TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM) ADVANCEMENT AND CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS FOR IMPLEMENTATION IN MANUFACTURING SMALL AND MEDIUM SIZED ENTERPRISE (SMEs) FINAL REPORT FOR RMC SHORT TERM RESEARCH GRANT

Recognition of quality management as an important factor holds the key to competitiveness in the global market irrespective of the size of the company. Total Quality Management (TQM) practices are primarily found in larger and multinational organizations but little has been written on how TQM has been applied in SMEs of Malaysia. This project reports the results of a full survey conducted among a sample of local SMEs in Malaysia. The survey is expected to reveal the level of TQM implementation in the industrial sector via a postal questionnaire. The survey covered 300 company chosen from many sector and produced a response rate of 10.7 percent. The survey findings are analyzed using statistical analysis package SPSS 11.0. Attempts at finding significant differences between small and large companies were successful. It also revealed areas lacking in implementation among SMEs in Malaysia. SMEs must be able to adopt TQM to help them meet global challenges in the long run. Finally, this project culminates with a discussion and the general conclusions from the survey findings. The result finding is expected to be powerful information for future research directions especially as an indicator for the development of a suitable TQM framework for the local SMEs in Malaysia.