If you’ve been preparing for a Project Management exam, chances are the vast majority of what you have studied is directly or indirectly derived from the work of these three Project Management thinkers and theorists This article presents an overview of their contributions to the
field of Project Management. The origins of total quality management (TQM) can be traced back to the early 1950s, when W. Edwards Deming worked with Japanese automobile manufacturers to improve product quality. The aim was to help Japan rebuild after the devastation of World War II and regain a competitive edge in the global marketplace. Joseph Juran and Philip Crosby
also played a key role in developing TQM, each with their own unique contribution. Juran emphasized the importance of continuous improvement, while Crosby focused on the need for organizations to meet customer expectations. Over time, TQM has become an essential element of business strategy for many organizations. Born in 1900,
W. Edwards Deming was an American engineer, professor, statistician, lecturer, author, and management consultant. Deming opined that by embracing certain principles of the management, organizations can improve the quality of the product and concurrently reduce costs. Reduction of costs would include the reduction of waste
production, reducing staff attrition and litigation while simultaneously increasing customer loyalty. The key, in Deming’s opinion, was to practice constant improvement and to imagine the manufacturing process as a seamless whole, rather than as a system made up of incongruent parts. In the 1970s, some of Deming's Japanese proponents summarized his philosophy in a two-part comparison:
The Deming CycleAlso known as the Shewhart Cycle, the Deming Cycle, often called the PDCA, was a result of the need to link the manufacture of products with the needs of the consumer along with focusing departmental resources in a collegial effort to meet those needs. The steps that the cycle follow are:
The 14 Points for ManagementDeming’s other chief contribution came in the form of his 14 Points for Management, which consists of a set of guidelines for managers looking to transform business effectiveness.
The 7 Deadly Diseases for ManagementThe 7 Deadly Diseases for Management defined by Deming are the most serious and fatal barriers that managements face, in attempting to increase effectiveness and institute continual improvement.
Joseph Moses JuranWho Was He?Born in 1904, Joseph Juran was a Romanian-born American engineer and management consultant of the 20th century, and a missionary for quality and quality management. Like Deming, Juran's philosophy also took root in Japan. He stressed on the importance of a broad, organizational-level approach to quality – stating that total quality management begins from the highest position in the management, and continues all the way to the bottom. Influence of the Pareto PrincipleIn 1941, Juran was introduced to the work of Vilfredo Pareto. He studied the Pareto principle (the 80-20 law), which states that, for many events, roughly 80% of the effects follow from 20% of the causes, and applied the concept to quality issues. Thus, according to Juran, 80% of the problems in an organization are caused by 20% of the causes. This is also known as the rule of the "Vital Few and the Trivial Many". Juran, in his later years, preferred "the Vital Few and the Useful Many" suggesting that the remaining 80% of the causes must not be completely ignored. What Was Juran’s Philosophy?The primary focus of every business, during Juran's time, was the quality of the end product, which is what Deming stressed upon. Juran shifted track to focus instead on the human dimension of Quality management. He laid emphasis on the importance of educating and training managers. For Juran, the root cause of quality issues was the resistance to change, and human relations problems.
His approach to quality management drew one outside the walls of a factory and into the non-manufacturing processes of the organization, especially those that were service-related. The Juran Quality TrilogyOne of the first to write about the cost of poor quality, Juran developed an approach for cross-functional management that comprises three legislative processes:
Three Steps to ProgressJuran also introduced the Three Basic Steps to Progress, which, in his opinion, companies must implement if they are to achieve high quality.
Ten Steps to QualityJuran devised ten steps for organizations to follow to attain better quality.
Philip Bayard CrosbyWho Was He?Born in 1926, Philip B. Crosby was an author and businessman who contributed to management theory and quality management practices. He started his career in quality much later than Deming and Juran. He founded Philip Crosby and Associates, which was an international consulting firm on quality improvement. His Philosophy/TheoryCrosby's principle, Doing It Right the First Time, was his answer to the quality crisis. He defined quality as full and perfect conformance to the customers' requirements. The essence of his philosophy is expressed in what he called the Absolutes of Quality Management and the Basic Elements of Improvement. The Absolutes of Quality ManagementCrosby defined Four Absolutes of Quality Management, which are
Zero DefectsCrosby's Zero Defects is a performance method and standard that states that people should commit themselves too closely monitoring details and avoid errors. By doing this, they move closer to the zero defects goal. According to Crosby, zero defects was not just a manufacturing principle but was an all-pervading philosophy that ought to influence every decision that we make. Managerial notions of defects being unacceptable and everyone doing ‘things right the first time’ are reinforced. The Fourteen Steps to Quality Improvement
The Quality VaccineCrosby explained that this vaccination was the medicine for organizations to prevent poor quality.
Questions on Deming’s, Juran’s, and Crosby’s Theories in Certification ExamsHere are a few sample questions, courtesy the Tutorial Point and Cornelius Fichtner A. According to Deming and Juran, most of the quality problems that exist are due to a defect or failure in processes that are controlled by:
Hint: The quality policy is defined according to an organization's top management. B. In the Shewhart and Deming cycle, the letters P D C A stand for:
Hint: Deming Cycle is also known as Deming Wheel or Shewhart Cycle. It uses the 4-step method for continuous improvement. C. Cultural resistance is the root cause of quality issues according to whom?
Answers: A. 3, B. 3, C. 3 This article is part of a series on project Management: plug gaps in your knowledge with the complete set of articles! Are you looking forward to making a mark in the Project Management field? If yes, enroll in the Project Management Fundamental Program now and get a step closer to your career goal! PMBOK®,PMP® and PMI® are registered trademarks of the Project Management Institute, Inc. What is the title of Crosby's book who made him prominent on total quality management?Philip Crosby is best known for:
Quality is Free - His first book that made him famous.
Who is Crosby in TQM?Philip Crosby (1926 - 2001) was a management consultant and author most known for his work in TQM. Prior to becoming a management consultant, he spent time in the military as well as training in the medical field. After his military career, he worked for several companies.
What is the contribution of Philip Crosby in quality management?The major contribution made by Crosby is indicated by the fact that his phrases 'zero defects', 'getting it right first time', and 'conformance to requirements' have now entered not only the vocabulary of quality itself, but also the general vocabulary of management.
Who are the pioneers of the developing approach of total quality management?Although several individuals (mentioned above) contributed to the concept of TQM, the three mostly widely cited “masters” of quality are W. Edwards Deming (1900–1993), Joseph M. Juran, and Philip Crosby.
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