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The quality movement in Brazil

a a
Edson Keyso de Miranda Kubo & Milton Carlos Farina
a
Departament of Management Science, Universidade Municipal
de São Caetano do Sul (USCS), Av. Celso Garcia, 1907, bl. 25,
apto.71, CEP 03015-000, Belem, Sao Paulo, Brazil
Published online: 16 Aug 2012.

To cite this article: Edson Keyso de Miranda Kubo & Milton Carlos Farina (2013) The quality
movement in Brazil, Total Quality Management & Business Excellence, 24:1-2, 19-30, DOI:
10.1080/14783363.2012.704270

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 Total Quality Management, 2013
Vol. 24, No. 1, 19 –30, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14783363.2012.704270

The quality movement in Brazil

Edson Keyso de Miranda Kubo∗ and Milton Carlos Farina

Departament of Management Science, Universidade Municipal de São Caetano do Sul (USCS),

Av. Celso Garcia, 1907, bl. 25, apto.71, CEP 03015-000, Belem, Sao Paulo, Brazil

The main objective of this article is to provide a critical review of the quality movement
in Brazil. The Japanese quality movement has been considered a model for developing
countries such as Brazil, and several Japanese tools and methodologies for quality have
been imported by companies. Quality discourse emerged in Brazil at the end of the
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1970s in a peculiar context. It was initialised by the implementation of quality

control measures. After this, total quality control and total quality management
(TQM) were implemented in a specific way, which is detached from teamwork.
A critical review has shown that quality programmes in contemporary Brazilian
companies seem to lead them to a strategic means of management that emphasises
more contact and interaction between top managers and the shop floor. Nevertheless,
companies seem to be more preoccupied with obtaining ISO certification than with
implementing holistic approaches to quality such as TQM.
Keywords: Brazil; quality movement; total quality management; ISO certification

Introduction
Japan’s quality movement has been considered a model for developing countries such as
Brazil. Quality discourse emerged in Brazil by the end of the 1970s in a peculiar context.
It was initialised by the implementation of quality control (QC) circles. After this, total
quality control (TQC) and total quality management (TQM) approaches began to be
implemented.
Historically, Brazilian industries have been supported by the government through
protectionism. However, in the 1990s the new president established an open market. In
the context of the international competition this brought, Brazilian industries were
forced to improve their capabilities and thus began to implement the Japanese approach
to quality. Consequently, Japanese tools of management such as TQM have been
implemented on a large scale. According to Dahlgaard, Kristensen, and Kanji (1994)
and Hung, Lien, Fang, and McLean (2010), TQM can be defined as an approach to
obtain total quality by involving everyone’s daily commitment. This has been symbolised
by a new management pyramid that comprises the five core principles of TQM: (1)
management commitment/leadership (the foundation), (2) focus on the customer and the
employee, (3) continuous improvements, (4) everybody’s participation, and (5) focus on
facts (process and measurements).
Although TQM, as an advanced managerial approach (Barron & Gjerde, 1996; Black
& Porter, 1995; Dahlgaard-Park, 2011; Douglas & Judge, 2001; Hradesky, 1995;
Kitahara & Noumi, 1991; Larson & Sinha, 1995; Schonberger, 1992; Van Der Wiele,
Williams, & Dale, 2000), has been implemented in Brazilian industries, it has been
observed that management and work organisation do not seem to distance themselves

∗
Corresponding author. Email: edsonkubo@gvmail.br

# 2013 Taylor & Francis

 20 E.K. de M. Kubo and M.C. Farina

from the Tayloristic mode (Bianco, 1999). This article is based on a literature survey,
and its main objective is to outline the quality movement in Brazil, and its primary
characteristics.
The article begins by giving a brief overview of the quality movement in Japan that
has influenced Brazilian organisations. It then summarises the background of the quality
movement in Brazil, from its foundation to the implementation of TQM. Finally, the
article reflects on the main characteristics of quality in Brazil.

The advent of the quality movement in Japan

Because of the fact that the quality tools used by Brazilian companies have largely been
imported from Japan (Fleury & Fleury, 1997), it would be prudent to briefly summarise the
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Japanese quality movement and its main characteristics. However, it is important to clarify
that the theory of quality management did not originate in Japan. In fact, it was introduced
by Deming and Juran after World War II, when JUSE (Japanese Union of Science and
Engineers) invited them (Dahlgaard-Park, 2011; JUSE, 1998). According to Dahlgaard-
Park (2011), it is difficult to provide a clear time-based distinction between the different
phases of the quality movement, due to the transitional or overlapping elements therein.
Nevertheless, Dahlgaard-Park was able to identify Japanese learning patterns (Japanese
morphogenesis) throughout history concerning the quality movement. Based on this
Japanese morphogenesis, it is possible to observe four phases (Dahlgaard-Park, 2011)
of development:
(a) Following the awareness of the need to change, Japan began by ‘importing and
adopting’ quality management theory immediately after World War II, and
through to the early 1960s.
(b) From the 1960s to the mid-1970s, Japan not only digested, but also implemented
and adapted the imported quality management theory, and simultaneously
stressed the importance of participation and involvement of the entire organisation
(i.e. ‘Japanization’). Japan emphasised the need to learn, and to train employees,
as well as taking a long-term view with respect to dealing with quality.
(c) From the mid-1970s to the early 1990s, Japan further developed the imported or
adopted foreign elements, and began to export these to other countries.
(d) The final phase – from the early 1990s until today – has been characterised by
crises and stagnation. This phase has focused on reinventing, innovating and
implementing new breakthrough quality characteristics, in order to recover
from such crises.
Drawing on Dahlgaard-Park’s conceptualisations of Japanese morphogenesis, it is also
worth emphasising the intense utilisation of QC circles in the Japanese quality movement.
According to Kondo (1995), QC circles are characterised by their autonomy in Japan.
This means that circle members can effectively participate in quality management by
planning their own work without interference from management. In this sense, QC
circles can be taken as a form of teamwork training (Gutiérrez, Torres, & Molina,
2010; Ishikawa, 1985).
As mentioned above, the Japanese quality movement has been an important reference
for Brazilian consultants, researchers and practitioners. Although Japanese approaches to
quality, such as QC circles, have been imported by Brazilian companies, there is no clear
explanation regarding the process of their implementation and the beginning of the quality
 Total Quality Management 21

movement in Brazil. The next section provides a literature review concerning the quality
movement in Brazil.

Origin of quality issues in Brazil

In order to clarify the emergence of quality discourse in Brazil, it is useful to explain, in a
brief way, the recent history of Brazilian industry. Brazilian industrialisation can be
divided into three distinct periods (Fleury & Fleury, 1997):
(a) 1945 – 1980: Formation of Brazilian industrial parks.
(b) 1980– 1990: Transition.
(c) After 1990: Insertion in international market.
Three types of enterprises have been constructed in Brazilian industrial parks. These are
private, multinational and state-owned enterprises. Initially, Brazilian private enterprises
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occupied traditional sectors such as textiles, food and shoes. In fact, these sectors were
the targets of an ‘import substitution policy’, which was established by the government.
The objective of this policy was not to impose restrictions on the importation of products,
but rather to provoke their substitution by Brazilian industries. These industries were con-
structed before and during World War II.
World War II instigated the necessity and opportunity in Brazil to create a local
capacity for the production of essential goods, due to the interruption of supply from
developed countries (Fleury & Fleury, 1997). Thus, machinery- and agriculture-related
industries emerged.
State-owned enterprises were built from the end of the 1940s to the middle of the
1960s, and were primarily dedicated to petrochemical products, oil, minerals and steel.
Two state-owned enterprises of note were installed at this time: Companhia Siderúrgica
Nacional (steel industry) in 1947, and Petrobrás (petrochemical industry) in 1952.
In 1956, President Juscelino Kubitschek began to drive the country’s focus on accel-
erated industrialisation. The main slogan of this government was ‘50 years in 5’. Thus,
Brazil started to produce durable consumer goods on a large scale. There were also incen-
tives for the installation of multinational automotive enterprises’ subsidiaries in Brazil.
These subsidiaries were expected to bring, through their managerial and technological
knowledge, benefits to all Brazilian industrial parks (Arbix & Zilbovicius, 1997).
In Brazil, the multinational industries began to produce according to projects that were
being developed in their original countries. The production processes were adapted to
local conditions, in terms of materials, equipment, and labour.
An important point in Brazilian history that also affected industry was the Revolution
of 1964. Under this Revolution, a military dictatorship was established. The Revolution
included intervention in approximately 5000 labour unions (Fleury & Fleury, 1997),
and workers therefore became limited in terms of the action they were able to take.
Thus, the Revolution influenced the behaviour of workers, foremen, managers and so on.
At the beginning of the 1970s, the Brazilian government invested in the installation of
the aeronautics industry, for military purposes. The end of the 1970s marked the develop-
ment of information technology (IT) industries in Brazil.
The Brazilian government was striving to install a national infrastructure, and utilised
a model of development known as ‘tripartite’. The model adopted was in fact denominated
tripartite, to the extent that private and public capital were provided to foreign enterprises
that were, in general, suppliers of technology.
The process of industrialisation described above was a result of the ‘import substi-
tution policy’. This policy provided several benefits to Brazilian industries, such as a
 22 E.K. de M. Kubo and M.C. Farina

high degree of protectionism, subsidies of price regulation for public utilities (electrical
energy, steel, combustibles, etc.), and the control of wage rates.
On the other hand, the government imposed very high taxes on these industries.
Consequently, instead of improving their competitive power, these industries started to
lobby hard for changes in tax laws and subsidies. In this context, industries were operating
in such a comfortable environment that there was no need to worry about competition
(Wood & Caldas, 2007). Throughout the process of industrialisation, the role played by
technology was rarely considered to be strategic. Moreover, the formation of local
technological capability was scattered and volatile.
Another aspect of this process of industrialisation was the common form of work
organisation. The organisation of work in the Brazilian production system followed a
traditional standard for developing countries. Therefore, there was no motivation for
better utilisation of workers’ abilities, since the abundant labour force was cheap and
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without qualifications: ‘The industries, despite their type of production system, presented
a common standard of work organisation, which was an adaptation of a model based on
Taylorism’ (Fleury & Fleury, 1997, p. 130).
In Brazil, this kind of work organisation brought about difficulties with respect to the
improvement of workers’ abilities, high turnovers and low individual wages. It also
inhibited contact and communication among workers. Teamwork, therefore, could not
emerge. The Brazilian form of work organisation was diametrically opposed to that
exhibited in Japanese industries (Fleury & Fleury, 1997).
This situation started to change in 1978, with the revival of trade unions and political
transformations. The period from 1980 to 1990 represented a transition from a military
regime to democracy, which was associated with the emergence of quality discourse in
Brazilian industries. Rumours about industrial modernisation based on microelectronics
technology spread quickly at the beginning of the 1980s. Threats of unemployment due
to technology created a great movement against structural changes in industries.
Moreover, in Brazil, the industrial policies were no longer effective because of the
macroeconomic instability and the implementation of successive economic policies of
stabilisation.
Quality discourse emerged in the Brazilian scenario at the end of 1970s in a very
specific way. With the process of democratisation and the end of the ‘economic
miracle’ of the 1970s, workers and labour unions began to demand more participation
in their industries. Thus, industries cleverly offered QC circles as a modern system of par-
ticipation. Through QC circles, industries could solve two problems: workers’ demands
for increased participation, and improvements in quality. The diffusion of QC circles in
Brazil was fast, and in 1982, Brazil became the second country in the world in terms of
the presence of QC circles, after Japan. However, industries implemented QC circles
without making changes to their organisational strategies. Thus, several QC circle pro-
grammes were installed only for a short period of time. During this period, other Japanese
managerial tools were implemented, such as just-in-time (JIT) and, prior to this, kanban.
Kanban was diffused before JIT because Brazilian industries had, relatively, no exact
information about Japanese methods and techniques (Fleury & Fleury, 1997).
Within this period, the Brazilian government promoted the initial orientation toward
quality issues using initiatives such as the Brazilian programme of support for scientific
and technological development. The World Bank financed these programmes. Among
other projects, from 1985 to 1987 the government developed TIB (Basic Industrial Tech-
nology), which was defined in terms of three components: quality, metrology and norm.
The government also promoted the activities of the INMETRO (National Institute of
 Total Quality Management 23

Metrology). At the end of this period, Brazilian industries were influenced by the inter-
national trend and started to aim for ISO 9000 series registration (Pieracciani, 1996).
Quality discourse in Brazil, therefore, originated through the introduction of QC
circles. In other words, QC circles constituted the first step of the quality movement in
Brazil, along with the spread of Japanese quality tools and other techniques.
Salerno (1985), in his research on the Brazilian Style of QC circles through case
studies of 27 companies from various fields such as electronics, metallurgy, steel, auto-
mobiles, textiles, chemistry and data processing, affirmed that in the Brazilian version
of QC circles, participation is weak. Circles, therefore, have no power and just give
opinions about the topics at hand. Thus, in Brazil, a QC circle is not a synonym for team-
work, because management constantly interferes in circle members’ activities, and circle
members cannot plan work by themselves. According to Salerno (1985), the implemen-
tation of QC circles in Brazil has not changed the organisation of work, which is still
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based on Taylorism, and there is therefore still no teamwork in Brazilian industries.

In fact, the Brazilian style of QC circles was not implemented to promote effective
worker participation. As explained in the previous section, QC circles emerged under a
period of transition from a military regime to democracy. Economic crisis, political
instability and the manifestation of labour unions marked this democratisation process.
In this context, Brazilian enterprises started to invoke the ideal of participation, because
they wanted to create their democratic image.

The period after 1990: the new competitive context and the emergence of TQM
In March of 1990, Fernando Collor de Mello assumed the presidency of Brazil. President
Collor’s mandate marked the transition to a competitive environment for Brazilian indus-
tries. As emphasised above, from the outset policies concerning subsidies and protection-
ism have supported industries in Brazil. Although Brazilian industries have, in the past,
faced problems regarding high rates of inflation, they have, at least, been protected by
the government and have operated in a closed market. At that time, therefore, industries
could successfully protect their profits from inflation.
In this context, President Collor decided to establish an ‘open market’ in Brazil. This
resulted in a trading situation that allowed companies from other countries to conduct
business freely in Brazil. This new competitive situation forced Brazilian industries to
become preoccupied with costs and quality (Humphrey, 1995). For this reason, several
industrial policies were implemented in the context of this open market and international
competition.
In November of 1990, President Collor formulated the Brazilian Programme of
Quality and Productivity (PBQP). The PBQP was implemented in November of 1990,
and its objective was to promote the adoption of managerial techniques which would
increase the productivity of Brazilian industries through competitive prices and the
quality of their products (Oliveira, 1994).
Technicians from the federal government and state government, along with 50 private
entities, elaborated the PBQP. It was composed of strategies related to human resources,
technological services, orientation and motivation, consultancy and industrial policies.
The National Programme of Quality (PNQ) was established by the PBQP in 1992.
It included the Baldrige Prize. In 1992 and 1993, this prize was awarded to IBM and
Xerox, respectively.
Brazilian industries continued to implement quality tools and other methods for the
purpose of improving their competitive power (Gehani, 1993). Most of these industries
 24 E.K. de M. Kubo and M.C. Farina

based themselves on the Japanese version of TQC. Regarding the introduction of TQC in
Brazil, Fleury and Fleury (1997, pp. 141 – 142) explained that:
There are two approaches that should be emphasized. In some enterprises, the program is
called TQC – Total Quality Control, or something similar to it. In others, the program is
called JIT – Just-in-Time or something equivalent to this term. Under these denominations,
a variety of production management’s Japanese techniques can be observed (Statistical
Process Control – SPC, small group activities, kanban, etc). The selection of the programs’
title depends on the main problem of production. If industries are having problems with
scrap and rework, then they choose the TQC. If industries are having problems with the
continuous flow production system, specially the inventories, then they introduce the JIT.
Therefore, the Brazilian style of TQC, in practice, does not necessarily tackle the same
aspects as the Japanese style of TQC (company wide quality control), such as its total
commitment to improvement, and QC circles.
The subject of TQC has been studied since 1984 by Dr Vicenti Falconi Campos, who
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was a consultant of the Christiano Ottoni Foundation (FCO). Campos opted for the
Japanese Style of TQC, from 1986 to 1988, during his tour around the world, due to his
involvement in a project with the Brazilian government and the World Bank. Campos
is also responsible for the diffusion of TQM in Brazil. In the 1990s, the FCO promoted
the diffusion of Japanese TQM (this institution signed a treaty with JUSE). FCO, therefore,
strived to promote the TQM model, particularly in Brazil (Campos, 1996).
Policy management, cross-functional management, and daily management techniques
and tools for control (such as plan, do, check, act cycles, Pareto diagrams, Ishikawa dia-
grams, flow charts, etc.) associated with human resources management made up the TQM
model that spread over Brazil (Campos, 1996, 1999). Campos (1996) points out that the
main aspects of human resources management under the philosophy of TQM are improve-
ments in recruitment and selection, education and training programmes, employment
security, bonuses, job enrichment, utilisation of workers’ abilities and high worker morale.
Although the Brazilian quality movement has been described so far in this article as a
version of that seen in Japan, it should be noted that the Brazilian movement did not follow
the basic principles of quality management seen in Japan. Table 1 shows the manner in
which it evolved in Brazil.
In order to elucidate the TQM configuration in Brazil in its heyday it, the results of
prominent research concerning this period can be considered. Bianco (1999) characterised
TQM in Brazilian industries during its most popular phase through case studies in 13 com-
panies. Initially, Bianco (1999) showed that TQM in Brazil simplifies the organisational
structure and emphasises exchanges of information by opening new channels of communi-
cation with clients. However, there were no meaningful changes in Brazilian management
and work organisation, since they were still based on Taylorism.
In the first part of the research, which involved 11 companies, Bianco (1999) con-
firmed that around nine industries were implementing a cell system of production,
which was based upon a working principle wherein a small number of people come
together to function as a cohesive group, recognise that they are a group, and interact to
accomplish a common, whole task (Jackson, 1978). However, among these nine industries
there were no signs of group-working on the shop floors. Bianco (1999) then conducted
two further case studies concerning PNQ winners from the IT and manufacturing
sectors, with around 1,000 employees each, and found the same results.
The TQM model in Brazil did not promote changes in employment security and team-
work. In fact, the implementation of TQM resulted in the dismissal of a great number of
workers, and was thus associated with high rates of turnover. Therefore, TQM did not
 Total Quality Management 25

Table 1. Brazilian learning patterns with respect to TQM.

Phase 3
Phase 1 (1945–1980) Phase 2 (1980– 1990) (Post 1990) Phase 4
Formation of Brazilian Transition from Open market Challenges towards
industrial parks military regime to competitiveness of
democracy Brazilian enterprises
Aim towards accelerated Struggles and PBQP Perceptions about the
industrialisation demands for more TQM are not clear.
participation in Other managerial
industries by quality tools such as
workers and labour lean manufacturing or
unions Six Sigma seem to
‘Import substitution Diffusion of QC Diffusion of have overtaken TQM,
policy’ circles in Brazil, Japanese TQM even though the
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with a specific in Brazil by Dr contents of these new

adaptation, since Campos from terms can be
QC circles were not the FCO understood within the
particular about TQM framework
group working or
even teamwork
Tripartite model-private Importation of Effort to survive
and public capital Japanese against
provided to foreign managerial tools international
enterprises that were, such as kanban, competition
in general, suppliers which arrived
of technology before JIT
Work organisation Introduction of TQC
followed a model in Brazil
based on Taylorism

promote significant changes, such as delegation of autonomy, to the shop floor. Manage-
ment approaches and the organisation of work could not be distanced from Taylorism,
which differs fundamentally from any teamwork system (Dale & Bunney, 1999; Dean
& Bowen, 1994; Okubayashi, 2000).
Following this initial description of TQM, the next section provides information
about the quality movement in Brazil and reflects on its future trends, which correspond
to Phase 4 in Table 1.

Perceptions towards the quality movement in Brazil

Brazilian industries have based themselves on the Japanese quality movement for the
purpose of implementing TQM. However, in this article, it was observed that the Japanese
style of TQM is fundamentally different from the Brazilian version.
The Japanese style of TQM focuses on teamwork, and emerged before QC circles in a
considerable number of Japanese industries. From the literature review, it was perceived
that teamwork has been supporting quality programmes since the 1960s. Teamwork,
which is based on effective worker participation, represents an essential element of
TQM in Japan.
The Brazilian style of TQM is not particular about teamwork. Even with the
implementation of QC circles, which are a type of teamwork, the organisation of work
continues to be based on Taylorism. As shown in the critical review, teamwork was
 26 E.K. de M. Kubo and M.C. Farina

disregarded during the Brazilian process of industrialisation, since the common form of
work organisation was based on Taylorism.
Nevertheless, there are some positive signs regarding the quality movement in Brazil
that can be seen in the results of the survey, conducted in 2009, involving 336 pro-
fessionals from different sectors of the Brazilian industry. Some of these are summarised
in Table 2.
According to this survey, 89.1% of the firms have ISO 9001 and 28.5% have ISO
14001. These certifications have raised internal awareness about the importance of
quality and about how to better fit activities to clients’ expectations.
Another remarkable result relates to the adoption of some kind of participative man-
agement, as shown in Table 3. The first three items are interaction between managers
and employees, propagation of information across the company, and the will of managers
to facilitate processes in the company. Unlike at the beginning of the quality movement, it
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seems that quality programmes in contemporary Brazilian companies help to mitigate the
effects of clear separation between top managers and employees, which is common in
Tayloristic work organisation. According to Mintzberg (1994), distance and lack of com-
munication between top managers and the shop floor lead to a management style that
downplays the employees’ roles. In this manner, it is expected that quality programmes
would minimise this distance through intense communication, orientation and support
from top management, so that companies can establish a culture of quality and thereby
enjoy more competitive advantages (Fotopoulos, Psomas, & Vouza, 2010; Liao, Chang,
& Wu, 2010; Mintzberg, 1994; Owlia, 2010; Waldman, 1994).

Table 2. Benefits of quality programmes in Brazilian industries.

Better internal awareness related to quality 83.2%
Better correlation with clients’ expectations 80.5%
Better communication with clients 54.7%
Growth of company share in the market 51.6%
Productivity 18.3%
Client retention 36.3%
Better financial results 27.0%
No benefits 0.8%
Do not know 0.8%
Others 4.3%
Source: Adapted from Banas (2009).

Table 3. Benefits of quality programmes in Brazilian industries.

Stimulation of the interaction between managers and employees 68.5%
Sharing of information across the enterprise 58.0%
Management guidance and facilitation of processes 53.9%
Stimulation of the formation of quality teams 37.2%
Expression of ideas and opinions 56.8%
Promotion of employee participation in decisions 35.1%
Implementation of programmes such as ‘employee of the month’ 8.9%
Others 3.3%
None 11.6%
Do not know 0.9%
Source: Adapted from Banas (2009).
 Total Quality Management 27

Table 4. Existing quality programmes in Brazilian companies.

Quality programme Quantity %
ISO 9001:2000 164 82.8
ISO 14000 78 39.4
Six Sigma 46 23.2
Process management 45 22.7
Learning organisation 12 6.1
TQM 31 15.7
ISO TS 16949 27 13.6
ISO OHSAS 18001 18 9.1
QS 9000 13 6.6
ISO 14000 78 39.4
ISO 9001:2000 164 82.8
Others 56 28.3
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Source: Pinto and Lee Ho (2006, p. 195).

Pinto and Lee Ho (2006) also carried out research on the 1000 biggest companies in
Brazil, and 192 answered their questionnaire. From the results of the research, the
authors found out that: (1) companies that adopted the Six Sigma programme were
those with a more traditional view of quality issues, since they have adopted other
quality programmes in the past; (2) companies that had invested in the adoption of a
quality programme achieved more success in terms of their performance indicators;
(3) the main causes of failure in ISO, Six Sigma and TQM were related to the scarcity
of financial resources with respect to their implementation, and a lack of support from
top managers. Among these companies, 82.8% had ISO 9001 and 39.4% had ISO 14000,
but only 23.2% were part of the Six Sigma programme, and less than 20% had TQM.
As shown in Table 4, TQM does not seem to be viewed as the main quality programme
by the respondent companies. It seems that Brazilian companies are more preoccupied
with implementation of and certification from ISO programmes. When it comes to identi-
fying the main difficulties associated with the implementation of TQM, the complexity of

Table 5. Main difficulties during the implementation of quality programmes.

ISO 9001:2000 Six Sigma TQM
Complexity of the operations Availability of workers for Complexity of the operations
performed by the training, among other activities performed by the
organisation (65.9%) (45.7%) organisation (64.5%)
Availability of workers for Complexity of the operations Workers’ educational
training, among other performed by the organisation background (38.4%)
activities (62.2%) (39.1%)
Preparation of documents for Internal training for Six Sigma, Preparation of documents
certification (61.6%) since it is more complex than (35.5%)
other programmes (32.6%)
Analysis of gains and losses Ability to utilise quality tools Available internal staff for
from the programme (30.4%) implementation (32.3%)
(50.0%)
Availability of internal staff Ability to utilise quality tools
for implementation (48.2%) (29.0%)
Source: Adapted from Pinto and Lee Ho (2006, p. 197).
 28 E.K. de M. Kubo and M.C. Farina

the operations performed by the organisations and the educational background of workers
are the most-cited factors. In the case of ISO 9001:2000 and Six Sigma, the difficulties
are also related mainly to the availability of workers for training, and the preparation of
documents for certification (Table 5).
According to Pinto and Lee Ho (2006), the main reasons for implementing quality
programmes were improving the quality and productivity of products and services
(87.8% of the total), and meeting clients’ demands (71.3% of the total). The main
difficulties related to the complexity of operations conducted by companies (65.9% of
the total) and the time employees are able to dedicate to training programmes (62.2%).
It is important to mention that several variables were correlated and were statistically
significant, for example: there were financial gains versus the amount invested in the ISO
9000 programme (r ¼ 0.56, p , 0.001), the TQM programme (r ¼ 0.89, p , 0.001), and
the Six Sigma programme (r ¼ 0.39, p , 0.019). ISO, Six Sigma, process management
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and learning organisation seem to have overtaken TQM, even though all of these concepts
are embedded in the TQM framework.

A synthesis
In this article, it was clarified that in the Brazilian process of industrialisation, the common
form of work organisation was adapted from a model based on Taylorism. It did not con-
tribute to the improvement of workers’ abilities. In fact, it had a negative impact on worker
organisation, since workers had difficulties in communicating among themselves, and their
participation on the shop floor was neglected. There was no incentive to utilise workers’
abilities since the labour force, which was abundant and cheap, had no qualifications.
In this context, quality discourse emerged in Brazil in the end of 1970s. With the tran-
sition from a military regime to democracy (1980– 1990), workers and labour unions
started to demand more participation in industries. This pressure forced industries to
attend to this requirement. Consequently, Brazilian industries offered QC circles as a
new system of participation. By offering QC circles, the industries could solve two pro-
blems at the same time. The first was the problem of workers’ demands for participation,
and second was the improvement of quality. However, the main reason for the implemen-
tation of QC circles in Brazil was that industries, in the context of the economic crisis,
political instability and the manifestation of labour unions, aimed to create a democratic
image by adhering to the ideal of worker participation. However, QC circles in Brazil
did not promote effective worker participation. After that, other quality tools and tech-
niques were increasingly imported from Japan.
In the 1990s, Brazilian industries were put into a new competitive context due to the
end of protectionism. Industries in Brazil had been protected since World War II through
governmental subsidies. Even high inflation could not prejudice industries’ profits.
Moreover, they were operating in a closed market and there was no need to be preoccupied
with technological innovation or competition.
With the election of President Fernando Collor de Mello, who came to power in March
1990, an open market was established. Under this context, industries had to pay more
attention to quality issues. The president also formulated quality programmes in order
to orient industries towards the improvement of their competitive power.
Brazilian industries continued to implement Japanese quality tools and also based
themselves on the Japanese style of TQC. TQC was studied by Dr Vicente Falconi
Campos, who was the consultant of the FCO. This institution, which had signed a treaty
with JUSE, oriented Brazilian industries towards implementation of quality programmes.
 Total Quality Management 29

Campos is also considered to be responsible for the spread of TQM in Brazil. However,
the Japanese style of TQM differs from the Brazilian version. The model of TQM used in
Brazil did not bring about meaningful changes such as delegation of autonomy to the
factory floor. Therefore, management and work organisation continue to be based on
Taylorism.
Drawing from recent research involving the quality movement in Brazil (Banas, 2009;
Pinto & Lee Ho, 2006), it is possible to observe that Brazilian organisations are more inter-
ested in certifications and quality tools, such as ISO and Six Sigma, than TQM. TQM does
seem to be the target of a few companies, but the difficulties associated with its implemen-
tation are also common to the other two quality programmes (ISO and Six Sigma). The
educational background of Brazilian workers, their availability to participate in training
programmes, the complexity of operations performed by companies, and the preparation
of documents are the most-cited obstacles with respect to the implementation of quality
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programmes.

Concluding remarks
The results of the critical review also showed that quality programmes in contemporary
Brazilian companies seem to lead them to implement a strategic management style
(Mintzberg, 1994) that emphasises more contact and interaction between top managers
and the shop floor. Employees’ perceptions about effective communication between top
managers and employees could be identified in the surveys. Although TQM’s framework
has been disregarded recently by Brazilian companies, it contains all the necessary
elements that should be taken as driving forces to lead organisations to competitiveness.
Strict observation of Japanese morphogenesis, together with a more concentrated effort
from Brazilian organisations, are necessary to spread the quality culture, since their
positive effects on competitiveness have been observed in this critical review.

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