CHAPTER-7 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Transcription

1 CHAPTER-7 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 7.1 Conclusion This study started with an extensive review of literature about quality and its concepts, approaches of quality gurus, TQM tools and techniques, the quality award models, implementation of TQM in the world and in India, HRD its concept and importance, research that has been carried out in the field of TQM and HRD. After extensive literature review and analysis of the data collected from the sample organizations research concluded that most of the organisations now changed their mind set, instead of following the traditional production oriented approach now they are focusing on companywide implementation of TQM. They are not only focusing on hard aspect of the organisations but also on soft aspect also that is human being and HRD plays an important role in TQM implementation. Literature revealed top management involvement, total employee involvement, empowerment, deployment of quality policies, education and training, adoption of process approach, customer orientation, employee job satisfaction, leadership, teamwork, use of quality tools, change of mind- set of employees, continuous improvement, making organization learning organization, communication, manager -workers healthy relationship, elimination of departmental barriers, making continuous improvement as a way of life, elimination of dominating bossy attitude, involvement of suggestion system, positive role of HR personnel's are important facilitating factors for the successful implementation of TQM. After in depth interview from top management and general employees it was found that all well-known companies who already world class leaders in their respective fields through TQM implementation their top management are very well aware of TQM principles and practices, they know why they are practicing certain TQM tools and techniques and how they are getting benefits from it whereas SMEs and some of the big firms middle and lower level employees have inadequate knowledge of TQM principles and practices and its impact, though they responded positively when asked in a simple language this may be because of either organisations implement TQM but not spread its awareness throughout the company or they 227

2 are not efficient to train their lower and middle level employees about TQM, Organizations need to follow companywide communication framework, and have to create an atmosphere of transparency, mission and vision of the organizations should be communicated properly among all the employees and for total employee involvement quality training and education programme should be provided to achieve the goals of organisation. Unless and until all the employees would not feel responsible for their job they would not be able to give their total commitment and involvement therefore this is the top management responsibility to break the barriers between the department, provide support in quality initiatives, act as consultant, spread awareness, continuously upgrade the knowledge and skills of their employees through proper training and development programs, making necessary organizational arrangements for TQM implementation. Employee training is fundamental for many TQM programs such as the adoption of new quality concepts, the set-up, and practices of customer satisfaction systems, the use of statistical quality control, or the change of culture or quality control. Moreover, employees require three basic areas of training: principles of TQM, the use of TQM tools and problem-solving techniques. Research found the lack of talent pool centres in Indian industries which inhibits the growth of individual career and could demotivate the talented employees and may force him to leave the organisation, ultimately loss of the organization. Organization should focus on creation of talent pool centres and provide opportunity for the growth and development of talented employees. Organization can retain their employees by providing them chance work in cross functional area which could be their area of work interest and skilled for the same. The job rotation policy should also act as staircase for the growth and development of the employees. The research concluded that The TQM principles are getting appreciation in Indian industries but still few industries view TQM as subjective approach according to their manufacturing and servicing style. They are practicing TQM in bits and pieces which will give them miniscule benefit. What is needed by the industries are acceptance and implementation of TQM principles in totality. Therefore in a total quality environment, employees need to understand the goal of customer satisfaction, to be given the training and responsibilities to achieve the goal and to feel that they do indeed make a difference. Training department under HR, whose system and approaches evolved along with their overall quality system. Training plans (yearly) jointly designed by HR/Training manager along with the quality engineers and strategic planning 228

3 group. The CEO of the company himself should take initiative to convince, train and educate all employees' right from top management till shop floor about advantage of TQM by providing necessary information and examples of TQM implementation. Policy, People and Process are three basic fundamental factors for TQM implementation in addition with communication, commitment, and continuous improvement. These four Ps are important in to delivering quality products and service to customers. Leadership driven policy and strategy are necessary to aid customer, employee and favourable society results, and besides these people partnerships, resources and processes are directed towards ultimate excellence in key performance results. Total quality management is people's process and involvement of the top management is a must for its success. Hence the entire organization must have a review of total quality management and accept to implement it in earnest. The assurance for the total commitment is mandatory for the total quality management implementation to start. The organization should define its value system for every employee to follow which is the vital first step towards the attainment of the world class management system. Finally we can conclude that organizations who want to gain customer satisfaction, continuous improvement and return on investment have to focus on development of their human resource. Total quality management is the concept which changes the working of an organization totally to adopt this concept the technique involved is extensive as well intensive education and training and must to make the total quality management system work. Even the total quality management system warrants continual improvement at all levels thereby needing a system constant upgradation of skill level of it's all the employees which can happen only by continuous education and training. 7.2 Recommendations/Suggestions Total quality management is an organization-wide philosophy with its core values centered on continually improving the quality of its product and services, and the quality of its processes, to meet and exceed customer expectations. This means that everyone in the organization - from top management to the employees - plays a role in providing quality products and services to customers. Even suppliers and the customers themselves are part of the TQM. Therefore, to achieve overall performance excellence organizations need to input total employee involvement. Whatever you want to accomplish, unless the employees are involved in their 229

4 job, nothing great can be achieved. All your best management practices can be grounded unless the employees are with the organizations goals and objectives. It is the employees in an organization who differentiates between a world class organization and an ordinary organization with both operating in the same market with the same resource. Hence fundamental to any good management practice are total employee involvement and this can be achieved by providing them quality training and development. Training can be started right from the top management as the role of top management is mandatory for the implementation of TQM. Top management have to involve and committed themselves in the companies vision and mission. HRD can make the people working in the organizations clear about their goal and objectives and synchronism of the same with individual objectives and goals. The employee involvement is brought about identification of their training needs, offering need based training, working out a sound wage and remuneration system based on scientific job evaluation employing time study, motion study and method studies. TQM and HRD integration creates a situation where all the employees are proactive and involved in their work leading to all round performance excellence. A Proactive person will not only perform per excellence himself but also help others to achieve organization goals. A preliminary step in TQM implementation is to assess the organization s current reality. Relevant preconditions have to do with the organization s history, its current needs, precipitating events leading to TQM, and the existing employee quality of working life. If the current reality does not include important preconditions, TQM implementation should be delayed until the organization is in a state in which TQM is likely to succeed. Research suggests following points to be followed by the organizations who want to implement TQM and gain all round performance excellence. Focus on big 'Q' The key to customer satisfaction has to go beyond the concept of product quality or small q. For customer satisfaction is the adoption of the big Q or total quality management. ISO 9000 is an international standard on 'quality management system' aimed towards customer satisfaction is a part of TQM. TQM goes much beyond quality control department or product quality and embraces in its fold all functions including marketing, production, materials, personnel, and even finance. Hence organizations need to focus on big 'Q'. 230

5 Adopt PDCA Cycle The adoption of PDCA cycle leads to adopt the concept of process approach, which is a total shift from product approach to process approach. If the process is correct and within control, the product and services cannot be defective. The PDCA cycle focuses on continuous improvement and elimination of errors. Since the basic three hard factors men, machine and materials are more or less same month after month and if you keep on eliminating your mistakes and deviations every month and do not allow them to repeat trough PDCA cycle, you are automatically on a path of continuous improvement. Absorb Quality Management System To hold the gain i.e. to ensure that the improvement does not fall back to original situation, the organization function should be sound enough to permanently absorb the improvement in its system. QMS creates a customer- oriented organization with process- orientation and focus on continuous improvement. Every failure is analysed to find out the root cause and take corrective and preventive actions so that it is never repeated again. The QMS holds all the gains out of the improvements and does not allow the organization to slip back to the old inferior performance. It creates an environment where its customers as well as the employees are fully satisfied. Top management commitment For TQM to be successful, only the involvement of employees is not enough. Top management commitment is essential for TQM to start, unless and until top management are not convince and committed no one can push TQM. Top management need to understand the change required for the quality performance of the organization. Therefore, they have to take a step forward to initiate TQM in the organizations, which can be start by creating quality council to decide and implement all the vital decisions. The members of quality council should be head of the various functions with the CEO as the chairman. They have to make strategies and policies aligned with TQM principles and have to communicate company wide. This is top management responsibility to provide an appropriate environment for TQM implementation. Top management should declare vision and mission of the organization and it should reach up to each employee. 231

6 Training and Development People are a fundamental component within any successfully developing organization. Take away the people and the organization is nothing. Take away the people's motivation, commitment and ability to work together in well-organized teams, and again, the organization is nothing. Conversely, inspire the people to work well, creatively, productively, and the organization can fly. Logically therefore, the development and proper utilization of people are vital to the success of all quality management initiatives. Organizations should provide quality training and development for their employees so that in addition with enhancing the skill and knowledge of the employees organizations can get benefit in productivity and performance also. Though training contributes to the prosperity of an organization, it also costs money. Therefore, PDCA should be used for training of employees in every organization. PDCA for training of employees Plan for Training Provide Training Measure Training Effectiveness Improve Training Effectiveness An unskilled workforce makes mistakes. Giving more skills to workers means they can do a wider range of jobs, and do them better. It also means educating staff in the principles of TQM, which is a completely new style of working. Generate more commitment among employees towards TQM by providing TQM training, and organizing more TQM workshops. Bring more quality awareness among people and help them to perceive quality as a super-ordinate goal. Find out the reasons for deviations in the desired behavior of employees. Today, every organization is for Total Quality Management (TQM). There is a tremendous race to achieve ISO certification. Terminologies like TQM, productivity improvement, and kaizen have become watchwords of the business and industrial organizations. To face the new challenges of globalization, managers and workers understand the value of training. Training practices would obviously envisage and all round training and development of personality of the workers. In the absence of adequate training and development efforts, there may by frustration, dissatisfaction towards job and apathy among the workforce. Harris Delmark has stated that, training is a tool for attitudinal change. He says, key values are critical in helping to manage change but only if people live up to them. To accept any 232

7 change, the shift in the mindset is necessary with a view to unfreeze and realize one s own potential and creativity and to bring about a change in their perceptions and attitudes. Employee Welfare and Quality of Work life Welfare of employees should be the prior issue among the managers in an organization. Since employees are considered to be the greatest asset in any organization, their welfare must be given preference by the management. Proper healthy and hygienic working conditions and a cohesive environment must be provided to them which could motivate them for exhibiting better performance at work. The work life of the employees should be of good quality so that they could feel comfortable at work and a sense of belongingness would be developed among them, enabling them to perform in an organized and optimum manner. Providing good welfare to employees may be a costly decision, but the long-term benefits are immense. It is one way of complying with the law, thus ensuring that an employer avoids legal issues. It allows a company to retain its good and skilled employees for long periods of time. Employees work well in workplaces where they are treated well and respected. Good welfare also helps to create a good company image for a particular employer. Reward and Recognition The total quality management system is based on the principle of rewarding the performers after their identification and training and educating the non-performers to upgrade their skills level. TQM tools like Kaizen Gemba, quality circles etc. believe in rewarding a contributing person. Recognition and awards should not lead to bitterness amongst employees and should not demotivate them. Hence, before venturing into the recognition program, the management has to give considerable thought and then only finalize the strategy for recognition and awards. Rewards and recognition is the major driver in employees performance. At the end of the day it is the money or acknowledgement that matters the most to workers. They feel that whatever they have been doing is meaningful and they have awarded fairly. So rewards and appreciation can satisfy the employees and would aid in their commitment towards the company. Empowerment: Empowerment of employees is one the latest management techniques deployed to result in continuous improvement in the organization. Employees should be empowered to work according to their ideas regarding the jobs and tasks assigned to them. They have to carry out the strategic goals in daily business affairs and know the exact demands of their job so they should be given full charge of their work i.e. employee empowerment. The employees must be 233

8 involved in decision making so that bosses know what to do or how to do in order to expand the business as this not only ads in designing practical programs but provides the unity and harmony in the concern. Employees know that they are given importance and feel encouraged and enthusiastic about the work. The Performance Appraisal The purpose of performance appraisal is to let employee know how they are doing, and provide a basis of promotions, salary increases, counselling. Many supervisors look at appraisals as one of the unpleasant duties they must perform. Conversely some supervisors feel it a pleasant duty and can reveal how effective an employee is in contributing to the success of organization. Every effort should be made to avoid errors in performance evaluations. An unfair evaluation could cost an organization a valuable employee. Suggestion System Suggestion systems are designed to provide the individual with the opportunity to be involved by contributing to the organization. The key to an effective system is management commitment. It is the responsibility of management to make it easy for employees to suggest improvements. Stimulating and encouraging employee participation starts the creative process. Five Ground Rules for Stimulating and Encouraging Suggestion System are: 1. Be Progressive by regularly asking your employees for suggestions 2. Remove fear by focusing on the process and not on the person. 3. Simplify the process so it is easy to participate 4. Respond quickly to suggestions and within specified period of time 5. Reward the idea with published recognition so that everyone knows the value of contribution. Employee satisfaction Employee satisfaction is also an important factor in the European Model for Total Quality Management (1994), the Deming Prize (1996), and the American Baldrige Quality Award (1999). Ted (1996) stated that employee satisfaction is as important as customer satisfaction, as Ishikawa (1985) stated that a firm whose members are not happy and cannot be happy does not deserve to exist. 234

9 Provide Total Quality Culture involved with: Two way communications between top down and bottom top. The principal focus on customer and customer satisfaction Continuous improvement through Training & Education. Decentralizing of decision making responsibilities by assuring everyone s participation. Flexible & innovative work environment that recognizes the value of the Human Resources Team work management system Elimination of departmental barriers Organizations all over the world focuses on TQM for its sustainability and success but quality can no longer be viewed as the responsibility of one department it is a company-wide activity that permeates all departments at all level and human resources holds the key to sustained quality improvement. Consequently, the HRD can potentially play a critical role in an organization s TQM efforts. Organizations should focus for creating pool of talent centres and job rotation policies which will recognize the skills of the employees and provide better opportunity for their career growth. Hence leads to employee motivation and retention in the organization. Employees do not decide on how they are to be managed, but when implementing change to management styles you cannot expect that all employees will pick it up and accept it because management sees the need to make the change. It is imperative that management keep employees in the picture at all times when decisions are being made regarding TQM, which should encourage participation and help ease transition. When the identification of the tools for a system to be used is complete it should be implemented that the right training is given to the right people. This is to emphasise the benefits of why their using them and how they are using them. Training given to the right people has been proven to minimise the misuse of the tools and techniques. On-going education and training of all employees supports the drive for quality. Employees are encouraged to take more responsibility, communicate more effectively, act creatively, and innovate. As people behave the way they are measured and remunerated, TQM links remuneration to customer satisfaction metrics. 235

10 In the Management of four Ms i.e. money, machines, materials and men, the management of men is the most significant and challenging. The efficiency of the whole lot of activities carried out in an organization starting from the production process to the management of various areas of administration depends to a large extent on the level of Human Resource Development It is recommended that total quality management approach is a major discovery in the history of business and management. It is a reliable tool in the hands of organization management to practice and enjoy the taste of success with the dedicated and trained work force. The companies who are not focusing on delivering quality would suffer and can become bankrupt. 7.3 Limitations of the study The present study has the traditional limitations common for any survey research method, namely potential bias in selection of the samples. However an attempt has been made to minimize this through proper selection of the sample and in interview process. The scope of this study was limited by following factors: 1. Since the study was restricted to few cities in India especially in Mumbai, because of time, and place constraints, the conclusions drawn in the study may not be extrapolated to India as whole. Organizations in other parts of country may exhibit different characteristics. 2. The method of data collection was survey method using a questionnaire. Researchers have limitations with this type of data collection, due to low response rate, complex and biased questions and surveys that might be too long. The reluctance of the respondents to part with organization information with respect to survey need was a major constraint. 7.4 Future Scope of the study An attempt has been made to study the interrelationship between TQM and HRD and how integration of both management techniques is beneficial for the growth and development of organizations. As this study covered so many sectors in general further study can be taken up for different sectors of the industries separately. Research can be done within specific department also such as manufacturing, HRD, finance and marketing etc. to measure the impact of TQM implementation in each department performance. Research can also be done on the use of TQM tools and techniques in different departmental practices. 236