Quality Management and Productivity—A Preliminary Study

This study involved a preliminary investigation of three medium-sized Australian companies which are implementing quality management in some for M, in order to identify quality and productivity improvements, and profitability changes, which could be directly attributed to the implementation of such approaches. The results of this investigation suggest that, for these companies, the quality and productivity improvements were marginal, and that the direct impact of quality management on profitability, at least in the short term, was very minor relative to the effects of other factors such as tighter financial control, product rationalisation, fluctuations in the economy, etc. However, the companies involved were all enthusiastic about quality management, and it is suggested that this approach is effectively building teams and improving the organisational climate in these organisations, and so setting the scene for improved longer-term profitability and growth. It is also suggested that there may be a link between quality management approaches and Management by Objectives techniques. These ideas warrant further research, which may lead to more effective implementation of quality management and more direct impact on organisations' perfor Mances.