May 2003

Can TQM In Consulting Firms Be Successful?

“C2B” is in three sections this month:

Evolution
Principles of Total Quality Management
TQM Throughout The Consulting Organization

Total Quality Management (TQM) evolved out of applications in manufacturing companies such as Toyota, IBM, and Motorola. In the 1990s service organizations began to realize that they could benefit from quality management. This is important since the service sector is the largest segment of the U. S. economy employing almost four times as many people as manufacturing and technical industries.

Although companies use different terms to refer to their approach to quality, they mean pretty much the same thing and embody many of the same concepts: strategic goals, total commitment, continuous improvement, comprehensive focus, employee responsibility, job training, and so forth. Total Quality Management represents a set of management principles that focus on quality improvement as the driving force in all functional areas and at all levels in a company. These Consulting Principles are:

The client defines quality and the client’s needs are the top priority.
Top management must provide the leadership for quality.
Quality is a strategic issue.
Quality is the responsibility of all employees at all levels of the organization.
All functions of the company must focus on continuous quality improvement to achieve ROI.
Quality problems are solved through cooperation among employees and management.
Problem solving and continuous quality improvement use statistical quality control methods.
Coaching and Mentoring of all employees are the basis for continuous quality improvement.

TQM Throughout The Consulting Organization

¨ Marketing and R&D define what the client wants.

¨ Engineering creates a design to meet client expectations.

¨ Purchasing acquires high quality parts and materials.

¨ Personnel hires employees with required skills and provide culture training.

¨ Management maintains a smooth flow through the service process.

¨ After the sale quality service is as important as the consulting service provided.

To have a successful TQM Consulting program, each of these areas in a business as well as all other organizational support groups, must be committed to quality. However, this commitment must begin at the top and spread down through the organization. As successful TQM Consulting programs must be planned, established, and initiated by partners, vice presidents, or managing directors and implemented by the various functions and consultants in the organization

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"C2B" Consulting-to-Business is a free, monthly, electronic newsletter written and published by Dwayne. D. Jakes, D.B.A., Founder & Managing Director of Dwayne D. Jakes & Associates Management Systems, LLC. Past Columns are archived at http://www.ddjakes.com

Copyright 2003, Dwayne D. Jakes & Associates Management Systems LLC. All rights reserved. Reproduction is prohibited. We encourage sharing "C2B" Consulting-to-Business in whole or in part if copyright and attribution are always included. Distribution and Reproduction without attribution prohibited.

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