leadership basis. Team memberappraisal III Pay andbonusallocation 7 - Disciplining members Dismissing teammembers 337 for qualityand own workand responsibility organizes its productivity. The team takes full IV and outputs work inputs handles all on itsown The team authority. V ....__ functions like rewards and administers discipline. selection, The team hiring, VI There are a number of general principles or guidelines that can be considered when developing and implementing training for empowered teams: a core set of skills must be provided to all team members while they are being organised into teams; ongoing training must be provided on a just-in-time basis. According to Wellins, Byham & Wilson (1991 : 168), skills for team members can be categorised into: job skills; quality/action skills; team/interaction skills. o Job skills (highly job dependent) Equipment operation: acquiring specific training in the operation of equipment and production methods that are directly related to performing the team's jobs. Safety practices: following safety procedures and policies. 0 Maintenance basics: learning basic machine total preventive maintenance. Production processes: developing Just-in-Time and material requirements planning systems. Quality/action eldeDs 7 - 338 Clarifying (internal and external) customer requirements: recognising and defining customer needs. Identifying improvement activities: analysing the root cause of any gap in meeting customer requirements. Developing and selecting solutions: creatively generating and sorting alternative solutions to problems. Planning for improvement: planning, monitoring, and measuring quality improvement projects. Ensuring ongoing quality: standardising improvements and identifying ongoing opportunities. o Team/interaction ski0Ds Listening and feedback: summarising, checking for understanding, and giving and receiving constructive feedback. One-on-one communication: communicating with team members, customers, suppliers, and leaders. Handling conflict: identifying and resolving conflict and disagreements within a team, with another team, or with a supplier or customer. Influencing others: gaining the commitment or agreement of others. Training skills: cross-training and coaching. Team skills (participating in meetings): developing roles and responsibilities, especially group process skills, of all participants in meetings. 7 - 339 Working in teams: understanding the stages of team development and the factors needed for successful team performance. Training must compliment the progression of empowerment and responsibilities by providing the right development activities at the right time. The process for training and development of empowered teams should be carefully planned and executed. It will last for the full five year period and therefore must have continuing management commitment and support. While there are no hard and fast guidelines for developing empowered teams from level 1 or 2 to level 6 and beyond, the formula below helps show the interaction between the three critical skill sets (Wellins, Byham & Wilson 1991 : 165): Job skills X Team/interaction X Quality/action = TOTAL skills skills 7.2.2.4 New roles for managers As the team is learning and applying new skills, the role of the supervisor changes dramatically. The leader moves from a controlling position, in the centre of decision making, to a new role as a resource provider to more than one team. As the team begins to co-opt traditional leader roles, the supervisor must adopt a new role as well. He or she must move from the role of inspector to that of coach, facilitator, coordinator, mentor, and sponsor (Wellins, Byham & Wilson 1991 : 128-129). Holpp (1993: 69) suggests six quality management roles that characterise the successful manager in times of change. These roles are exemplified by managers and supervisors that are able to succeed and indeed thrive during the cultural transformation to empowered teams. i) Coordinate team activities: rather than just supervising, the leader learns to coordinate the team in its activities. That means providing direction, support, and help. It means coaching and exercising 7 - 340 influence. It does not mean day-to-day supervision and decision- making. Advise on opportunity selection: in keeping the team focused on objectives of importance to the overall quality and business plan, the leader plays an active tole in guiding the team to select and work on specific priority projects that will contribute to the team and the organisation as a whole. Provide resources: without adequate resources, team members cannot do their jobs effectively. Larger organisational goals are hard to keep in focus when the group does not have the means to perform their daily operations without stress and frustration. The leader plays a critical role in keeping others in the organisation attentive to the needs and capabilities of his or her group. Coach on problem solving: the job of the coach in problem-solving is to become an expert in the tools and techniques of continuous improvement and quality. By working directly with the team to maintain momentum and keep it focused on its tasks, the leader becomes a consultant and advisor. Assist in implementation: helping individuals and teams to make things happen is one of the most vital roles of the leader. Many team members need help in understanding the larger organisation, making presentations, or working with other departments. The leader can pave the way for this success by working outside his or her own functional unit and by gaining support for his or her team throughout the organisation. Provide informal recognition: formal means of recognition available to leaders are limited and rarely immediate enough to provide reinforcement. Informal recognition is the best tool to keep team 7 - 341 members motivated between pay raises or promotions. As teams learn to operate as managers, managers need to learn to operate as part of a team. Easy enough to say, but the process is a learning experience for both groups. Some cautions need to be expressed as do's and don'ts for managers in their new role as team leaders. Don't expect the team to perform as well as the best performers in the team Like the iron ore train going to Saldanha, the team can only move as fast as its slowest members. What this means is that a team will not develop as fast as the fastest nor lag with the slowest. It will develop in a way that takes the different skills and readiness of each member into consideration. The team often seems to move in fits and starts. Some members move along quickly and become leaders, taking responsibility gladly, while others need to be convinced that this is the way to work and be given time to orient their thinking to the new way of doing things. Do match management style to the development level of team members, not the development level they would like for the team as a whole Even if a team is in an early stage of development, some team members will be able to work independently and behave in a proactive manner. By the same token, even advanced teams sometimes have members who lag behind the group. Managers and leaders must be able to provide support to the team at whatever level they are. Thus, flexibility, responsiveness, and coaching skills are all critical for the successful manager working with empowered teams. Do spend time with the team When attending meetings, the manager needs to listen, allow small errors to go 7 - 342 unchallenged, restrain the impulse to intervene and set things right. Assistance in solving problems may be provided, but without removing responsibility or authority. Managing and consulting with the team during breakthrough times always comes easy. During these honeymoon periods, members are excited about their new roles, and are pleased both with management and themselves for the new opportunity and initial positive feelings always associated with a fresh undertaking. As the team becomes more a part of daily work and members settle down into a routine, the facilitative manager must learn how to maintain momentum, deal with conflict, provide adequate resources, and work with individual members to help them complete their projects. Don't forget management is a team too and must develop itself as it develops others Unless management can work as a team with various functional areas operating in harmony, teams will constantly be running into organisational brick walls. Bad structure will drive out good intentions and training every time. Improved teamwork, communication, shared goals and responsibilities are all components of management training that will facilitate teamwork at the line level. Don't expect change overnight Managers sometimes try to make the jump from the high control climate to one of a high involvement without stopping in between. Yet when they make the jump, they find themselves with neither high participation nor high involvement. Instead, they land in a state of high confusion followed by high frustration. Traditional structures should not be abandoned all at once. That is equivalent of going from a level 1 to a level 6 on the development scale. Instead, plan changes and move along the way gradually. Allow participation and new structures to evolve slowly so they can go faster later on. 7 - 343 7.2.2.5 Benefits of empowered teams At this point it is useful to summarise the outcomes occurring because of empowered teams. As might be expected, there are benefits and costs. Commitment by employees to high performance is the key ingredient in the success of empowered teams. Eight characteristics stand out that make empowered teams different from normal work groups (Hampton 1987 : 130; Wellins, Byham & Wilson 1991 : 10-15): They are: broader, more flexible job design - broad based jobs; planning and implementation are combined in one unit - increased autonomy and integration; ambitious performance expectations replace work standards - self management; compensation is given for learning and teamwork - pay for knowledge and performance; strong employee voice - greater involvement; union/management or employee/organisation relations tend towards a joined or mutual perspective; employees have assurances of a secure future; leaner, more flexible management - flat structure. In sum, a team is not a group. While problem-solving groups are important, a team shares common boundaries, interdependent tasks, articulated purpose, and understood and owned goals. In addition, empowered teams seem to overcome 7 - 344 the three barriers faced by many problem solving groups. Firstly, empowered teams help overcome the impact of individualised rewards since empowered teams are designed to create member interaction and interdependence. Rather than viewing colleagues as competitors, individuals have powerful incentives for working together to maximize success. In addition, empowered teams provide for group identification and increased job satisfaction (Dalziel & Schoonover 1988 : 49-61). Task excellence is achieved because employees identify with the issues and the solutions. Since they are part of the solution, individuals feel a greater obligation and motivation to guarantee successful implementation. Secondly, the role of managers and supervisors is dramatically different in an empowered team environment. In traditional organisations, leadership is based on the manager having the decision-making power, the information, the rewards, and in many cases, the expertise. The impact of this approach has already been discussed. Shared responsibility and control take the place of the traditional manager carrying the responsibilities and burdens of managing performance alone. The primary role of the manager is that of a coach. The coaching role includes setting high standards, forwarding of all knowledge, working with the team members, while delegating increasing responsibility, and inspiring increased collaborative effort. Empowered managers empower others, move decisions to the proper levels, provide a vision and communicate it, and build trust and openness. Thirdly, empowered teams overcome segmentalism. The perspective of subordinates and managers is broadened beyond a narrow concern for a specialised area. Instead team members identify with the problems associated with the overriding issues of productivity and quality. In addition, learning to solve problems makes each team member even better qualified to solve future problems. 7 - 345 While empowered teams are touted as solutions to a vast variety of organisational issues, seven specific benefits consistently occur (Nora, Rogers & Stramy 1995 : 146-149; Olsaysky 1991 : 1-2). They are: improvement in work methods and procedures; gains occur in attraction and retention of employees; increases in staffing flexibility; increases in service and product quality; improvements in output; enhanced quality of decision-making; reduction in supervision and staff support. These factors all lead to increased productivity. Teams set the production goals which tend to be higher. Feedback is effectively employed to improve performance. Cross-training enhances the ability of team members to help out and replace each other. In manufacturing environments, empowered teams do their own set up, thereby eliminating the need for supervisory and/or support staff assistance. There are at least six significant impediments for the implementation of empowered teams. If the system is to be successfully implemented, these factors must be considered carefully (Cutcher-Gershenfeld 1988: 24). First, empowered teams increase training costs including the use of staff or outside consultants to facilitate the implementation. Second, unmet expectations 7 - 346 for organisational change may occur. Third, conflicts between participants and non-participants can occur if only a few empowered teams are formed. Fourth, time is lost in team meetings and decision are slower. Fifth, some staff support groups might resist the change. Sixth, the time required to set up the systems can be longer than anticipated. Along the same lines, there are at least seven potential pitfalls. Fortunately, these are predictable and the impact can be diminished. They are: training for teams is insufficient or too late; management is too impatient for results; failure to acknowledge that team members will test the system; trying to implement when the technology for the particular change is not sufficiently known; inadequate time is allowed for the experience to set before it is evaluated; inappropriate boundaries chosen for team membership or responsibilities; the corporate culture is radically counter to the empowered team philosophy. With empowered teams, the cultural and managerial shifts are substantial, even in a productive and effective TQM environment. Any effort to implement empowered teams must therefore include patience and a willingness to experience false starts and some failures. Implementation of empowered teams 7 - 347 require a substantial investment in time and forethought in order to be successful. Implementation can be difficult, but the successes of empowered teams make this next level of employee involvement and organisational transformation exciting and important. Under the very best of circumstances, change is difficult. When attempting to redefine employment relations, identifying and pursuing common interests seems to be a vital component. The learning process, which requires management and employees alike to reconsider many underlying, and often incorrect assumptions, might be one of the most important outcomes of any empowering process. Numerous authors have pointed to important shifts in operating paradigms for organisations to flourish, or sometimes survive, this century. Organisations must move from national to transnational orientations, maximise their use of technology, become effective information processors, incorporate long-term thinking, pursue constant innovation, change from structural to a process orientation, reduce waste, and eliminate unnecessary levels of management (Bennis 1990: 28-30; McCann 1991 : 76-93; Offerman & Gowing 1990: 95-108). New paradigms that include employee involvement produce remarkable results because of the motivation of its people. Quality, customer satisfaction, and efficiency are the cornerstones for organisations to flourish and create the wealth required for growth in the next century. Empowering employees through a high level of involvement seems like a very viable and effective response (Kouzes & Posner 1990: 161-185). 7.3 CONCLUSION The key to empowerment is a supportive environment - the kind of environment typically found in a TQM organisation. It is a process for helping the right people at the right levels make the right decisions for the right reasons. Empowerment is the reciprocal for power. The benefits are many when employees are empowered, they feel: . that they are in charge of and in control of their job; 7 - 348 0 significant and important; 0 responsible for their actions; that learning and competence really matter; that their work is exciting and challenging; energised by the tasks they perform; part of a team and part of the organisation. Empowered teams accept responsibility for their successes and their failures. Being given a say in how things are done makes the team feel responsible for the outcome, both in quality and quantity. In addition, team members show more initiative, get more done, and enjoy the work more. The end result is increased motivation, leading to higher performance and the accomplishment of exceptional organisational objectives. As they use their influence in positive ways they gain more power and formal organisational authority, creating a growth spiral that carries them up the organisational career ladder. The strategy of empowering teams is particularly effective in environments where it is not possible to empower individuals alone. By accepting collective responsibility for a meaningful output, as well as for making decisions on how to reach that output, the level of responsibility of individuals in the team rises. Too often, organisations have rewarded values such as "if it ain't broke, don't fix it". Empowered teams under the TQM umbrella call for continuous improvements with values such as "If it ain't broke, fix it anyway" or "Do your job well and find ways to constantly improve it!" The goal is to create work environments where power, knowledge, information, and rewards are shared. By assuming more responsibility for quality and continuous improvement, employees ultimately become self-managing through their empowered teams. Although implementation 7 - 349 is difficult, the rewards can be remarkable for the organisation and its members. Empowerment is a vital part of the learning TOM organisation of the future. Enlightened followership is what enlightened leadership is looking for. Leaders have to learn how to disperse power so that self-direction can largely replace imposed direction. Whether it is individuals or teams who are empowered, employees feel the need to be in control and when they are, they contribute successfully to the overall organisational goal of customer satisfaction. 7.4 SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH While the shift to empowered teams represents one means for increasing employee involvement, greater research is needed in areas such as segmentalism, leading rather than managing, or power shifts. Secondly, can TOM with empowered teams function in a wide variety of organisations? In a manufacturing environment, the roles can be redefined relatively easy. However, little research exists regarding the extensive use of parallel structures or in highly regulated institutions (eg., financial institutions, schools). Finally, TOM offers many opportunities for applied research. Given the numerous avenues for continuous improvement and empowerment, studies can be conducted regarding specific techniques, groups of employees, types of occupations, and organisations. 7.5 SUIVIRRARY For most organisations, preparing for the year 2000, change is inevitable. Faced with increasing costs, uncertainty, complexity, and the pace of change, organisations may turn to the next level of TOM by empowering employees to enable then to operate in empowered teams. This chapter concluded that empowered teams is a valued technology for organisational development and will greatly enhance employees' contribution to wealth generation and growth. 7 - 350 ALEXANDER PC. 1981. This Month. Personnel Journal, 60 : 616-619, August. ATKINSON PE & NADEN J. 1989. Total Quality Management : Eight Lessons to Learn from Japan. Management Services, 33(3) : 6-10, March. AUBREY CA & ELDRIDGE LA. 1981. Banking on High Quality. Quality Progress, 14(12) : 14-19, December. BABBIT RC. 1981. One Company's Approach to Quality Circles. Quality Progress, 14(10) : 28-29, October. BADIRU AB. 1990. A System Approach to Total Quality Management. Industrial Engineering, 22(3) : 33-36, March. BAIRD JE. 1982. Positive Personnel Practices: Quality Circles Leaders Manual. 2nd edition. Prospect Heights, Illinois : Waveland. BANK J. 1992. The Essence of Total Quality Management. Hertfordshire, United Kingdom : Prentice-Hall. BARKER RL. 1991 Using Basic Tools. Proceedings of the 4th TQM International Conference. Bedford, United Kingdom: IFS. BARNARD PJ. 1990. Die implimentering en werking van gehaltekringe in `n multinasionale ondememing. Johannesburg : Randse Afrikaanse Universiteit, (D Com- proefskrif). BARNARD PJ. 1993. Quality Circles: A South African Approach. Johannesburg : NZK. BARRA RJ. 1986. Ralph Barra Introduces Quality Circles and Discusses Quality. Productivity S.A., 12(2) : 6-12, April. BEARD K 1989. Essentials of World Class Total Quality. Productivity SA 15(1) : 8-11, January - February. Bib-351 BEHEYDT W . 1989. Total quality control. Wire Industry : 353-356, June. BENNIS W. 1989. On Becoming a Leader. Reading, Massachusetts : Addison- Wesley. BENNIS W. 1990. Why Leaders Can't Lead. San Francisco : Jossey-Bass. BENNIS W & NANUS B. 1985. Leaders. New York : Harper & Row. BOX GEP & DRAPER NR. 1986. Empirical Model-Building and Response Surfaces. New York : Wiley. BOX GEP, HUNTER W & HUNDER JS. 1978. Statistics for Experimenters. New York : Wiley. BRADLEY K & HILL S. 1987. Quality Circles and Managerial Interests. Industrial Relations Journal, 26(1) : 68-81. BROOKE KA. 1982. QC Circles' successes Depends on Management Readiness to Support Workers' Involvement. Industrial Engineering, 14 : 76-79, January. BURNHAM JM. 1987. Some Conclusions about JIT Manufacturing. Production and Inventory Management, 28(3) : 7-11, 3rd Quarter. BURR JT. 1990. The Tools of Quality Part IV: Pareto Charts. Quality Progress, 23(11) : 59. BUZZEL RD & GALE BT. 1987. The PIMS Principles. New York : Free Press. CANDY WL. 1982. Maintenance Groups Make and Implement Own Suggestions for Improving productivity. Industrial Engineering, 14 : 44-48, February. CARNEVALE AP. 1991. America and the New Economy, Employment and Training Administration. Washington DC : US Department of Labor. CARROLL CE. 1987. Excellence through Quality: A Total Quality Improvement Approach. Wire Journal International, 20(7) : 50-66, July. Bib-352 CASHBOURNE BR. 1987. The Quality Improvement Process within Plessey Telecommunidations Systems Ltd. Quality Assurance, 13 (4) : 108-111, December. CLEMENS JK & MAYER DF. 1987. The Classic Touch. Lessons in leadership from Homer to Hemmingway. Homewood, Illinois : Dow Jones-Irwin. COLDWELL DAL & MOERDYK AP. 1981. Paradigms Apart : Black Managers in a White Man's World. South African Journal of Business Management, 12 : 70-76, March. COLE RE. 1979. Made in Japan - Quality Control Circles. Across the Board, 16 : 72- 78, November. COLE RE. 1980. Learning From the Japanese : Prospects and Pitfalls. Manage- ment Review, 69(9) : 22-42, September. COLLINS ENGLISH DICTIONARY. 1994. The authority on current English. Updated Edition. Glasgow : Harper Collins. COOK DC. 1991. TQM Research : Beyond the First Flush of Enthusiasm - Sustain- ing Success with Total Quality. Proceedings of the 4th TQM International Conference. Bedford, United Kingdom : IFS. CROSBY & ASSOCIATES. 1989. Quality Improvement Process. Florida : Creative Factory. CROSBY PB. 1979. Quality Is Free. New York : McGraw-Hill. CROSBY PB. 1984. Quality Without Tears. New York : McGraw-Hill. CULLEN JM. 1991. Conditions for Success. The Total Quality Management Magazine, 3(3) : 153-156. CURTIS B & BOADEN S. 1988. Quality - Making It Happen. Proceedings of the 1st International Conference. Bedford, United Kingdom : IFS. CUTCHER-GERSHENFELD J. 1988. Tracing a transformation in indistrial relations. Washington : Bureau of Labour and Management Relations and Cooperative Programs. Bib-353 DALE BG & HAYVVARD SG. 1984. Quality Circle Failures in U.K. Manufacturing Companies - a Study. Omega, 12(5) : 475-484. DALE BG. 1984a. Quality Circles - Are they working in British Factories? Long Range Planning, 17(6) : 50-65. DALE BG. 1984b. Quality Circles in U.K Manufacturing Industry - A State of the Art Picture and Respective Trends. Occasional Paper, no. 8402. Department of Management Sciences, University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology, November. DALZIEL MM & SCHOONOVER SC. 1988. Changing ways : A practical tool for implementing change within organisations. New York : AMACOM. DANIEL R & HUSS A. 1987. Implementing Quality Circles in the Face of Mid- management and Union Pressure. Institute of Personnel Management Journal, 6(5) : 9-15, September. DAVIES J. 1992. Educating clients to keep costs down. Sunday Times Cape Metro : 1, 18 January. DEMING WE. 1982. Quality, Productivity and Competitive Position. Cambridge : Massachusetts Institute of Technology. DEMING WE. 1986. Out of the Crisis. Cambridge, Massachusetts : Massachusetts Institute of Technology. DEMING WE. 1988. Methods for Management of Productivity and Quality. Seminar Proceedings, George Washington University : 19-22. DEMING WE. 1993. The New Economics: Cambridge, MA: MIT Centre for Advanced Study. DEMPSEY P & HESKETH M. 1988. Total Quality Culture - Five Years On and Counting. Proccedings of the 1st TQM International Conference. Bedford, United Kingdom : IFS. DESATNICK RL. 1989. Long Live The King. Quality Progress : 24-26, April. Bib-354 Development Dimensions international (DDI). 1996. Team handbook. Pittsburgh, Pensylvania (Training manuals, unpublished). DONOVAN M. 1994. The empowerment plan. Journal for Quality and participation : Jossey-Bass. EDOSOMWAN JA. 1987. A Program for Managing Productivity and Quality. Industrial Engineering, 19 : 64-68, January. EMSA management. 1988. EMSA vision practices. Meyerton : EMSA. (Internal document in possession of researcher). EMSA management. 1995(a). EMSA reconstruction and development programme policy. Meyerton : EMSA. (Internal document in possession of researcher). EMSA management. 1995(b). EMSA health, safety and environmental protection policy. Meyerton : EMSA. (Internal document in possession of researcher). EMSA management. 1995(c). Lost time injury frequency. Meyerton : EMSA. (Internal document in possession of researcher). EMSA management. 1995(d). Agenda for monthly HS&EP meetings. Meyerton : EMSA. (Internal document in possession of researcher). EMSA management. 1995(e). EMSA quality circle policy. Meyerton : EMSA. (Internal document in possession of researcher). EMSA management. 1995(f). EMSA Vision. Meyerton : EMSA. (Internal document in possession of researcher). EMSA management. 1995(g). EMSA team structure. Meyerton : EMSA. (Internal document in possession of researcher). EMSA management. 1996(a). EMSA values and practices. Meyerton : EMSA. (Internal document in possession of researcher). EMSA management. 1996(b). EMSA Total Quality Management policy. Meyerton : EMSA. (Internal document in possession of researcher). Bib-355 EMSA management. 1996(c). Steel industry statistics. Meyerton : EMSA. (Internal document in possession of researcher). FAKUDA J. 1986. What can we really learn from Japanese management. Journal of General Management, 11(3) : 16. FEIGENBAUM AV. 1983. Total Quality Control. 3rd ed. New York : McGraw-Hill. FLOTT LW. 1994. Management of Processes. Metal Finishing, 92(11) : 50-52, November. FONTENOT G, BEHARA R & GRESHAM A. 1994. Six Sigma in Customer Satisfaction. Quality Progress: 73-76, December. GARVIN DA. 1983. Quality on the Line. Harvard Business Review, 61(5) : 65-75, September - October. GARVIN DA. 1987. Competing on the Eight Dimensions of Quality. Harvard Business Review : 101-109, December. GARVIN DA. 1988. Managing Quality. New York : Free Press. GILL MS. 1990. Stalking Six Sigma. Business Month : 42-46, January. GITLOW H & GITLOW S. 1987. The Deming Guide to Quality and Competitive Position. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey : Prentice-Hall. GOW E. 1980. Would Our Use of the Japanese "Quality Circle" Bring Cost Saving? Management Accounting, 61(8) : 18, February. GREGERMAN IB. 1979. Introduction to Quality Circles - An Approach to Participative Problem Solving. Industrial Management and Data Systems: 16-40, September/October. GROOCOCK JM. 1986. The Chain of Quality. New York : Wiley. Bib-356 HAAVIND R. 1992. The Road to the Baldridge Award. Stoneham, Massachusetts : Butterworth-Heinemann. HAGAN JT. 1984. The Management of Quality: Preparing for a Competitive Future. Quality Progress, 17(12) : 44-50, December. HOLPP L. 1993. Self-directed teams are great, but they're not easy. Journal for Qualilty and Participation : 64-70, December. HAMMER M. 1995. The reengineering revolution. Hammersmith, London : Harper Collins. HAMPTON WJ. 1987. Why image counts. Business week : 130, June 8. HANDFORD SA. 1954. Fables of Aesop. Middlesex, England : Penguin. HARDES MW. 1992. 10 Burning Issues in Quality Improvement. Productivity SA, 18(1) : 46-47, March/April. HARIDY AMA. 1985. Quality and QC Circles in Developing Countries. Quality Progress, 18(5) : 42-45, May. HARRINGTON HJ. 1995. Total Improvement Management. New York : McGraw-Hill. HARSHMAN CL. 1982. Quality Circles: Implications for Training. Arlington, Virginia : Eric Clearing-House. HARVEY G. 1989. The Strategic Implementation of Total Quality Management. Proceedings of the 2nd TQM International Conference. Bedford, United Kingdom : IFS. HERSEY P. & BLANCHARD K. 1982. Management of Organisational Behaviour : Utilizing Human Resources. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey : Prentice Hall. HERSEY P. 1984. The Situational Leader. Escondido, California : Warner. HICKS CR. 1964. Fundamental Concepts in the Design of Experiments. New York : Holt, Rinehart & Winston. Bib-357 HOUGHTON JR. 1991. World Class Quality. The Total Quality Management Magazine, 3(1) : 27-31. IMAI M. 1986. Kaizen : the key to Japan's competitive success. New York : Random House. INGLE S. 1982. How to Avoid Quality Circles Failure In Your Company. Training and Development Journal, 36 : 54-59, June. ISHIKAWA K. 1982. Guide to quality control. Tokyo : Asian Productivity Organiza- tion. ISHIKAWA K. 1985. What is Total Quality Control? The Japanese Way. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey : Prentice-Hall. ISHIKAWA K 1986. Guide to Quality Control. 2nd revision, edited for clarity. White Plains, New York : UNIPUB-Kraus International. JABLONSKI JR. 1995. Implementing TQM. 2nd ed. San Diego, California : Pfeiffer. JOHNSON RS. 1993. TQM : Leadership for the Quality Transformation. Quality Progress, 26(2):55-57, February. JURAN JM. 1964. Managerial breakthrough. New York : McGraw-Hill. JURAN JM. 1988(a). Juran on Planning for Quality. New York : Free Press. JURAN JM. 1988(b). Quality Control Handbook. New York : McGraw-Hill. JURAN JM. 1989. Juran on Leadership for Quality. New York : Free Press. JURAN JM. 1994. The Upcoming Century of Quality. Quality Progress, 27 (8) : 29- 37, August. KANE EJ. 1986. IBM's Quality Focus on the Business Process. Quality Progress, 14(4) : 24-33, April. Bib-358 KANJI A & ASHER K. 1993. Implementation of Total Quality Management. Total Quality Management, 4 (supplement) : 103-120. KENWORTHY HW. 1986. Total Quality Concept: A Proven Path to Success. Quality Progress, 19(7) : 21-24, July. KEYS B & MILLER T. 1984. The Japanese management theory jungle. Academy of Management Review, 9(5) : 342. KINLAW DC. 1991. Developing Superior Work Teams : Building Quality and the Competitive Edge. Toronto, Canada : University Associates. KLEIN GD. 1981. Implement Quality Circles: A Hard Look at Some of the Realities. Personnel, 58 : 11-20, November - December. KLEIN RA. 1991. Achieve Total Quality Management. Chemical Engineering Progress : 83-86, November. KOLLAT DT, BLACKWELL RD & ROBESON JF. 1972. Strategic Marketing. New York : Holt. KONO T. 1982. Japanese management philosophy : Can it be exported? Long Range Planning : 91. KOONTZ H. 1980. The management theory jungle revisited. Academy of Management Review, 5(2) : 175. KOONTZ H, O'DONNEL C & WEIHRICH H. 1984. Management. 8th ed. Singapore : McGraw-Hill. KOOPMAN AD. 1987. All Employees Must Share and Participate in Business. Human Resource Management, 3(3) : 20-22, March. KOOPMAN AD, NASSER ME & NEL J. 1987. The Corporate Crusaders. Johannesburg : Lexicon. KOUZES JM & POSNER BZ. 1990. The Leadership Challenge. San Francisco, California : Jossey-Bass. Bib-359 KUME H. 1985(a). Statistical Methods for Quality Improvement. Tokyo : JUSE. KUME H. 1985(b). Business Management and Quality Cost: The Japanese View. Quality Progress, 18(5):13-18, May. KWOK D. 1994. TQM and the CEO. Quality : 14-15, November. LAWLER EE & MOHRMAN SA. 1985. Quality Circles After the Fad. Harvard Business Review, 63(1) : 65-71, January/February. LAWLER EE. 1994. Total Quality Management and Employee Involvement: Are They Compatible? Academy of Management Executive, 8(1) : 68-76, February. LEES J & DALE B. 1985. A Further Study of Quality Circle Programs in the U.K. Service Sector. Occasional Paper, no. 8511, December. LEVIN RI. 1987. Statistics for Management. 4th ed. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey : Prentice-Hall. LINDSAY AD. 1906. Plato : The Republic. London : Dent. LODGE C. 1989. Six Gurus Show the Way to Improved Product Quality. Plastics World : 29-38, August. LOMAS T. 1986. Managing for Quality. British Telecommunications Engineering, : 216-219, January. MAIN J. 1980. The Battle for Quality Begins. Fortune, 29 : 28-33, December. Malcolm Baldridge National Quality Award. 1995. Application Guidelines. Gaithersburg, Georgia : National Institute of Standards and Technology. MANNING AD. 1987. Working Together: Can It Work In South Africa. Institute of Personnel Management Journal, 6(5) : 16-20, September. MARASH SA. 1989. Blueprint for Quality Improvement. Personnel Journal, 68 (3) : 120-123, March. Bib-360 MARQUARDT DW. 1984. New Technical and Educational Directions for Managing Product Quality. American Statistician : 8-14, May. MCCANN JE. 1991. Design principles for an innovating company. Academy of Management Executive, 5(2) : 76-93. IVICCARTHY TS. 1984. Results of the R.T.0 Quality Circles Projects of June 1981. Production and Inventory Management : 100-102, First Quarter. MCGRAW P & DUNFORD R. 1987. The Strategic Use of Quality Circles in Australian Industrial Relations. Journal of Industrial Relations, 29(2) : 150-167, June. MCLEAN RA & ANDERSON VL. 1984. Applied Factorial and Fractional Designs. New York : Marcel Dekker. MCMILLAN CJ. 1980. Is Japanese Management Really So Different? Business Quarterly, 46 : 26-31, Autumn. MCMILLAN CJ. 1982. From Quality Control to Quality Mangement: Lessons from Japan. Business Quarterly, 47 : 31-40, Spring. NAAUMAN E & SHANNON P. 1992. What is Customer-Driven Marketing? Business Horizons, 35(6):44-52, November/December. NASSER ME. 1987. Project Free Enterprise Report. Pretoria: UNISA School of Business Leadership. NATIONAL OCCUPATIONAL SAFETY ASSOCIATION. 1995. EMSA : Where workers are empowered to decide for themselves. Workers Life, 1(1) : 6-7, May. NEESON P. 1989. Total Quality Management. Logistics Today, 8(2) : 34-36, March. NEMOTO M. 1987. Total Quality Control for Management. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey : Prentice-Hall. NORA JC, ROGERS CR & STRAMY RJ. 1995. Transforming the workplace. Princeton, New Jersey : Princeton Research. Bib-361 OAKLAND J. 1989. Total Quality Management. London : Heinemann. OFFERMAN LR & GOWING MK. 1990. Organisations of the future : Changes and challenges. American Psychologist, 45(2) : 95-108. OLSAVSKY MA. 1991. New systems, new choices. Labor Relations Today, 6 : 1-2, March/April. OWEN M. 1989. SPC and Continuous Improvement. Hertfordshire, United Kingdom : Springer-Verlag. PALL GA. 1987. Quality Process Management. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey : Prentice-Hall. PASCALE RT & ATHOS AG. 1981. The Art of Japanese Management. New York : Simon & Shuster. PAYNE R. 1991. Taking Stock of Corporate Culture. Personnel Management : 26- 29, July. PERIGORD M. 1990. Achieving Total Quality Management : a program for action. Cambridge : Productivity Press. PETERS TJ. 1980. Putting Excellence into Management. Business Week : 196- 205, 21 July. PETERS TJ. 1987. Thriving on Chaos. New York : Knopf. PETERS TJ. 1989. Can't Get No (Customer) Satisfaction. Chief Executive : 72-82, September/October. PORTER LJ & PARKER AJ. 1993. Total Quality Management : The Critical Success Factors. Total Quality Management, 4(1) : 19. PORTER LJ & HIRD MJ. 1989. A Systematic Route to Exellence - The Fioxide Approach. Proceedings of the 2nd TQM International Conference. Bedford, United Kingdom : IFS. Bib-362 POUSKOULELI G & WHEAT TA. 1992. Total Quality Management : the way ahead. International Journal of Materials and Product Technology, 7(4) : 307-318. PRETORIUS HL. 1988. 'n Kritiese beskouing van die Sullivan-gedragskode binne `n multinasionale onderneming. Potchefstroom : PU vir CHO. (MBA-verhandeling). PROJECT FREE ENTERPRISE REPORT. 1986. Economic Participation in South Africa. Strategy for Survival and Growth. Pretoria : UNISA School of Business Leadership. PULAT BM. 1994. Total Quality Management: A Framework for Application in Manufacturing. TQM Magazine, 6(1) : 44-49. REES JL & RIGBY P. 1988. Total Quality Control - The Hewlett-Packard Way. Bedford, United Kingdom : IFS. RIEKER WS. 1983. Quality Circles and Company-wide Quality Control. Quality Progress, 16(10) : 14-17, October. ROBSON M. 1989. Quality of Management and the Management of Quality. Journal for Quality and Participation, 12(1) : 70-73, March. ROBSON M. 1984. Quality Circles in Action. Aldershot, Hunts: Gower. RUSSEL S & DALE B. 1989. Quality Circles - A Broader Perspective. Work Research Unit Occasional Paper 43. University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology, Manchester (May). SARAPH JV, BENSON PG & SCHROEDER RG. 1989. An Instrument for Measuring the Critical Factors of Quality Management. Decision Sciences, 20 : 810-829, December. SARGENT TR. 1986. The Quality Leadership Scale : A Tool for Change. Quality Progress, 19(7):26-32, July. SAYLOR JH. 1992. TOM Field Manual. New York : McGraw-Hill. Bib-363 SCHMENNER RW. 1981. Production/Operations Management. 3rd ed. Chicago : Science Research Associates. SCHONBERGER RJ. 1985. Operations Management: Productivity and Quality. 2nd ed. Plano, Texas : Business Publication. SCHUITEMA E. 1994. Beyond management. Johannesburg : Southern. SEDAM SM. 1982. QC circle training process should cover relating, supporting, problem-solving skills. Industrial Engineering : 70-74, January. SENGE PM. 1990. The Fifth Discipline. New York : Doubleday. SENGE PM, ROBERTS C, ROSS RB, SMITH BJ & KLEINER A. 1994. The Fifth Discipline Field Book. London : Nicholas Brealey. SETHI P. 1984. The False Promise of the Japanese Miracle. New York : Pitman. SHAW R.J. 1982. Middle Managers Role in Quality Circles. Management Focus, 29 : 34-36, May/June. SHERKENBACH WW. 1987. The Deming Route to Quality and Productivity. Rockville, MD : Continuing Engineering Education. SHETTY YK. 1987. Product Quality and Competitive Strategy. Business Horizons : 46-52, May/June. SHEWART WA. 1986. Statistical Method from the Viewpoint of Quality Control. Dover : Graduate School, Department of Agriculture. SHIFFMAN LG & KANUK LL. 1983. Consumer Behaviour. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey : Prentice-Hall. SILBERBAUER ER. 1987. Understanding and Motivating the Bantu Worker. Johannesburg : Personnel Management Advisory Service. SMITH S. 1988. Trends in TQM. The TQM Magazine : 5-6, September. Bib-364 SNEE RD. 1985. Meeting the Challenge of Total Quality - 1985. ASQC Chemical and Process Industries Division News :1-2, December. SPARKS RE & LEGAULT RD. 1993. A Definition of Quality for Total Customer Satisfaction: The Bridge Between Manufacturer and Customer. SAM Advanced Management Journal, 58(1) : 16-27, Winter. SPECHLER J. 1991. TQM panel Discussion. Third International Conference on Productivity and Quality Research. Miami, Florida. February. SPENCER RJ. 1987. The Use of Quality Circles in Quality Improvement Programmes. International Journal of Technology Management, 2(2) : 229-240. STANTON N. 1986. What Do You Mean "Communication"? How People and Organisations Communicate. London : Pan. STEEPLES MM. 1992. The Corporate Guide To The Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. Milwaukee, Wisconsin : ASQC Quality. SUGDEN RA & PARKER JR. 1989. Xerox Supplier Total Quality Strategy. Bedford, United Kingdom : IFS. SULLIVAN LH. 1979. Codes of employement, the Sullivan principles. South African Outlook : 67, May. SULLIVAN LH. 1980. The role of multinational corporations in South Africa. Johannesburg : Midas. SUN-TZU; translated by GRIFFITH SB. 1963. The Art of War. London : Oxford University Press. SUN-TZU; translated by WING RL. 1988. The Art of Strategy. New York : Dolphin/ Doubleday. TAGUCHI G. 1987. System of Experimental Design. New York: UNIPUB, Krauss International Publications. Bib-365 THOMPSON AA & STRICKLAND AJ. 1995. Strategic Management : Concepts and Cases. 8th ed. Boston, Massachusets : Irwin. THOMPSON AA. & STRICKLAND AJ. 1989. Strategy Formulation and Implementation, 4th ed. Homewood, Illinois: Irwin. THOMPSON W. 1982. Is the Organisation Ready for Quality Circles. Training and Development Journal, 36 : 116-135, December. TJOSVOLD D. 1993. Teamwork for Customers. San Francisco : Jossey-Bass. TORTORICH R, THOMPSON P, LAYFIELD D, DREYFUSS C, ORFAN C & KELLEY M. 1991. Measuring Organisational Impact of Quality Circles. The Quality Circles Journal, 10(4) : 23-24, November. TOWNSEND PL. 1986. Commit to Quality. New York : Wiley. TAVERNIER G. 1981. "Awakening a Sleeping Giant ..." Ford's Employee Involvement Program. Management Review, 70 : 15-20, June. TRIBUS M. 1988. Deming's Way. Mechanical Engineering, 10 : 26-30, January. TRUELL GF. 1991. Employee Involvement: A Guidebook for Managers. Buffalo, New York: PAT. VAN MAANEN J & KUNDA G. 1989. Real Feelings : Emotional Expression and Organizational Culture. Research in Organisational Behaviour, 11 : 43-103. VASILASH GE. 1989. Crosby Says Get Fit for Quality. Production, 101(1) : 51-54, January. WELLINS RS, BYHAM WC & DIXON GR. 1994. Inside teams. San Francisco : Jossey-Bass. WELLINS RS, BYHAM WG & WILSON JM. 1991. Empowered Teams. San Francisco. Jossey-Bass. Bib-366 WHEELER DJ & CHAMBERS DS. 1994. Understanding Statistical Process Control. Knoxville, Tennessee: Keith. WILLIAMS A, DOBSON P & WALTERS M. 1989. Changing Culture. London : Institute of Personnel Management. WILSON JM, GEORGE J, WELLINS RS & BYHAM WC. 1994. Leadership trapeze. San Francisco : Jossey-Bass. WILSON JM & GEORGE J. 1996. Team leader's survival guide. Pittsburgh, Pensylvania : DDI. YAGER E. 1979. Examining the Quality Control Circle. Personnel Journal, 58(10) : 682-284, October. ZAIRI M, LETZA SR & OAKLAND JS. 1994. Does TQM Impact on Bottom-line Results? The TQM Magazine, 6(1) : 38-43. ZEITHAML VA, BERRY LL & PARASURAMAN P. 1990. Delivering Quality Service: Balancing Customer Perceptions and Expectations. New York: Free Press. Bib-367