Analysis of National and Regional Awards
High-quality standards and success are two interrelated aspects of business operations. Hence, the companies try to align their activities to fit the national or regional awards. These awards are the vital components of achieving high-quality outcomes, and stimulating the company’s growth. The following paper provides a detailed analysis of the article A comparative analysis of national and regional quality awards in order to outline the major learning points and to discuss the possibilities of practical application of the obtained knowledge.
Summary
The article explores how Total Quality Management (TQM) and Quality Awards (QA) transform the process and the aims of business operations. The core focus of the given article is to demonstrate how organizations shifted from product specific focus to a business initiative. Besides, the authors discuss the ways quality standards aligned with business policies, and that QA are now considered a proof of good business practices. Furthermore, the article describes the most significant QA and compares them to one another. The list of awards includes the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, European Quality Award, Canadian Quality Award, Deming Prize, and Australian Quality Award. The article also presents methodology that was utilized in the research and several tables to help the reader to apprehend the whole scope of the research thoroughly. Lastly, the authors conclude with a brief analysis of the business results. The basic premise of this section is to demonstrate how much both TQM and QA contribute to the companys success rate by providing relevant data and examples (Vokurka, Stading, & Brazeal 2000).
Key Learning Points
The main learning point of the article is to demonstrate the role of TQM and QA in advancing the progress and the success of the company. For instance, the article outlines the ways in which certain industries are slowly transforming their business models to be more aligned with the principles of TQM. Furthermore, it stresses out how each QA can have a different effect on the company. Another key learning point is the specifics of the advanced quality-oriented models functioning. This particular aspect of the article helps to understand how these models work and what steps should be incorporated for their implementation. Lastly, the article covers the importance of business results assessment. This section explores the process of evaluation of the results as well as provides the guidelines for future activities.
Relevant Statements to the Session
The authors of the article underline how essential it is to understand the core characteristics of TQM. The idea behind this declaration is to develop deep knowledge of the key strategies and activities. Besides, the article makes an emphasis on the evaluation process conducted by the independent experts, which provides business institutions the review of their products and services from a customers perspective. Last, the authors explain how TQM became a business model, as well as how different countries have various approaches to the process of evaluation.
Critical Analysis
The TQM approach is considered to be one the most successful business models responsible for securing high-quality outcomes and developing a healthy corporate culture. Although these practices aim for the better, they are not always effective when applied in small organizations. For example, small business institutions may not be able to cover ample amounts of expenses that are dedicated by quality. Furthermore, such organizations tend to suffer from the lack of proper management. The majority of TQM principles require team building and mandate continuous improvement, which is rather difficult to develop and even harder to maintain (Subramaniam 2014). Indeed, the lack of good managerial skills will not only affect the quality but also the tasks completion, and thus can become a financial burden. In addition, small organizations cannot always guarantee that a large amount of products will sell since they are not able to assess an enormous scope of customers. In this regard, they should rely on sponsorship.
When small companies are likely to suffer from quality management, bigger companies in turn will only magnify their income. Indeed, it is easier for large organizations to cover the necessary expenses and provide the needed resources. However, it is critical to understand that TQM program will not make the company effective and successful at once and forever. Likewise, this assessment approach will not turn a bad management into a good one. The program provides a theoretical framework, but when poorly executed by the administration, it will only hurt the organization. Thus, TQM can be applied to various organizations, but it may not be equally effective and efficient different corporations and does not guarantee a continuous success without constant work.
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Practical Implications
The usage of TQM in smaller organizations might prove to be a hectic process, yet it is critical to understand that bigger organizations might face issues as well. Not every employee is willing to follow new corporate culture, or some potential employees may be afraid of such quality assessment. This aspect is especially damaging for undergraduates who are not confident about their skills. Clearly, high standards can limit young specialists or reduce the overall level of applicants. Despite the negativity, companies like Atari could have benefited from TQM. In 1982, the company released the E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial video game that was panned both by critics and gamers. The game was poorly designed and had several bugs (Wolf 2012). However, if the company implemented high-quality standards, it would have conquered a multi-billion dollar market (Wolf 2012). Sadly, this release as well as the video game crash during the 80s made the company bankrupt.
Learning Reflections
The article was very informative and showed that TQM can indeed make a difference. Evidently, the process of applying the core principles of TQM can completely change the way the company performs its daily operations. The article provided an in-depth overview of the Quality Awards and gave a detailed insight into how the major countries view quality. In future, this knowledge will facilitate the process of identifying quality needs of international clients, as well as secure the absence of manufacturing errors. The article helped to develop a broad understanding of the core principles of TQM and demonstrated what companies will benefit from the strategy the most.
Conclusion
Overall, Quality Awards can be considered as a very practical set of guidelines for various kinds of business activities. Undoubtedly, there are some drawbacks in their implementation, but they are minor and usually affect only a small portion of the economy.
