Don ’ t Count TQM Out

organizations. Should this not be enough to demonstrate the value of TQM? Unfortunately not. TQM has come under increasing criticism from many business gurus for delivering lackluster economic returns. A recent issue of Business Week had this comment about TQM: “What’s as dead as a pet rock? Little surprise here: It’s total quality management. TQM, the approach of eliminating errors that increase costs and reduce customer satisfaction, promised more than it could deliver and spawned mini-bureaucracies charged with putting it into action.” The Economist, Fortune, Newsweek, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today, among others, have featured articles that question whether TQM has created significant economic value. These articles suggest that many firms have become disillusioned or disappointed with TQM, and that TQM could well be a fad that is fast losing popularity. Unrealistic expectations, quick-fix mentality, and competition from other tools are some reasons many firms have soured on TQM. Some firms may have adopted TQM with inflated expectations of what it could deliver. TQM was expected to have all the answers. It was expected to turn lead into gold. It was a sure bet to reverse poor performance. When TQM did not deliver the hoped-for results, it was deemed a failure. Furthermore, contrary to the TQM philosophy, many firms adopted TQM seeking instant and swift gratification. Often TQM efforts were