Total Quality Management

The concept of quality has changed dramatically in recent decades. Whereas the traditional view of quality management was predominantly result-oriented and focused on testing outcomes (input/output orientation), more recent quality concepts have tended to integrate additional quality indicators [pf1]. The realization that “quality begins in the head” [ka1, fei] and that the attitudes and actions of all of the employees are open to influence at each stage in the value-added chain has broadened the focus of quality management. Only integrated quality concepts in conjunction with modifications to the corporate culture can ensure the ability of a company to deliver quality in the future. This comprehensive view of quality management, also known as Total Quality Management (TQM), must be regarded as a corporate strategy whose aim is to ensure that customer requirements are satisfied and which concentrates all efforts firmly on the needs of the internal and external customers.