Evaluate critically Quality Management theories as expounded by Deming and Juran.

Juran criticises Crosby and Deming's view that the main portion of quality issues occur because the workers are not adequately motivated. Deming scarcely considers this factor except for the importance of training. For him improvement is basically managers' work (Martínez-Lorente et al 1998 p.378-386). This is a typical theory X management style assumption. Juran argues that the bulk of the responsibility for achieving quality right lies with management (Flood p.18). This is true as most quality problems are due to the 'system', not the workers and therefore management decisions are important.

Juran splits the process into 'Big Q' - the quality strategy that is the outlook of the senior management and the organisation as a whole, and 'Little Q' - the quality

tactics, which are day-to-day operations of line workers and supervisors who are mainly concerned with individual tasks. Problems arise when managements think that quality problems are due to the poor performance of the latter. Juran argues that an organisation should work together to achieve quality. I support his argument as only the top managements have the authority to make decisions and implement change.

Both theoreticians subscribe to certain assumptions when they put forward their ideas. Juran's theory assumes that the organisation's objectives are unitary rather than pluralist. It assumes that organisations have McGregor's Theory Y type managers where they believe that work is natural and that people seek responsibility. This may not be the case in most organisations. If the management expects the workers to achieve higher quality products but does not offer them any extra incentives it is highly unlikely that the workers will put any effort into achieving this goal.

In order to introduce quality to an organisation Juran has put forward a trilogy; Quality planning, Quality control and Quality improvement. He states that not only the workers but the management too needs to go through training and should be aware of the basic management needs of the organisation.

Deming too has put forward fourteen points of management. His philosophy is based on three basic guidelines; Customer Orientation, Continuous Improvement and 'Quality is determined by the system'.

All these theories require the workers to work harder.

Can an organisation expect its staff to reach an optimum level of quality without raising their wages?

Employees and management need to be very motivated in order to have high levels of quality. To achieve this, the organisation will have to look in to the motivation factors put forward by various motivation theorists. This means more work and costs. Therefore, there is a trade-off between wanting the finest level of quality and the costs of production. The TQM magazine 1998 states that Deming believes that motivation campaigns are useless. Juran argues that motivation does not assure a zero defects production (Juran et.el 1974 p.18-28).

Improvement basis and cost of quality

At this point there is a conflict between the two gurus. In Deming's opinion there is no optimum level of quality and it requires continuous improvement. He adds that organisations should eliminate goals without methods. Juran on the other hand believes that there is an optimum level of quality and that it is not free. He argues that organisations should take the project-by-project approach and set goals.

Deming's philosophy is, "continuous improvement through life-long improvement" (Landesburg. P Nov/Dec 99 p.59-61). To validate his statement he introduces a model called the Plan-Do-Check-Act in which he states that management needs to identify customers' needs and continuously improve their products.

He states that, "the aim of continuous improvement should be reflected in all aspects of an organisation's strategy" (Drummond, H 1992 p.21).

Criticisms of his theory then arise: Is a 'change' always an improvement? (Landesburg. P Nov/Dec 99 p59-61) Can the PDCA cycle be applied to all products and services? Is it practical? How are customers and suppliers affected by the change? What do we need to do to maintain the change and benefit from it?

According to the PDCA cycle, continuous improvement means identifying the mistakes made in the previous cycle and correcting them in the next thereby making every new product better than the last and reducing variation. Drummond (1992) points out that there are new signs, which suggest improvement concerns more than just avoiding past mistakes. She states, "continuous improvement is becoming a competitive imperative" (Drummond 1992 p.27).

Deming's philosophy focuses on the production process without referring to design issues (Martínez-Lorente et al 1998 p.378-386). This is a weakness in his philosophy as the potential for improvement lies in the design of a product. Once the design stage has been passed and the goods are produced its too late and the faults maybe irredeemable.

P.B. Crosby backs this as he states that organisations should, "get it right the first time" thereby defending the 'zero defects' approach where as Deming criticises both 'zero defects' and the 'sampling inspection' approaches.

Deming argues that improved quality will benefit the organisation in the long run. This is achieved by lower costs due to reduced work as an effect of fewer mistakes and delays as well as better use of time and material. Lower costs mean improved productivity and higher profits. This also leads to higher market share and more jobs (Dean and Evans P 2001 p.38).

On the other hand in the short term the more the company tries to improve the level of quality the higher the production cost will be. If the company increases the price of the product customers may shift to substitutes or other brands especially if the cheaper product is "fit for its purpose", e.g. switching to low cost airlines. Deming says, "..organisations should not simply exist for short-term profits their true purpose should be to serve their customers and employees" (Dean and Evans P 2001 p.39).

Juran argues that, "quality is not free". This may mean that customers have to pay more for a better quality product, or, that from an organisation's point of view, it requires planning and is therefore not free.

He also states that there is an optimum level for quality. There is a point at which organisations will have to stop trying to increase quality due to cost or the unavailability of technology or motivation of the workers. Therefore, it is not worth trying to achieve an unattainable level.

Conclusion

Deming and Juran have greatly contributed to Total Quality Management. However, there are strengths and weaknesses in their work.

Deming's theory identifies various stages and their interrelationships and the reciprocal dependence linking an organisation and its suppliers. Both Deming and Juran prioritise management's role in improving quality and involvement as a whole rather than having pluralist objectives. Deming takes this a step further by stating that managements come before technology. They both agree that quality is a genuine issue of good management practice. Although they recognise that leadership and motivation is required, they fail to draw up adequate plans to deal with the problem.

Both theorists identify that quality is based around the customer's needs but Deming fails to address that the continuous move towards improving quality can sometimes be unattainable and may not be applicable to all products.

Flood (1993) criticises Deming by saying that, "the action plan and methodological principles are too vague to be readily put in to practice. There is no clear "Deming method".

Juran's methods of quality improvement highly undervalue the contribution that the worker can make. Most organisations apply a 'bottom up' initiative where they communicate with the workers to identify potential problems on the production floor. There could be issues that the workers maybe aware of that the management are blind to.

The quality methods are traditional and old fashioned, aimed solely at the basic control systems and ignoring the vital and most important resource of an organisation, the human resources. The principles and methods say nothing about cultural and political issues, which play a major role in organisations at present.

Both gurus do not consider benchmarking, supplier chain management, the quality data and reporting dimensions. These tools can be very useful and are vital for quality management.

Landesburg (1999) concludes that Deming's theory appeals to theoretical minds and Juran's to practical minds.

BIBILIOGRAPHY

Quality Management: Oxford, Butterworth Heinemann