ABSTRACT
In the last two decades, organizations have experienced a period of great change in their markets and operations. International competition has meant that many organizations have faced an increasingly turbulent and hostile environment. Customers have become more demanding, competition has become more intense and sophisticated, and the pace of technological change has quickened. Regulators and consumer groups have also added to these pressures. As a result, many organizations have adopted a range of improvement approaches in response to these forces. We have seen the growing adoption of quality management systems standards such as ISO9000, the emergence of total quality management (TQM), business process engineering (BPR), business excellence, performance excellence, lean thinking, Six Sigma etc. The battle weary could be excused from taking a rather jaundiced view of this ever lengthening list of ‘quality’ offers, but, by and large, they fit into an integrated approach to organizational improvement.
