The Effects of Total Quality Management on Corporate Performance: An Empirical Investigation

Easton, George S.; Jarrell, Sherry L.

doi:10.1086/209744

Cited by 435 publications

(199 citation statements)

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“…Most are one-shot affairs; definitions of TQM are not standardized; and conventional instruments appear to generate considerable reporting bias (Cole, 1999: 22;Strang & Macy, 2001: 150). Easton and Jarrell's (1998) strategy of generating an organizational narrative addresses many of these issues, but to our knowledge it has not been applied to TQM for the period under investigation. 40 percent in 1999 (Rigby, 2001).…”

Section: The Life Cycle Of Total Quality Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…On the supply side, the period was dominated by "gurus" like Crosby, Deming, and Juran, as well as by small, specialized consultancies like Harrington, Hurd & Rieker (the first two principals were presidents of the American Society for Quality Control, the third a leading quality circle consultant). 19 This potent combination helped produce customized programs and substantial performance gains (Easton & Jarrell, 1998;Westphal et al, 1997), although the lack of media attention meant that TQM diffused slowly through social networks. In institutional terms, this era matches well with the period of rational adoption and structural contingency that Tolbert and Zucker (1983) found in their classic analysis of civil service reform.…”

Section: Coevolutionary Dynamics and Institutional Trajectoriesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Staw and Epstein (2000) showed that "bandwagon" adoption of TQM was unrelated to the firm's bottom line, but did bolster corporate reputation and CEO pay. Other studies have identified performance effects, but only where TQM was most deeply and systematically implemented (Easton & Jarrell, 1998;Hendricks & Singhal, 1999;Powell, 1995).…”

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confidence: 99%

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When Fashion is Fleeting: Transitory Collective Beliefs and the Dynamics of TQM Consulting

David

Strang

2006

AMJ

184

166

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We analyze changes over time in the types of consulting firms offering total quality management services. When TQM was a booming management fashion, consultants tended to be generalists with weak links to the technical foundations of the practice; after the fashion went bust, TQM consulting was increasingly populated by specialists with quality control expertise. These results suggest that fashionable practices can return to their technical roots after the hype is over, reversing the usual institutional trajectory. They also help explain why fashion booms are so fragile and how management practices can be sustained once a boom is over.Management fashions are a striking feature of contemporary organizational life. Attention rapidly coalesces around a management practice as a powerful and robust means of achieving competitive success. But as Abrahamson (1996: 257) argued, the collective belief that a practice "leads rational management progress" is relatively transitory. Enthusiasm soon wanes, skepticism mounts, and yesterday's panacea becomes today's run-of-the-mill application. In the language we will use in this article, a "fashion boom" turns into a "fashion bust."These cycles in collective beliefs have important consequences. Fashionable practices consume scarce resources-not just time and money, but leadership opportunities and organizational commitment as well. And when the winds of fashion shift, managers and workers alike may be left jaded, if not embittered, by the experience. Given the significance of fashion swings, it is not surprising that scholarly attention has increasingly turned to investigate their sources and internal dynamics.Two research strategies dominate empirical analysis of management fashions. The first focuses on discourse as a means of understanding fashion origins and trajectories. Barley and Kunda (1992) argued that management discourse oscillates between rational and normative logics. Abrahamson (1996;Abrahamson & Fairchild, 1999) elaborated a model of management fashion that comprises a supply side and a demand side and examined how "fashion setters" and external triggers interact to produce fashion cycles. Kieser (1997) identified the rhetorical characteristics of fashions that promote their diffusion (see also Jackson, 2001). Zbaracki (1998) analyzed how total quality management (TQM) rhetoric is both consumed and produced by managers. Carson, Lanier, Carson, and Guidry (2000) showed that cycles of media attention have increased in amplitude and frequency over the last half century. A second body of research examines the causes and consequences of fashion adoption. For example, Osterman (1994) linked early adoption of TQM and related innovations to corporate strategy, CEO philosophy, and the pressure of international competition. Westphal, Gulati, and Shortell (1997) found evidence for network contagion among hospitals and demonstrated a shift from "customized" to "conforming" applications as TQM became increasingly popular. Staw and Epstein (2000) showed that "bandwagon" adopt...

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Section: The Life Cycle Of Total Quality Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Coevolutionary Dynamics and Institutional Trajectoriesmentioning

confidence: 99%

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When Fashion is Fleeting: Transitory Collective Beliefs and the Dynamics of TQM Consulting

David

Strang

2006

AMJ

184

166

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“…Easton and Jarrel [6] support the above argument with the findings of their research into 108 early adopters of TQM, indicating that performance, measured by both accounting variables and stock returns, improved by using TQM. Hendricks and Singhal [9] conducted a study on 600 quality award winners who provided evidence of good financial results from implementing TQM effectively.…”

Section: Review Of Corporate Performance Management Toolsmentioning

confidence: 66%

An Integrated Performance Management Framework for a Multi-Business Company

Aburas

2011

The South African Journal of Industrial Engineering

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A multi-business company is a complex entity. Evaluating corporate performance of such an organisation is even more challenging. Corporate performance is inherently multidimensional in nature, is viewed from various perspectives, and has to satisfy multiple objectives. It is multi-dimensional in the sense of being a function of many variables that drive firm performance; multi-perspectival, from various stakeholders' standpoints; and multi-objectives are to be optimised. So there is no single corporate performance evaluation tool that can be prescribed as a stand-alone gauge; however, a unified and holistic corporate performance management system can be developed from multiple tools. This paper attempts to bring together a variety of performance management tools that have evolved and developed in theory, and have been tested and applied in practice. In developing this convergence, first a set of criteria that answers the multi-dimensional, multi-perspectival, and multi-objective requirements of a firm's performance will be identified and weighted. Second, management tools that have been used either singly or in combination by multi-business companies are reviewed and ranked against the chosen criteria. Finally, an integrated model or framework that brings together and unifies the elements of these ranked performance management tools is proposed. OPSOMMING'n Multi-maatskappy-onderneming is 'n komplekse entiteit. Die evaluasie van maatskappyprestasie van so 'n onderneming is self meer van 'n uitdaging. Maatskappyprestasie is inherent multidimensioneel, word uit verskeie perspektiewe beskou en moet veelvuldige doelwitte bevredig. Geen enkele maatstaf is beskikbaar om hierdie fasette van maatskappyprestasie te evalueer, alhoewel 'n holistiese prestasiebestuurstelsel ontwikkel kan word gebaseer op verskillende maatstawwe. Hierdie artikel bring verskillende metodologieë byeen vir die meting van maatskappyprestasie wat multi-dimensioneel, multiperspektiewelik en multi-doelwit-geöriënteerd is. Sodoende word 'n geïntegreerde raamwerk vir die meting van maatskappyprestasie ontwikkel.

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“…Instead, there is often compelling evidence suggesting that, were the innovation in question appropriately adopted and implemented, the organization would benefit significantly. For example, while numerous studies find that the dedicated use of TQM improves quality, productivity, and overall competitiveness (Easton and Jarrell 1998, Hendricks and Singhal 1996, Barron and Paulson Gjerde 1996, a recent survey found that among US managers TQM is "…deader than a pet rock" (Byrne 1997). The situation is similar for a wide range of other innovations (Klein and Sorra 1996).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Simulation-Based Approach to Understanding the Dynamics of Innovation Implementation

Repenning

2002

Organization Science

254

198

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Abst ractThe history of management practice is filled with innovations that failed to live up to the promise suggested by their early success. A paradox facing organization theory is that the failure of these innovations often cannot be attributed to an intrinsic lack of efficacy. To resolve this paradox, in this paper I study the process of innovation implementation. Working from existing theoretical frameworks, I synthesize a model that describes the process through which participants in an organization develop commitment to using a newly adopted innovation. I then translate that framework into a formal model and analyze it using computer simulation. The analysis suggests three new constructs-reversion, regeneration and the motivation threshold-characterizing the dynamics of implementation. Taken together, these constructs offer an alternative explanation for the paradox of innovations that produce early results but fail to find a permanent home in the organizations that adopt them. 1 Int roductionThe history of management practice is filled with innovations that failed to live up to the promise suggested by their early success. Examples include job enrichment (Hackman 1975), quality circles (Lawler and Morhman 1987), Total Quality Management (TQM) (The Economist 1995), Business Process Re-engineering (White 1996), and various attempts to implement new computer technology (e.g. Orlikowski 1992). A paradox currently facing organizational theory is the fact that the failure of these innovations often cannot be attributed to an intrinsic lack of efficacy. Instead, there is often compelling evidence suggesting that, were the innovation in question appropriately adopted and implemented, the organization would benefit significantly. For example, while numerous studies find that the dedicated use of TQM improves quality, productivity, and overall competitiveness (Easton and Jarrell 1998, Hendricks and Singhal 1996, Barron and Paulson Gjerde 1996, a recent survey found that among US managers TQM is "…deader than a pet rock" (Byrne 1997). The situation is similar for a wide range of other innovations (Klein and Sorra 1996).Unfortunately, existing theory has little to offer on the question of why potentially useful innovations often fail to find a permanent home in the organizations that try to implement them.TQM is one of the more widely studied management techniques, but Dean and Bowen (1994:393) conclude that "...TQ initiatives often do not succeed, but as of yet there is little theory available to explain the difference between successful and unsuccessful efforts." The theoretical landscape is similarly bleak for other types of innovations (Klein and Sorra 1996). While the collection of tools and techniques designed to improve organizational effectiveness continues to grow, the knowledge about how to use them effectively apparently does not. This paper offers a theoretical framework for understanding the phenomenon of failed efforts to improve organizational effectiveness via innovation adoption and implementation...

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The Effects of Total Quality Management on Corporate Performance: An Empirical Investigation

Cited by 435 publications

References 8 publications

When Fashion is Fleeting: Transitory Collective Beliefs and the Dynamics of TQM Consulting

When Fashion is Fleeting: Transitory Collective Beliefs and the Dynamics of TQM Consulting

An Integrated Performance Management Framework for a Multi-Business Company

A Simulation-Based Approach to Understanding the Dynamics of Innovation Implementation

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