Professional Service Firms and Total Quality Management:A Good Fit?

Abstract

A recent managerial trend is the move towards total quality management (TQM) in all economic sectors: manufacturing, service, public and now the professional services. Successful implementation of TQM requires that staff in adopting organizations change how they work and, in particular, how they relate to customers and co‐workers. However, professionals have several characteristics that make them difficult to manage. Examines some potential difficulties in the TQM approach as it applies to professional service firms, describes some successes and discusses some implementation issues.

Citation

Haywood‐Farmer, J. and Nollet, J. (1994), "Professional Service Firms and Total Quality Management:A Good Fit?", International Journal of Service Industry Management, Vol. 5 No. 3, pp. 5-13. https://doi.org/10.1108/09564239410064034