Contribution of EDWARD DEMING for Total Quality Management (TQM)

Total quality management (TQM) is a set of opinions and ideas for improving the quality of
products or services, which widely called “management philosophy” [1, 2]. Philosophy is that (1)
integrates quality into all facets of the organization and (2) focuses on improving the quality of
the product by systematically improving the process through which the product is designed,
produced, delivered, and supported [3]. Its main aims are to satisfy customers and survive in the
market.
Quality experts (gurus) had the significant roles to expend and transform the concept of quality
from a mere technical system to a broader body of knowledge known as total quality with
management implications in production. [6]
“A guru, by definition, is a good person, a wise person and teacher. A quality guru should be all
of these, plus have a concept and approach to quality within business that has made a major and
lasting impact.”
Historically, there have been three groups of gurus since the 1940’s: [7]

TQM was first emerged by the contributions of quality gurus, such as Deming and Juran in Japan
after Second World War. Then Crosby, Feigenbaum, Ishikawa, and others had developed this
powerful management technique for improving business quality within the organizations. Each
of these pioneers provided foundational building blocks for a systematic method to focus on total
quality management.[2]
Here the contribution of W.E.Deming briefly presented below:-

• Dr. W. Edwards Deming is known as the father of the Japanese post-war industrial
revival and was regarded by many as the leading quality guru in the United States. He
passed on in 1993.
• His expertise was used during World War II to assist the United States in its effort to
improve the quality of war materials
• Deming is best known for his management philosophy, establishing quality, productivity
and competitive position.
Deming focus on 5 ideas : [6]
1. Deming philosophy
2. Statistical process controlling (SPC)
3. Deming 14 points
4. Deming Cycle (for continuous improvements)
5. Seven deadly diseases of quality
1) Deming philosophy[4]
 System (not employees) is cause of poor quality. The "System of Profound
Knowledge,” Deming states without profound knowledge, management action can
cause ruination (Deming, 1989, revised 1991). The system of profound knowledge is
 made up of four interrelated parts: (A) Theory of systems, (B) Theory of variation,
(C) Theory of knowledge, and (D) knowledge of psychology.
A. Theory of Systems. "A system is a series of functions or activities.., within an
organization that works together for the aim of the organization" (Deming, 1989,
revised 1991). The components of a system (e.g., management style, employees,
customers, environmental constraints, share holders, training, and recruitment) and
its interrelationships to each other must be studied.
B. Theory of Variation. Knowledge of statistical theory is essential to profound
knowledge. Managers must be able to recognize a stable system and understand
the concepts of special and common causes of variation.
C. Theory of Knowledge. Managers should pursue goals similar to those of science

(explain, predict, and control) to gain more knowledge about the systems and
processes in their organizations. They will need to learn how to increase their
knowledge of the processes for which they are responsible by participating in such
"scientific" activities as formulating theories, developing hypotheses, designing
and conducting experiments.
D. Knowledge of psychology knowledge involves psychology, in particular the dynamics of
people in the workplace, group or team performance, learning styles, and cultural change.
Management needs to have knowledge of people and how they interact, of their individual needs,
and of their working and learning styles.
 “Prevention by Process Improvement," Deming stresses that inspection at the end of
the process is too late and too costly. His approach is a shift from detection to prevention.
  The "Chain Reaction for Quality Improvement," By improving quality, costs
decrease and productivity improves. As a result, there is a greater potential for an increased
market share.

To address the first box in the chain reaction (improve quality), management must understand
the statistical approach to process improvement and adopt the 14 principles of management.
2) Statistical process controlling (SPC)
 It’s a process which aims at achieving good quality during manufacture through
prevention rather than detection.
 It is concerned with controlling the process (machine) which makes the product
through inspecting the machine rather than the product itself.
 When Deming describes quality, he talks about products that possess a predictable
degree of "uniformity," suited to the end-users at a price that they can pay (Deming,
1986, p. 178). To produce quality, you to must produce outcomes that are predictably
uniform as well as satisfactory from a customer's perception.
 He has labeled sources of variation as common and special cause. He talks about
who is responsible for taking action.
 Common causes of variation exist because of the system or the way the system
is managed. These causes are beyond the reach of the workers and only those
who manage or control the system are responsible for them. Most process
problems in an organization, the common causes of variation, are correctable
only through managerial action. Examples of common cause variation are
 incoming materials not suited to the requirement and poor design (Deming,
1986).
 Special causes of variation. Special causes of variation are localized. They are
not part of overall system. They are exceptions or abnormalities. They deserve
attention by those who are close to them. Usually the workers or their immediate
supervisor can identify and remove special causes.
 Note. Deming said: cause of variation 80% depends on management and 20%
depends on employee.
 The quality and the productivity increases when the process fluctuation (variation)
Decreases.
3) Deming 14 points [4,5,6]
1 Create constancy of purpose toward improvement of product and service.
Deming's consideration that the management of a business organization has two sets of
problems: problems of today and those of tomorrow. Problems of today encompass the
immediate needs of the enterprise: the quality of the company's product put out today, sales,
profits, public relations, etc. Many companies dwell on such problems, however, without
sufficient attention to the future. Problems of the future concern constancy of purpose and
dedication to quality improvement. Therefore, establishing constancy of purpose requires the
company to be innovative and to allocate the necessary resources for long-term planning.
• What are the future products and materials that will be required by consumers?
• What will be the future production method?
• What are the skills required, and in what number?
• How do we have to organise training for the workers currently employed?
• What will be the cost of production?
• How will the product and service of our company be used by the customer?
Furthermore, constancy of purpose means putting resources into research and education.
2 Adopt the new philosophy.
Quality must become the new business philosophy of the company. Deming states that the
company can no longer live with commonly accepted levels of mistakes, defects, bad materials,
poor training, uninformed workers and inattentive service.
 3 Cease dependence on inspection (mass inspection)to achieve quality.
Deming notes that quality does not come from inspection, but from improvement of the
company's work processes. The traditional way of post-production inspection was to ``inspect
bad quality out''. Deming's new demand is to ``build good quality in''.
4 End the practice of awarding business on the basis of price tag alone.
Deming stresses the fact that the purchase price has no meaning without the measure of the
quality of this item. Quality level can be achieved by co-operating with a single supplier in a
long-term business relationship where both partners have the chance to work very closely
together.
5 Improve constantly and forever the system of production and service.
Quality improvement is an ongoing, never ending process, and not a one-off effort. Management
must continuously reduce waste and improve the quality of every activity in the company. This
includes all functions, such as procurement, engineering, transportation, sales, methods of
distribution, accounting, service to customers, etc.
6 Institute training on the job.
According to Deming poor training of workers appears to be a way of life. A worker learns his
job from another worker.
7 Institute leadership (modern supervision).
It is the responsibility of top management, Deming argues, to discover and remove possible
problems that make it difficult for the worker to take pride in what he does. Instead of imposing
quotas on the worker, the supervisor should rather help him to do his job correctly. It is the
responsibility of the supervisor to help, to lead, and to coach the worker. The traditional
approach of supervision working with elements such as pressure and distrust is no longer
required.

8 Drive out fear.

It is the responsibility of management to generate a cultural atmosphere in the company which
makes sure that workers are not afraid to express their ideas, not afraid to ask questions, not
afraid to make suggestions for quality improvement, not afraid to request further instructions, not
afraid to report raw material which is not usable because of poor quality. Only a positive quality
culture where every employee feels free to contribute his ideas will allow the company to
achieve its quality objectives.
 9 Break down barriers between departments.
The flow of communication between different departments of the same company is often very
poor. Information is not exchanged openly for the best of the company but is considered to be the
sole property of one department. Deming notes that ``teams composed of people in design,
engineering, production, and sales can accomplish important improvements in design of product,
service, and quality, and reduction of costs''.
10 Eliminate slogans, exhortations, and targets (numerical goals) for the work
force.
Slogans, pictures, and posters for the workers which urge them to increase productivity,
according to Deming, must be eliminated. Defining a goal without the necessary method for
achieving it is useless, Deming argues. Setting the numerical goal without the description of how
to reach it is a common practice among managers. These slogans and goals never help the
worker to perform a good job. Management must therefore provide the means to the ends that it
proclaims.
11 Eliminate numerical quotas for the work force and numerical goals for
management.
Quotas and other work standards impede quality probably more than any other single working
condition. He emphasizes that a qualitative target is superior to a quantitative one and that all
activities relevant to quality should be orientated to the long term and not the short term
12 Remove barriers that rob people of pride of workmanship. Eliminate the
annual rating or merit system. (Remove barriers that hinder the hourly
worker)
Deming notes: The hourly worker is deeply aware of the need for quality. To him, quality means
his job. He also understands why productivity increases as quality goes up. He cannot understand
why the management talks about quality but does nothing about it- in fact, impedes it. The fact is
that management can have both quality and numbers by providing road maps to quality and
eliminating barriers that confront the hourly worker.
13 Institute a vigorous program of education and self-improvement.
All employees, Deming notes, should be trained continually as the needs of the customers are
constantly changing over time. It is not enough to hire good people for the business organization.
They constantly have to acquire new skills for new materials and new methods of production.
Deming considers training to be a long-term investment in people and the future of the company.
Continuous training helps employees to improve their quality performance and the quality of the
work processes they are responsible for. Deming stresses particularly the need for training in
statistical techniques, such as the use of control charts.
14 Put everybody in the company to work to accomplish the transformation.

(Create a structure in top management that will push every day on the
above 13 points)
Management is required to organize itself as a team to advance Deming's 13 points. Deming
suggests using an external statistical consultant for guidance.
4) Deming Cycle (for continuous improvements) [7]

5) Seven deadly diseases of quality [4,5]

 The Deadly Diseases
1. Lack of constancy of purpose.
2. Emphasis on short-term profits, short-term thinking.
3. Evaluation of performance, merit rating, or annual review.
4. Mobility of management; job hopping.
5. Management by use of visible figures only.
6. Excessive medical costs.
7. Excessive costs of liability.
 The Dreadful Diseases or Obstacles
a. Search for examples of how to solve problems of quality.
b. Creative accounting.
c. Purchasing standards that assume a certain percentage of defects.
d. Management's delegation of its responsibilities to others.
e. The supposition that problems are the fault of the work force.
f. The attempt to safeguard quality by inspecting goods already produced.
g. False starts: modest, ad hoc efforts to bring about change.
h. Hope for instant pudding.
i. The supposition that automation will transform industry.
j. The supposition that it is only necessary to meet specifications.
Reference
1. Neyestani, B., & Juanzon, J. B. P. (2016). “Developing an Appropriate Performance Measurement
Framework for Total Quality Management (TQM) in Construction and Other Industries. IRA-International
Journal of Technology & Engineering, 5(2), pp. 32–44.
2. Behnam Neyestani (2007). Principles and Contributions of Total Quality Management (TQM) Gurus on
Business Quality Improvement. Munich Personal RePEc Archive.
3. Total Quality Management. The Toyota Way (New York: McGraw-Hill), 2004, p 758-776.
4. Three Experts on Quality Management. J. Gerald Suarez. Department of the Navy Office of the Under
Secretary of the Navy Total Quality Leadership Office, TQLO Publication No. 92-02, July 1992.
5. Volker KruÈger, (2001), Main schools of TQM: “the big five''. The TQM Magazine Volume 13. Number 3,
2001. pp. 146-155.
6. www.businessball.com
7. www.dti.gov.uk/quality/gurus page 1 of 6
Way (New York: McGraw-Hill), 2004