Total Quality Management Essay Example for Free

Total Quality Management Essay Concept of Leadership Leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal. Though there is no universal definition of leadership and indeed many books have been devoted to the topic of leadership, Leadership is a process whereby an individual influences a group of individuals to achieve a common goal. James Mac Gregor Burns describes a leader as one who instills purposes, not one who controls by brute force. A leader strengthens and inspires the followers to accomplish shared goals. So leadership requires an intuitive understanding of human nature- the basic needs, wants, and abilities of people. It helps leaders direct them on the right track. So leadership should be based on the following concepts: 1) People, paradoxically, need security and independence at the same time. 2) People are sensitive to external rewards and punishments and yet are also strongly self-motivated. 3) People like to hear a kind word of praise. Catch people doing something right. 4) People can process only a few facts at a time, thus, a leader needs to keep things simple. 5) People trust their gut reaction more than statistical data. 6) They distrust the leader’s rhetoric if the words are inconsistent with the leader’s actions. Characteristics of Quality Leaders There are 12 behaviors or characteristics that successful quality leaders demonstrate: 1) They give priority attention to external and internal customers and their needs. Leaders place themselves into the customers’ shoes and service their needs from that perspective. They continually evaluate the customers’ changing requirements. 2) They empower, rather than control, their subordinates. Leaders have trust and confidence in the performance of their subordinates. They provide the resources, training and work environment to help subordinates do their jobs. However, the decision to accept responsibility lies with the individual. 3) They emphasize improvement rather than maintenance. Leaders use the phrase â€Å"If it isn’t perfect, improve it† rather than â€Å"If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it.† There is always room for improvement, even if the improvement is small. Major breakthroughs happen but it’s the little ones that keep the continuous process improvement on a positive track. 4) They emphasize prevention; â€Å"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure† is certainly true. It is also true that perfection can be the enemy of creativity. We can’t always wait until we have created the perfect product. There must be a balance between preventing problems and developing better but not the perfect one. 5) They encourage collaboration rather than competition. When functional areas, departments or work groups are in competition, they may find subtle ways of working against each other or withholding information. Instead, there must be collaboration among and within units. 6) They train and coach rather than direct and supervise. Leaders know that the development of the human resource is a necessity. As coaches, they help their subordinates learn to do a better job. 7) They learn from problems. When a problem exists, it is treated as an opportunity rather than something to be minimized or covered up. â€Å"What caused it?† and â€Å"How can we prevent it in future?† are the questions quality leaders ask. 8) They continually try to improve communications. Leaders continually disseminate information about the TQM effort. They make sure that TQM is not just a slogan. Communication is two way- ideas will be generated by people when leaders encourage them and act upon them. 9) They continually demonstrate their commitment to quality, that is; they just do what they have committed to do. They walk their talk- their actions, rather than their words. They let the quality statements be their decision making guide. 10) They choose the suppliers on the basis of quality, not price. Suppliers are encouraged to participate on project teams and become involved. Leaders know that quality begins with quality materials and the true measure is the life cycle cost. 11) They establish organizational systems to support the quality effort. At the senior level, a quality council is provided, and at the first-line level, work groups and project teams are organized to improve the process. 12) They encourage and reorganize team effort. They encourage, provide recognition and reward individuals and teams. Leaders know that people like to hear that their contributions are appreciated and important. This action is one of the leader’s most powerful tools. The Seven Habits of highly effective people: Habit is an intersection of knowledge, skill and desire. Knowledge is what to do and the why; skill is the how to do; and desire is the motivation or want to do. In order for something to become a habit one must have all the three. Stephen R. Covey introduced â€Å"The Seven Habits†- a highly integrated approach that moves from dependency (you take care of me) to independence (I take care of myself) to interdependence (we can so something better together). The first three habits deal with independence- the essence of character growth. Habit 4, 5 and 6 deal with interdependence- teamwork, cooperation, and communication. Habit 7 is the habit of renewal. That’s why, these habits are necessary for leaders to be effective. Habit 1: Be Proactive Being proactive means taking responsibility for your life- the ability to choose the response to a situation. Proactive behavior is a product of conscious choice based of values, rather than reactive behavior, which is based on feelings. Reactive people let circumstances tell them how to respond. On the other hand, proactive people let carefully thought-about, selected and internalized values tell them how to respond. It’s not what not what happens to us but our response that differentiates the two behaviors. No one can make you miserable unless you choose to let them. The language we use is a real indicator of our behavior. Comparisons are given in the table below: Habit 2: Begin with the end in mind The most fundamental application of this habit is to begin each day with an image, picture or paradigm of the end of life as the leader’s frame of reference. All things are created twice- there’s a mental or first creation and a physical or second creation all things. To build a house we first create a blueprint and then construct the actual house. If we want to have a successful organization, we begin with a plan that will produce the appropriate end; thus leadership is the first creation and management is the second. Leadership is doing the right thing and management is doing things right. In order to begin with the end in mind, leader should develop a personal philosophy like:- * Never compromise with honesty * Maintain a positive attitude * Exercise daily * Do not fear mistakes * Read a leadership book daily By centering our lives on correct principles, we create a solid foundation for a the development of the life supporting factors of security, guidance, wisdom and power. Principles are the fundamental truths. They are tightly interwoven threads running with exactness, consistency and strength through the fabric of life.