TQM? Bah...Humbug!

Abstract

Scrooge would very likely say "bah, humbug" to a Total Quality Management (TQM) improvement program as it would seem to him to be frivolous, superficial, and filled with emotional beliefs. TQM has become a buzzword for an improvement program developed to emulate the successful management practices of Japan and others. Unfortunately, it is often implemented with platitudes and much rhetoric indicating managers and leaders have little in-depth understanding of what is really required to obtain the results desired. Most attempts have failed; where there is success, change is often superficial and improvements "either fortuitous or short-lived" (Garvin, 1993). The question, then, is why these failures and difficulties with such basic and appealing concepts?

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