Assessment of TQM in the 21ST century

Abstract

Total Quality Management or T.Q.M. is an idea that is based on existing philosophies and techniques. The movement is a reaction of United States companies in response to declining productivity and sales in the worldwide trade market due to inferior quality. Total quality management is a series of procedures and philosophies taken to create an environment, or culture, of success. This paper explores the possibilities of incorporating these principles judiciously in to the classroom activities. Although the idea of total quality management is new, the basic principles have been used for centuries. However, the total quality management movement can be attributed to starting with a few pioneers. These pioneers are known in the business world as W. Edwards Demming, Joseph M. Juran, and Philip Crosby. Each scholar has his own criteria for quality management, but there are many similarities between them. Total quality management is an approach in which all the company's people are involved in constantly improving the quality of products, services, and business processes. Total quality management is a tool that can help a company achieve total customer satisfaction through better quality products. In this presentation, the author discusses how to assess the benefits of TQM in a classroom environment. He also provides an example and discusses the results and the implications. © 2012 American Society for Engineering Education.