TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM) Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 4250 words

TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT (TQM) - Essay Example Quality control is a process that is employed in order to ensure a required level of fineness and quality in a product or service delivered by a company. Quality assurance, on the other hand, is a process in which products are checked in order to know whether those products will be able to meet customers’ expectations or not. Along with quality assurance and quality control, companies also adhere to the key principles of total quality management, such as, quality oriented management, customer focus approach, and continuous improvement in order to guarantee the development of superior quality products. In recent years, many scholars have researched the role of quality management systems in the success of businesses. There has been a great concern about the use of different quality frameworks and this concern has led many researchers to study the role of those frameworks in ensuring the provision of highest quality to customers. Some key quality frameworks, such as, Six Sigma framework, BEM framework, and ISO 9000: 2001 framework play a vital role in the manufacturing of high quality products. In this paper, we will discuss the role of total quality management in the success of a company or organization. We will examine the way total quality management helps a company improve its performance in market and increase customer base. The paper will include a discussion about the key principles of total quality management, as well as a discuss on quality assurance and quality control. Moreover, the paper will also include a review about the key developments in the evolution of quality and the role of strategic quality frameworks and quality improvement tools and techniques in improved organizational performance and productivity. Quality is the key to organizational success. It refers to the delivery of high quality products to satisfy customers, as well as to improve business performance.

International human resource management Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

International human resource management - Essay Example At the same time the HRM should be flexible enough such that the differences in the HRM policies and practices can accommodate the different cultural and business settings (Sims, 2007). Marginson and Sisson (1994) have argued that industrial relations are deep rooted in the national system, which obstructs the penetration of transnational practices by Multi National Enterprises (MNEs). The increased pressure of globalization has made the MNEs to standardize their HRM procedures internationally such that the internal consistency is maintained and ‘best practices’ are percolated to the subsidiaries. This has raised the question of whether the standardized approach for labor relation framed by the MNEs actually caters to the type of employment. In this context the case study has examined the various workforce characteristics of McDonald’s operating in United Kingdom (UK) and Germany. An in detailed analysis about their appraisal, recruitment and characteristics of wo rkforce has been studied. McDonald’s Corporation is one of the most renowned companies in the world. It is the fast food chain, symbolized by a golden arch and has spread its business all over the world. It is recognized as a foremost franchising company, with 80% of its restaurant operating and owned by the franchisees (McDonald's, 2013; Briscoe, Schuler and Tarique, 2012). Interbrand has positioned McDonald’s at the seventh place among the top 100 brands in the world. McDonald’s is operating in different countries, which signifies that it has to adopt its product and services in such a way that it matches not only the cultural, political and economical factors of the country but also the HR practices adapted by them. The HR professional at McDonald’s, before opening their operation in any country conduct an extensive research in order to understand and determine the ways in which the HR activities may be adjusted (Aswathappa and Dash, 2007). As pointed by Love (1995) McDonald’s is well known across the globe for its standardized level of image and product. McDonald’s tends to impose the practices followed in the home country in relation to the trade unions, employee participation and control over the operations of the franchisee. In this context two aspects are studied to analyze the extent to which the standardized approach of labor relation designed by McDonald’s caters to the type of people employed and accommodation of different type of workers by McDonald’s, available in the different labor markets. Recruitment and Appraisal Studies suggest that the business organizations in Germany have a lower level of staffing as compared to the organization in UK. The reason was that the restaurant in Germany has more number of full time workers as compared to that of UK. This was due to the introduction of the German collective agreement that was introduced in the year 1989 for the employees of McDonaldâ€℠¢s. Recruitment for McDonald’s was done through the process of application. Then the applicants had to undergo lie detection process. But it was abolished after there were changes in the labor laws of US. McDonald’s was also in headlines due to the charges bought by a investigative journalist that if during the interview process the interviewing manager finds that the applicant has any