Summary
Section 3: Communication in Transition - From Art to Science
The preoccupation of managers with various total quality management (TQM) programs in their pursuit of superior performance may be preventing them from focusing on the what really matters, such as their products and services, and the processes their companies employ. Business communicators should help prevent TQM 'program-itis' from spreading and redirect the company's attention back to basic management and communication practices. Organizational members are all too aware of the need for quality performance. They do not need to be lectured on the subject over and over. Instead, they need management's support, direction and encouragement. Employees also need to be heard and be informed.See the full content of this document
Extract
Down with quality program-itis.
About a year and half ago, when I was still director of commuication for Pet Incorporated, I gave a speech to the joint membership of IABC and PRSA in St. Louis. Pet was struggling with a quality effort at the time, but I was unswering in my declaration that total quality management (TQM) was here to stay, and anyone who didn't get on board by the year 2000 would perish. I also asserted tha the oppotunities for communicators in TQM were enormous.
Now, after talking and listening further to people involved with 'total quality' across the U.S., from greenhorns to 'gurus,' from colleges to corporations, it's clear that somethingis seriously amiss. In fact, there's faily widespread agreement that the number of companies who are struggling with TQM far outnumber those who are succeeding with it. And, ironically, it seems that communicators are contributing to the problem. In decalring that "quality is her to stay," we're missing the fundamental ...See the full content of this document
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