Total Quality Management McDonnell Douglas Corporation
Q.1 Explain How the Use of TQM Contribute to Process Improvement
The most critical aspect of TQM is its contribution to the improvement in quality and customer relations/satisfaction. TQM takes cognizance of the fact that customers continually look for quality products. To this end, TQM focuses on the improvement of processes in all departments for the sake of the delivery of quality services and products (Veselinović et al., 2020). The overall goal is to enhance customer loyalty through customer satisfaction. The corporation chose to focus on critical areas such as employee performance, quality products, and efficiency. These critical areas would help the firm to create a clear direction of operations with clear objectives is intended to achieve.
For McDonnell Douglas Corporation-MDC, the introduction of TQM has resulted in positive practices that promote quality performance, employee performance and satisfaction, positive customer results, competitive advantage, and an enhancement in lean operations through the removal of wastages (Fundin et al., 2020). Before the introduction of TQM at McDonnell Douglas Corporation-MDC, there was a high level of inefficiency and rampant wastage of resources. The introduction of TQM saw MDC adopt management methods of operations that cut down wastage while boosting efficiency.
Concerning competitive advantage, the introduction of TQM at McDonnell Douglas Corporation eliminated unnecessary work while focusing on quality. The company decided to do away with some line of work that brought losses while choosing to concentrate on profitable areas. For example, when introducing TQM, MDC chose to get rid of its military division that no longer made profit but losses. This action was in line with one of the principles of TQM that advocates for reducing wastages by concentrating only on areas of a profitable business. The lean management method introduced by the corporation helped the company to efficiently measure the performance of its executives based on three critical parameters: TQM, cash flow, and return on net assets.
Q.2 Baldrige self-assessment score
John McDonnell’s motive in improving the company’s Baldrige self-assessment score a part of executive performance evaluations was to enhance quality. John McDonnell understood that turning around McDonnell Douglas Corporation to become profitable relied on the company’s ability to satisfy its customers through the provision of quality products. To achieve this objective, the company had to become competitive within its industry. Achieving competitiveness required certain adaptations and strategies from the organization.
One of the critical adaptations the corporation chose to implement is the Baldrige self-assessment score-BSA. The BSA is a way for organizations to assess/evaluate if they are meeting their set goals (Karambelkar, 2020). The BSA provided McDonnell Douglas Corporation with an avenue to measure its performance by evaluating critical areas such as the effect on customers, employee performance, and leadership strategies.
The Baldrige self-assessment aided McDonnell Douglas Corporation to assess if all its executives worked to achieve its organizational objectives. Scoring the executives against specific parameters such as cash flow helped the corporation to evaluate employee performance on specific parameters (Lawrence, & Hammoud, 2017). This factor is important so that the organization has a clear picture of which employees are not performing on specific parameters. It is easy for the organization to take corrective measures by using Baldrige self-assessment tool. Consequently, the organization was able to set clear performance objectives that it expected its executives to meet every year.
References
- Fundin, A., Lilja, J., Lagrosen, Y., & Bergquist, B. (2020). Quality 2030: quality management for the future. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1080/14783363.2020.1863778
- Karambelkar, M. (2020). Perspectives of Performance Management with holistic views: Revisiting Baldrige Excellence Framework. International Journal Of Business Excellence, 1(1), 1. https://doi.org/10.1504/ijbex.2020.10023545
- Lawrence, N., & Hammoud, M. (2017). Strategies to Implement the Baldrige Criteria for Performance Excellence. International Journal Of Management Excellence, 9(1), 1040. https://doi.org/10.17722/ijme.v9i1.341
- Veselinović, L., Kulenović, M., Turulja, L., & Činjarević, M. (2020). The interplay of entrepreneurial orientation, total quality management, and financial performance. Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 1-19. https://doi.org/10.1080/14783363.2020.1770078