What is Total Quality Management (TQM)?

Total Quality Management (TQM) is fundamentally a management approach that seeks to enhance the overall quality in all organizational processes. It emphasizes the continuous improvement of processes, products, and services across all levels of an organization, engaging every employee in the goal of fostering a culture of quality. This holistic approach integrates quality improvement into the organization’s strategic planning, aiming to meet or exceed customer expectations consistently.

The focus on quality is not limited to just quality control measures but includes all aspects of the organization, from production to customer service, ensuring that quality is a priority throughout the entire operation. By promoting a collective commitment to quality, TQM helps organizations achieve higher efficiency, reduce waste, and improve customer satisfaction.

The other choices do not fully capture the essence of TQM. For instance, suggesting that it is solely about quality control measures would imply a narrow focus on inspections rather than a comprehensive approach. Proposing that TQM divides quality tasks among departments overlooks the collaborative spirit inherent in the approach, which seeks to unify efforts across an organization. Lastly, presenting it as a strategy aimed at profit without regard for quality misrepresents TQM's core principle of intertwining quality with profitability, suggesting that sales leads can thrive when quality is neglected.