Quality improvement has been a problem for many companies. Thus, many have struggled to keep up with the existing markets and customers, hence failing. This is because, by providing goods that are not of quality, it becomes costly for companies since they have to redo the work. When a company is forced to rework a given product, they lose time and money, thus making the company fail to meet the customers’ needs. Through this course, I learned that there are various theories that organizations can use to support quality improvement. Therefore, the paper will look into these theories in detail and criticize why they are necessary for companies.
The first theory I came across is Edward Deming’s theory. The theory is based on the concept that more customers will be attracted when a company increases its quality (Evans & Lindsay, 2020). In the real world, many clients will go for quality products regardless of the price. Thus, Edward’s theory is significant in that he knew quality is at the top of the customer’s preferences if companies want to remain in the market. According to Franke & Steger (2009), customers will go for goods that are of their preference, hence when companies identify the customers’ needs and customize their goods according to the customer’s preferences, they will gain profits.
The most interesting concept of Deming’s theory is when quality is improved, the company will reduce its costs. This concept means that if companies take quality improvement seriously, they are likely to save on the cost that comes with rework (Evans & Lindsay, 2020). In my profession, this idea can be used to improve sales, and in turn, it can lead to an increase in profits. I agree with Deming’s philosophy of quality improvement because he advocates for leadership and customer partnership in his ideas. In my opinion, a company cannot be successful without the contribution of leadership, customer partnership, and the quality of the products. Good leadership will ensure that the employees are performing effectively while the goals of the company are being met. Also, having a customer partnership will ensure that the company retains the customers’ loyalty. This will be achieved by putting the customers first and giving them the best services.
Another theory learned from the course is Juran’s theory which is centralized on how to send the right message to organizations rather than changing their culture. In this case, the idea was to preach improvement of quality by speaking the languages of the leaders in each department of the company (Evans, & Lindsay, 2020). I learned that by speaking the languages of leaders within the company, one gets their attention, enabling them to understand any presented concept. For example, if the top managers are focused on profits, they can be approached on the line of making profits by improving the quality of the products produced. The interesting idea about Juran’s theory is that there is a series of actions required for improvement in the quality to work. These include providing the proof of need, identifying a project, organization breakthroughs, diagnostic journey, remedial journey, and holding the gains (Evans & Lindsay, 2020). Juran’s theory would work in organizations that are after profits. Applying this theory in my profession will result in understanding the process required to achieve profits while still improving quality.
Therefore, I agree with Juran’s philosophy because the top managers control most of the company’s decisions thus, finding the right message to communicate with them is critical. Enlightening the top managers in the hierarchy will make them understand the need to improve quality to gain profits (De Feo, 2017). It is like bargaining with the minds of the company’s leaders to acquire the final results, which is better quality. Many managers fear losing funds; as such, their drive is to gain profits to please their investors and maintain the benefits that come along with it (De Feo, 2017). Therefore, they tend to forget why better quality is essential. This is why through Juran’s theory, managers can see the need for better quality.
In addition to the above philosophers, I learned about Crosby’s theory which was uniquely different from Juran and Deming’s. The interesting concept about Crosby’s philosophy is that he saw the problem with quality improvement could be changed through determination, education, and implementation. Crosby thought that the top managers should be serious about quality improvement (Evans, & Lindsay, 2020). Failing to recognize why quality improvement is essential will likely lead managers to assume this factor and focus on making profits. Therefore, Crosby wanted them to be serious about propelling the improvement of quality products. He also wanted the managers and staff to understand why quality improvement is vital through education (Evans, & Lindsay, 2020). I agree with Crosby’s philosophy since successful quality improvement requires the organization to be determined, educate its employees, and implement the ideas acquired.
All of these steps are crucial as one cannot work without a plan. This is because people have to take it seriously for an idea to work, such as quality improvement. After understanding its importance, they have to learn ways of improving the concept through education. Afterward, they have to formulate a plan in which they can implement the knowledge. Ideally, this philosophy tries to make organizations and companies to be organized and see the future. Using Crosby’s philosophy has enabled me to understand that before any idea, such as making sales, I have to be determined and educated about the techniques suitable for the sales department, and through the knowledge acquired, I should implement it to execute the plan.
Feigenbaum is also an important philosopher I came across in the course, and his idea resembles the other three philosophers. Feigenbaum wanted to improve quality by improving leadership, technology, and organizational commitment (Evans, & Lindsay, 2020). I learned from his philosophy that leadership is key to most companies. Feigenbaum wanted leaders to create sound plans to lead their teams effectively. The interesting thing about his concept is the use of leadership, technology, and commitment to improving quality. Leadership is mainly based on the styles used, such as autocratic or democratic.
A leadership style can determine employees’ motivation and ability to perform a given task (Adnan & Valliappan, 2019). Feigenbaum introduced modern technology in his concept to ensure that all the staff within the company, regardless of their position, could combine efforts to meet customers’ satisfaction. Also, he wanted the commitment of the organizations (Evans, & Lindsay, 2020). Feigenbaum demonstrated that it could be achieved through training and motivation. I support all the factors Feigenbaum explained because he tackled the issue of quality by focusing on the leaders and ending it with all the staff. Through the information learned, Feigenbaum’s concept can be used in today’s world to train the staff on leadership skills, knowing the benefits of technology, and committing them to the goal of achieving quality.
Quality improvement should be a primary factor if companies and organizations want to achieve customer satisfaction and profits. Based on the philosophers presented, all the ideas can work for any organization, but the key feature is identifying what can work. This is because all the ideas are good, but not all can be effective in each organization. Therefore, knowing what the company wants to achieve and its culture, the ideas can be borrowed from different philosophers. However, the primary focus should be to achieve quality improvement. Knowing the end game will help companies implement what is best for them to achieve this goal. Since, by improving quality, the company’s reputation will be preserved and can stay in the market regardless of competitors.
References
Adnan, S. N. S. M., & Valliappan, R. (2019). Communicating shared vision and leadership styles towards enhancing performance. International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management. Web.
De Feo, J. A. (2017). Juran’s quality handbook: The complete guide to performance excellence, Seventh Edition. McGraw-Hill Education.
Evans, J. R., & Lindsay, W. M. (2020). Managing for quality and performance excellence. Eleventh Edition. Cengage Learning.
Franke, N., Keinz, P., & Steger, C. J. (2009). Testing the value of customization: when do customers really prefer products tailored to their preferences?. Journal of marketing, 73(5), 103-121. Web.