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Abstract
Recent research on total quality management (TQM) has examined the relationships between the practices of quality
management and various levels of organizational performance. These studies have produced mixed results, probably because of
the nature of the research designs used such as measuring TQM or performance as a single construct. Based on a comprehensive
literature review, this study identifies the relationships among TQM practices and examines the direct and indirect effects of
these practices on various performance levels. A proposed research model and hypotheses are tested by using cross-sectional
mail survey data collected from firms operating in the US. The test of the structural model supports the proposed hypotheses.
The implications of the findings for researchers and practitioners are discussed and further research directions are offered.
2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Quality management; Performance; Structural equation modeling
1. Introduction
The barnyard rooster Chanticleer had a theory. He
crowed every morning, putting forth all his energy,
flapped his wings. The sun came up. The connexion was clear: His crowing caused the sun to come
up. There was no question about his importance.
There came a snag. He forgot one morning to crow.
The sun came up anyhow. Crestfallen, he saw his
theory in need of revision.
(Deming, 1993, p. 105)
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, previously unchallenged American industries lost substantial market share in both US and world markets. To regain
Tel.: +1-956-381-3380; fax: +1-956-384-5065.
E-mail address: hkaynak@panam.edu (H. Kaynak).
the competitive edge, companies began to adopt productivity improvement programs which had proven
themselves particularly successful in Japan. One of
these improvement programs was the total quality
management (TQM) system. In last two decades, both
the popular press and academic journals have published a plethora of accounts describing both successful and unsuccessful efforts at implementing TQM.
Like Chanticleers theory, theories of quality management have been under revision ever since.
The early stages of empirical research in TQM
have been almost exclusively limited to attempts at
constructing instruments capable of measuring TQM
practices as, for example, Saraph et al. (1989) have
done, and with studies such as Garvins (1983) that
compare TQM practices in Japanese and US firms.
More recently, scholars like Mohrman et al. (1995)
have channeled their research efforts into analyzing
0272-6963/03/$ see front matter 2003 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/S0272-6963(03)00004-4
406
the relationship between practices of quality management and organizational performance on various levels. Recent studies such as the one conducted by Das
et al. (2000) have started investigating both the relationships among techniques of quality management
systems and the effects they have on performance.
These studies have produced mixed results. This
failure to obtain consistent results could be due to
three significant differences among studies in terms
of research design issues. First, in some studies such
as the one conducted by Douglas and Judge (2001),
TQM is operationalized as a single construct to analyze the relationship between TQM and firms performance, while others, Samson and Terziovski (1999)
for instance, operationalize TQM as a multidimensional construct. Second, the levels of performance
measured vary among the studies. Some studies operationalize performance only at operating levels as
Samson and Terziovski (1999) do, while others like
Douglas and Judge (2001) measure only financial
performance; and still others as do Das et al. (2000),
measure performance at multiple levels. Third, the
analytical framework used to investigate the relation
between TQM and performance also differs among
the studies. In other words, when the data analyses
are based on a series of multiple regressions (Adam
et al., 1997; Mohrman et al., 1995; Samson and
Terziovski, 1999) or correlations (Powell, 1995), the
studies fall short of investigating which TQM practices have direct and/or indirect effects on various
levels of performance. In short, comprehensive studies trying to identify the direct and indirect effects of
TQM practices on performance at multiple levels are
rather limited and fail to respond conclusively to the
following research questions:
What are the relationships among TQM practices?
Which TQM practices are directly related to operating, market and financial performance?
Which TQM practices are indirectly related to operating, market and financial performance?
This study investigates these research questions by
using the data from Kaynaks (1997) study. This research contributes to the development of TQM theory
by investigating the relationships between seven quality management practices and their effects on operating, financial, and market performance. While this
study does replicate some earlier research, it is unique
in that the dimensions of the quality management practices investigated are extensive and firms performance
is measured at multiple levels. Replication research facilitates the goal of science, which is empirical generalization or knowledge development (Hubbard et al.,
1998), and it is recommended in cases such as this
where different studies produced inconsistent results
(Amundson, 1998, p. 355). This research is relevant to
practitioners because the findings may reveal patterns
in the implementation of TQM practices, which may
provide significant information managers can use to
solve implementation challenges and perhaps to improve performance. Moreover, the results of this study
may provide support for continued implementation of
TQM. The unsuccessful attempts have prompted criticisms of TQM in the popular press and caused some
managers who might otherwise have had an interest
in implementing TQM to question the wisdom of utilizing this management approach. But this, to quote
an old but still relevant clich, is throwing out the
baby with the bath water. The remainder of this paper is organized as follows. A research model and related hypotheses are offered based on the review of
the literature in the next section. Section 3 describes
the research methodology, including the construction
of the instrument and measures, the survey procedure,
the sample, and the tests for reliability and validity.
Section 4 presents the results of testing the structural
model. The implications of the results for researchers
and practitioners are discussed and validity of findings
is reevaluated in Section 5. The paper concludes with
further research implications of this study.
2. Theoretical background
TQM can be defined as a holistic management philosophy that strives for continuous improvement in all
functions of an organization, and it can be achieved
only if the total quality concept is utilized from the
acquisition of resources to customer service after the
sale. TQM practices have been documented extensively in measurement studies as well as in the studies
that have investigated the relation of TQM practices to
various dependent variables. The TQM practices identified in measurement studies by Saraph et al. (1989)
and those who have followed their example are summarized in Table 1.
Table 1
TQM Practices identified in measurement studies on TQM
Flynn et al. (1994)
Management
leadership
Top management
support
Quality leadership
Quality improvement
rewards
Top management
commitment
Corporate quality
culture
Strategic quality
management
Leadership
Strategic planning
Training
Employee relations
Workforce management
Selection for teamwork
potential
Teamwork
Employee
empowerment
Employee
involvement
People and
customer
management
Teamwork
structures
Quality information
Process control
Feedback
Internal quality
information usage
Quality
improvement
measurement
systems
Supplier quality
management
Supplier involvement
Supplier quality
management
Supplier
performance
Supplier
partnerships
Employee training
407
408
Product/service
design
Product design
New product quality
Interfunctional design
process
Design quality
management
External interface
management
Process management
Process
management
Process management
Statistical process
control usage
Operational
quality planning
Process management
Customer involvement
Customer
focus
Benchmarking
Customer satisfaction
orientation
Communication of
improvement
information
Customer and
market
focus
Table 1 (Continued )
409
410
Table 2
Summary of studies on the relationship between total quality management (TQM) and firms performance
Operationalization of TQM
Multidimensional constructa
Visionary leadership
Internal and external
cooperation
Learning
Process management
Continuous improvement
Employee fulfillment
Customer satisfaction
Secondary perceived
performance (subjective)
Operating performance
Multidimensional construct
Core QM practices
Process flow management
Product design process
Statistical control/feedback
QM infrastructure practices
Customer relationship
Supplier relationship
Work attitudes
Workforce management
Top management support
Perceived relative
performance (subjective) and
primary objective data
Operating performance
Multidimensional construct
Core practices
Quality improvement teams
Quality councils
Cross-functional planning
Process reengineering
Work simplification
Customer satisfaction
monitoring
Direct employee exposure
to customers
Production-oriented practices
Self-inspection
Statistical control methods
used by front-line
employees
Just-in-time deliveries
Work cells or
manufacturing cells
Other practices
Cost-of-quality monitoring
Collaboration with
suppliers in quality efforts
Market performance
Operating performance
Operational definition of
performance
Customer satisfaction
Data gathering
technique and
analysis
Main findings
Questionnaires from
management and
workers in each
plant
Path analysis
Questionnaire
Multiple regression
analyses,
hierarchical
regression analyses
Study
Powell (1995)
Multidimensional construct
Chenhall (1997)
Multidimensional construct
Employee involvement
Senior executive involvement
Employee satisfaction
Compensation
Customers
Design and conformance
Knowledge
Employee selection and
development
Inventory reduction
Perceived performance
(subjective)
Financial performance
Operating performance
Single construct
Perceived performance
(subjective)
Financial performance
Financial performance
Questionnaire
Sales growth, profitability,
revenue growth
Productivity, competitive
position, profitability,
revenues, overall performance
Partial correlations
Studies events in
various publications
Wilcoxon
signed-rank test,
MannWhitney test
Questionnaire
Stepwise regression
Questionnaire
Regression, ANOVA
Executive commitment
Adopting the philosophy
Closer to customers
Closer to suppliers
Benchmarking
Training
Open organization
Employee empowerment
Zero-defects mentality
Flexible manufacturing
Process improvement
Measurement
Perceived performance
(subjective)
Financial performance (total
performance)
TQM program performance
(measured as a mix of
operating and financial
performance)
411
412
Table 2 (Continued )
Operationalization of TQM
Grandzol and
Gershon (1997)
Multidimensional construct
Leadership
Continuous improvement
Internal/external cooperation
Customer focus
Learning
Employee fulfillment
Process management
Perceived performance
(subjective)
Financial performance
Perceived performance
(subjective)
Operating performance
Ahire and
OShaughnessy
(1998)
Multidimensional construct
Ten dimensions of TQM listed
in Table 1 with the exclusion
of supplier performance (Ahire
et al., 1996)
Perceived performance
(subjective)
Operating performance
Multidimensional construct
Orientation towards quality
TQM link with suppliers
Human resources
TQM link with customers
Process control
Perceived performance
(subjective) and primary
objective data
Operating performance
Operating performance
Operational definition of
performance
Product quality
Quality conformance,
customer satisfaction
Data gathering
technique and
analysis
Main findings
Questionnaire
Structural equation
modeling
Questionnaire
Structural equation
modeling
Questionnaire
Stepwise regression,
t-tests
Interviews
Sign tests, Wilcoxon
rank-sum test,
Wilcoxon
signed-rank test
Questionnaire
Structural equation
modeling
Study
Rungtusanatham et al.
(1998)
Perceived performance
(subjective)
Operating performance
Multidimensional construct
Leadership
Workforce commitment
Shared vision
Customer focus
Use of teams
Personnel training
Cooperative supplier relations
Use of benchmarking
Use of advanced
manufacturing systems
Use of just-in-time principles
Perceived performance
(subjective) and
self-reported objective data
Operating performance
Multidimensional construct
High involvement work
practices
Quality practices
Perceived relative
performance (subjective)
Multidimensional construct
Leadership
Information and analysis
Strategic planning
Human resource management
Process management
Perceived performance
(subjective)
Financial performance
Perceived performance
(subjective) and secondary
data sources
Financial performance
Multidimensional construct
Supportive TQM factor
(employee relations and
training)
Core TQM factor (quality
data and reporting, supplier
quality management)
Perceived performance
(subjective)
Operating performance
Financial performance
Operating performance
Ho et al. (2001)
Questionnaire
Structural equation
modeling; multiple
regression analysis
Questionnaire
Structural equation
modeling
Questionnaire
Structural equation
modeling
Questionnaire
Hierarchical
regression analysis
Questionnaire
Hierarchical
regression analysis
Product quality
Anderson et al. (1995) operationalized the constructs by using the questionnaire items in the World-Class Manufacturing (WCM) database (first round).
Rungtusanatham et al. (1998) operationalized the constructs by selecting the questionnaire items from Round 2 of the WCM database for the plants operating in Italy.
413
Operating performance
Customer satisfaction
Multidimensional constructb
The same dimensions as in
Anderson et al. (1995) are used
414
Fig. 1. Theoretical model of the relationship between TQM practices and performance measures.
415
Last, but not the least, management must be responsible for focusing product design on market and
consumer needs (Deming, 1986; Flynn et al., 1995;
Garvin, 1987; Shetty, 1988). This sharp focus is crucial
to developing products that are manufacturable and
meet the needs of the customers (Flynn et al., 1995;
Hackman and Wageman, 1995; Juran, 1981; Leonard
and Sasser, 1982). Thus, we are led to the following
hypothesis:
H1d. Management leadership is positively related to
product design.
2.1.2. Training
In the literature (e.g. Bell and Burnham, 1989;
Choi, 1995; Daft, 1998; Ettkin et al., 1990), employee
training is clearly identified as a critical component of
workforce management when implementing significant changes in an organization. If it is to be effective,
i.e. transform employees into creative problem solvers,
training in quality-related issues should emphasize
problem solving in small groups, effective communication, and statistical process control (Flynn et al.,
1994). Workforce training in the techniques necessary
for improving processes must be continuous if the
improvement effort is to be sustained, for an ongoing
training program will help employees discover innovative ways to improve the organization (Choi, 1995)
and shoulder more of the responsibility for effecting
416
417
A direct contribution effective supplier management makes to firm performance is inventory reduction (Easton and Jarrell, 1998; Engelkemeyer, 1990;
Levandoski, 1993; United States General Accounting
Office, 1991), which enables firms to sustain efforts
to reduce waste, eliminate safety stocks, and create a
leaner operation (Choi, 1995; Krajewski and Ritzman,
2001). A study by Chapman and Carter (1990) shows
418
et al., 1999). Reducing process variation should result in increased output uniformity as well as reduced
rework and waste (Anderson et al., 1994; Forza and
Flippini, 1998) because quality problems are identified and corrected immediately (Ahire and Dreyfus,
2000). Regular preventive equipment maintenance
positively contributes to product quality by improving machine reliability and reducing interruptions
in production (Ho et al., 1999). Flynn et al. (1995)
found that effective process management results in
an increased percent-passed final inspection with no
rework. This increased production quality leads to
improved product quality and, in turn, other improvements in competitive priorities such as reduced costs
and fast delivery. Additionally, the empirical findings
by Ahire and Dreyfus (2000) and Forza and Flippini
(1998) show that process management directly and
positively affects product quality. Thus, the following
hypothesis is offered:
H7. Process management is positively related to
quality performance.
2.1.8. Firm performance
Companies implementing TQM experience high
inventory turnover, a situation which enables the
identification of scheduling and production problems
(Krajewski and Ritzman, 2001; Tan, 2001) and encourages continuous improvement of processes and
product quality (Adam et al., 1997). These improvements should result in lower scrap and rework costs
as well as enhanced productivity and lead-time performance. Thus, we can expect that better inventory
management will lead to increased quality performance.
H8a. Inventory management performance is positively related to quality performance.
Quality performance improves financial and market
performance, and the literature offers several explanations for these effects. First, as a firm acquires a
reputation for delivering high quality products and
services, the elasticity of demand can decrease, which,
in turn, can enable the firm to charge higher prices and
earn higher profits (Shetty, 1988). Second, improving
product quality by reducing waste and improving efficiency will increase the return on assets (Handfield
3. Research methodology
The data for this research were drawn from a
cross-sectional mail study conducted to investigate
TQM, just-in-time purchasing (JITP) and the performance of firms operating in the 48 contiguous states
of the US that have implemented TQM and JITP techniques. Using data collected through cross-sectional
mail survey methodology is appropriate because the
research questions posed in this study lend themselves
to investigating the relationships between multiple
variables. A large sample size is required to obtain
reliable and valid research results. Moreover, it is
relatively inexpensive and has the greatest potential
for reaching a large number of respondents widely
dispersed (Alreck and Settle, 1985). Issues pertaining
to the construction of the instrument and measures,
the survey procedure, the sample, and the tests for
reliability and exploratory factor analysis are briefly
reviewed in the following sections. The discussion of
tests for reliability and validity also includes the results of the confirmatory factor analysis performed in
the current study in order to refine the resulting scales
in exploratory factor analysis and to establish unidimensionality, convergent validity, and discriminant
validity of the measures used in this study.
3.1. Construction of the instrument and measures
Churchills (1979) work provided the basis for the
construction of the instrument and measures utilized in
this study. The domains of constructs were identified
via a thorough review of the literature. For most of the
items of the TQM construct, Saraph et al.s (1989) survey instrument was useful. Saraph et al. (1989) measured the factors of supplier cooperation and materials
quality as one factor: supplier quality management.
The measurement of these factors in this study, however, required a more in-depth examination. Therefore,
to measure supplier cooperation and materials quality,
the items pertaining to these two factors from Saraph
et al.s questionnaire were grouped based on content
analysis. In addition, one item was adapted from Ettlie
and Reza (1992) and the others were originated in the
literature review. The list of scales, items, and their
sources are presented in Appendix A.
Saraph et al.s (1989) instrument uses a discrete,
Likert-type scale. This study favored the use of a
continuous scale because, as research shows, as the
number of scaling points decreases, the amount of
information lost increases (Martin, 1978; McClelland
and Judd, 1993; Russell and Bobko, 1992). Therefore, a continuous scale 100 mm long was utilized.
The polar points pertaining to TQM practices were
none = 0 and very high = 100. The use of continuous scales for research (e.g. Taylor et al., 1992) has
become acceptable in the social sciences. The wording of some borrowed items was changed to adapt
them to a continuous scale format.
The items relating to performance variables were
based on a review of the literature on strategic management, marketing, and operations management (see
Appendix A). Three levels of performance measures
were identified: financial, market, and operating.
These performance measures are consistent with the
performance measurement in the studies presented in
Table 2. The values of the end poles measuring relative
perceived performance are adapted from Venkatraman
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420
Following the Total Design Methodology suggested by Dillman (1978), we mailed questionnaires;
cover letters; and postage-paid, self-addressed return envelopes to the 1884 subjects. We followed his
four-step procedure, although our response rate was
sufficiently high after the second and third steps that
the fourth step was not pursued. We received 383
replies. One was unusable, so we had 382 usable
surveys, a 20.3% response rate, which is in line with
that of other studies (e.g. Choi and Eboch, 1998; Das
et al., 2000; Madu et al., 1995).
By testing the difference of the interest variables
between early and late respondents, an estimate of
non-response bias was calculated (Armstrong and
Overton, 1977). To test the non-response bias, two
sample t-test procedures were conducted for TQM,
JITP, and three perceived performance factors. None
of the t-test results indicated a significant difference between the two response waves on the means
of these variables. The second test of non-response
bias concerned the firms demographics: number
of employees, annual sales and ownership of the
organization. 2 tests were run to find out whether
there was a significant difference in the three demographic variables between early and late respondents.
Results indicated that no significant differences on
demographics existed between the two waves of responses. Fifty-nine respondents either returned the
blank questionnaire in the provided envelope or contacted the researcher by phone to explain why they
chose not to participate in the study. The results
of statistical tests and qualitative data indicate that
non-respondents did not differ significantly from
respondents.
3.3. Sample demographics
Missing values were neither calculated nor substituted for the performance measures, so the final sample used to test the research model was reduced to
214. Replies came from 42 states, although the target sample included firms from all 48 states. No firms
in Delaware, Maine, Montana, North Dakota, Nevada
and Wyoming answered the questionnaire. Moreover,
the final sample also lacked responses from Mississippi, Oregon, Vermont, and West Virginia. Thus, the
non-responses were not clustered geographically. The
38 states that comprised the sample did, however,
421
422
Goodness-of-fit statistics
Measurement model
for TQM
Measurement model
for firm performance
Structural model
2 /df
Root Mean Square Error of Approximation (RMSEA)
Akaikes Information Criterion (CAIC)
CAIC for Saturated Model
CAIC for Independent Model
Parsimony Goodness-of-Fit Index (PGFI)
Parsimony Normed Fit Index (PNFI)
Comparative Fit Index (CFI)
657.16/383 = 1.72
0.058
1179.17
2960.18
5383.51
0.69
0.77
0.94
52.03/24 = 2.17
0.074
185.72
286.47
1146.98
0.51
0.63
0.97
1167.46/683 = 1.71
0.058
1784.96
4965.46
6992.04
0.69
0.76
0.92
<3.0a
<0.08b
<Saturated model and
independence modelc
>0.50d
>0.50d
>0.90b
Table 3
Test results of the measurement models and structural model
Variables
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Management leadership
Training
Employee relations
Quality data and reporting
Supplier quality management
Product/service design
Process management
Inventory management
performance
9. Quality performance
10. Financial and market
performance
1
1.000
0.651
0.715
0.533
0.561
0.657
0.515
0.269
2
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.000)
0.353 (0.000)
0.264 (0.000)
1.000
0.643
0.556
0.570
0.569
0.574
0.234
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.001)
0.312 (0.000)
0.205 (0.003)
1.000
0.470
0.529
0.668
0.556
0.264
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.000)
0.425 (0.000)
0.143 (0.037)
1.000
0.547
0.487
0.536
0.114
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.000)
(0.095)
1.000
0.558 (0.000)
0.536 (0.000)
0.258 (0.000)
1.000
0.588 (0.000)
0.236 (0.000)
1.000
0.225 (0.001)
1.000
0.251 (0.000)
0.287 (0.000)
0.420 (0.000)
0.244 (0.000)
0.417 (0.000)
0.206 (0.002)
0.359 (0.000)
0.256 (0.000)
0.513 (0.000)
0.302 (0.000)
1.000
0.376 (0.000)
10
1.000
Mean
S.D.
Cronbachs
61.24
53.43
53.00
58.38
52.37
56.69
45.37
62.24
21.90
24.72
23.25
26.45
21.36
22.79
21.33
18.63
0.92
0.92
0.89
0.90
0.86
0.93
0.78
0.91
66.79
62.04
15.30
18.84
0.80
0.89
Table 4
Descriptive statistics, Cronbachs , and bivariate correlations for the variables in research modela
423
424
Fig. 2. Structural modeling of the relationship between TQM practices and performance measures.
< 0.01,
425
make strong statements about the strength and generality of the findings (p. 161).
Dow et al. (1999) argue that a fundamental weakness in the quality management literature is the
assumption, without any empirical testing, of the interdependence of quality management practices. (It
should be noted that the empirical findings supporting
the interdependence of quality management practices
were published by Anderson et al., 1995 and Flynn
et al., 1995.) Thus, another significant finding of
this study is the validation of the interdependence of
TQM practices, which supports both the results of
studies (e.g. Das et al., 2000; Flynn et al., 1995; Ho
et al., 2001) referred to earlier in this research and
the theory of TQM suggested by quality gurus (e.g.
Deming, 1993).
The findings also show that assessment of management leadership is necessary when the effectiveness
of TQM implementation is investigated. Management
leadership is directly related to training, employee
relations, supplier quality management, and product design, and indirectly related to quality data and
reporting, and process management. Effective leadership by management also indirectly affects firm
performance through the mediating effects of the
other six practices of TQM. The results also demonstrate the importance of two other infrastructural
practicestraining and employee relationsto the
assessment of TQM implementation. Training and
employee relations are directly related to quality data
and reporting, and they are indirectly related to supplier quality management, product/service design, and
process management through quality data and reporting. As with management leadership, they indirectly
affect firm performance.
Quality data and reporting, one of the core TQM
practices, does not have any direct effects on any of
the three performance dimensions; however, the scale
of quality data and reporting has indirect influences
on them through supplier quality management, product/service design, and process management. The confirmed indirect effect of training and direct effect of
quality data and reporting on process management in
this study explain the lack of significant relationships
found between task-related training and process management in the studies by Anderson et al. (1995), Forza
and Flippini (1998), and Rungtusanatham et al. (1998).
Thus, future studies should evaluate availability and
426
427
428
Acknowledgements
Funding to collect the data was provided by the
American Society for Quality and the Institute for
Supply ManagementNational and Dallas Chapter.
The author would like to thank Donald J. Newman,
Charles F. Bimmerle, William A. Luker, and Victor
Prybutok for their helpful comments and suggestions.
She is also very grateful to the respondents who filled
out the questionnaire for their cooperation.
429
430
1. Specific work-skills training (technical and vocational) given to hourly employees throughout the
organization (0.84).
2. Quality-related training given to hourly employees throughout the organization (0.96, t-value =
19.02).
3. Quality-related training given to managers and
supervisors throughout the organization (0.89,
t-value = 16.95).
4. Training in the total quality concept (i.e. philosophy of company-wide responsibility for quality)
throughout the organization.
5. Training in the basic statistical techniques (such as
histogram and control charts) in the organization
as a whole.
6. Training in advanced statistical techniques (such as
design of experiments and regression analysis) in
the organization as a whole.
7. Commitment of the organizational top management
to employee training.
8. Availability of resources for employee training in
the organization.
A.1.3. Employee relations
All items in this scale were adapted from Saraph
et al. (1989).
1. Extent to which quality circles or employee
involvement-type programs are implemented in
the organization.
2. Effectiveness of quality circles or employee
involvement-type programs in the organization.
3. Extent to which employees are held responsible for
error-free output.
4. Amount of feedback provided to employees on
their quality performance (0.79).
5. Degree of participation in quality decisions
by hourly/non-supervisory employees (0.84,
t-value = 13.55).
6. Extent to which building quality awareness
among employees is ongoing (0.90, t-value =
14.76).
7. Extent to which employees are recognized for
superior quality performance (0.76, t-value =
11.93).
8. Effectiveness of supervisors in solving problems/issues.
431
432
3. Profit growth.
4. Market share (0.78, t-value = 12.70).
5. Market share growth (0.99, t-value = 14.63).
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