Don't believe the hype – when effectiveness is all that counts

Citation

Cousins, M. (2002), "Don't believe the hype – when effectiveness is all that counts", Measuring Business Excellence, Vol. 6 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/mbe.2002.26706bab.002

Don't believe the hype – when effectiveness is all that counts

Quality focus

Don't believe the hype – when effectiveness is all that counts

Quality has become something of a management buzzword. It appears in journals, seminars and conferences across the globe and is used in so many contexts that it is beginning to appear a little worn. So, all in all, how successful has quality been? Has the quality of goods and services really improved in proportion to increased interest?

While the answer is not altogether in the negative, it is hardly an unequivocal "yes". There have been success stories, but they have been accompanied by an increasing number of organizations that fail to show a "Return on quality". But why?

Caught in a trend

Every field of management has its fads and phases, but quality seems to have more than most. Since the concept was introduced in the 1940s, there have been trendy quality strategies. Take the Zero Defects movement, for example. In the mid-1960s, Zero Defects was spreading across the USA – more than 40 companies had the program running and quality magazines and conferences could talk of nothing else. There was even an American Society for Zero Defects. All this despite the fact that this program had little tangible content, it consisted primarily of slogans and banners used to motivate the production workers.

Of course, this strategy faded away only to be replaced by a plethora of trendy strategies that emerged in the 1980s as a result of the Western quality revolution, when countries such as the USA realized that Japanese organizations were devouring market share due to their superior processes and products. It was around this time that quality circles came to the fore.

Since that time, other fashions have arrived such as ISO 9000, TQM, BPR and balanced scorecard. Some have experienced more success than others; some are already on the slippery slope into obscurity.

Yet contrary to the belief of many critics, there is nothing wrong with such trendy strategies. Their downfall lies in their implementation. In the West they are often seen merely as tools and are consequently used as such – adopted briefly and then discarded once the job appears to be done. This is far from effective. Quality strategy is just that – a logical, ongoing strategy that requires commitment and awareness across the organization. It is a culture and not a procedure.

Quality culture – the five critical stages

Although quality culture differs from business to business, there are five clear-cut stages that can be identified:

1. 1.

   Dormant stage. The organization has no particular interest in quality. Things are going well as they stand and there is no sense of threat.

2. 2.

   Awakening stage. For an organization this can be a gradual or a sudden realization, as it is recognized how things are not as good as previously. Conditions have radically altered; it is losing market share as consumers turn to other organizations.

3. 3.

   Groping stage. Everyone knows that something must be done, but few know exactly what action to take. Managers attempt to bring in quality initiatives without the proper knowledge and follow the latest fads in management literature. There is a culture relying on the trendy approach, so application is futile.

4. 4.

   Action stage. With the realization that these trendy strategies are only producing marginal results, comes the need to develop a strategic quality plan.

5. 5.

   Maturity stage. Quality has become a natural part of your operations, so much so that you may not even use the word "quality". There is a clear focus on the customer and the concept is integrated into every part of the business process.

Effective strategies

Obviously you need to be in the know when it comes to the numerous approaches to quality available on the market today, but choosing a strategy solely on the basis of the latest fashion method will certainly lead to failure.

What you need is an effective strategy. A plan based on any number of quality concepts that is modified to relate directly to your organization. Essentially, there are four key areas that must be considered when devising your strategy. These are:

1. 1.

   Hands-on leadership. This starts with the company's top executive. If he or she does not support an initiative then it is unlikely to succeed. A good CEO or director will lead by example, just like the founder of Motorola whose shining example and passion for quality ensured that this organization is now one of the best in its field, and the first to achieve the once-illusive six sigma status. As a top executive, you must ensure the following measures are introduced:

   • •

     Mission and vision. Why your organization exists and where it wants to go.

   • •

     Quality policy. Based on your vision, this should include the guiding principles for the work. It must be long-term, comprehensive and relatively short.

   • •

     Quality goals. Overall quantitative goals should be drawn up for the entire organization and then divided into sub goals for each function and process.

   • •

     Quality system. Systems showing what relation each activity has to one another is critical. This is where standards such as ISO 9000 can serve as a guide.

   • •

     Quality organization. Here you must define responsibility and authority for activities that have any influence on quality.

   • •

     Involvement and participation of everyone. Everyone influences quality on a day-to-day basis. Focusing on quality often involves much cultural change.

2. 2.

   Massive training. If you genuinely want to introduce quality to your organization, it tends to mean radical cultural adjustments. The attitude of every single employee must change and this is unlikely to be achieved by simply telling everyone to care about quality. Training is required, not only to instill quality values within the individual, but also to provide the new skills and knowledge that will be required in certain areas of the business.

   Training must be provided for everyone within your organization, regardless of function, and must start with top management and then work its way down the company, level by level. There are generally four components in this process:

   • •

     top management seminars;

   • •

     workshops for managers;

   • •

     training of specialists;

   • •

     training of all other personnel.

3. 3.

   Market orientation. A successful organization will not only have quality processes and procedures but will also offer a quality service to their customers. They will focus on customers and customer needs as well as studying their competitors – they will have market-driven quality.

   A market orientation includes:

   • •

     Customer focus. Customer needs are identified by means of market research. The findings of such research is not simply stated but analyzed and used as the basis of not only satisfying customers, but actively searching out what else they may desire. Customers are not forgotten once goods have been purchased or orders delivered. The organization takes the initiative. Amazon.com is a perfect example of such quality customer focus.

   • •

     Monitoring competition. This is where benchmarking comes into the picture. It can be used to make regular studies of market competition.

   • •

     Monitoring trends. Market trends need to be closely observed in order to make necessary changes to your business. It is no good having quality processes if they are so out of touch with the market that they fail to provide the required service or function.

   • •

     Product planning. This ensures you state what tasks and activities are to be carried out when launching and following up on a product, and decide who is responsible for what. This is crucial for the success of this new product.

4. 4.

   Program for quality improvements. It does not just end once you have introduced your quality initiative and sustained it for a couple of months. In the face of tougher and tougher market competition you need to make continuous improvements to your program. This work takes two directions – service improvement and process improvement.

   Quality problems can take one of two forms:

   • •

     Sporadic problems. These are usually dealt with by personnel or supervisors. They tend not to be too serious.

   • •

     Chronic problems. These are slightly more serious and are harder to identify. Often they are accepted as a normal part of life so it takes a massive change in attitude, knowledge or habit in order to overcome the difficulty. The question of responsibility is not so obvious as with sporadic problems which can also present a problem.

   An effective program for improving quality has several components:

   • •

     Improvement procedures. Procedures for all steps must be formulated.

   • •

     Organizing for improvement. A project-by-project approach is the most effective way to proceed.

   • •

     Training in improvement work. Project team members must be fully competent in improvement work.

   • •

     Quality assessment. Tools such as the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award or the European Model for Business Excellence are useful in this respect.

Formulating a strategic quality plan

These four strategies may include many different activities, all of which must be integrated into a single strategic plan that will lead to a total quality culture characterized by customer focus, process orientation, participation, empowerment and continuous improvement.

An effective strategic quality plan contains four essential components:

1. 1.

   commitment of top management;

2. 2.

   cultural change;

3. 3.

   improvements;

4. 4.

   a systematic approach.

In your strategic plan you must combine a variety of concepts, views and methods (even some trendy ones!) in such a way that it relates directly to your organization and brings about visible improvements.

Management implications

In an area with so many quick-fix answers it is tempting to believe the hype – to adopt the latest quality tool in the hope that it will produce miracle results. However, quality strategies are not about following the fashions, they are about choosing an approach that best fits your organization.

Of course, there is nothing wrong with incorporating concepts such as six sigma or BPR within your strategy, after all, there must be a great deal of value in all of these methods or they would not find their way into so many quality journals, conferences and seminars. But beware of relying on such a concept too much.

Quality is like any other strategy. It is not an add-on or a nice to have – it must form a part of your overall business strategy. You must integrate your quality initiative with the rest of your organizational objectives. Simply introducing a model taken straight from another source will not achieve these aims. Effective strategies are modified, personalized strategies, not pre-packed ready to go do-it-yourself programs.

This is a review of "Trendy versus effective quality strategies" by Lennart Sandholm. The article was originally published in The TQM Magazine, Vol. 11 No. 6, 1999.

Comment: This article is a highly readable piece, warning of the dangers of adopting the latest trendy quality strategy without due caution. There is plenty of practical advice in the form of strategic suggestions and issues in developing a strategic quality plan which, although fairly commonsensical, serve to remind any practicing manager of the dangers of getting too caught up in jargon and technicalities and forgetting the basics.