Quality Management Practices in Service and Manufacturing Industry - Research Paper Example

Quality Management Practices Name Instructor’s Name Date Executive summary Effective quality management boosts the performance of both the service and the manufacturing industry (Abrahamson 1996). Quality management means that the standards in the enterprises conform to Six Sigma, ISO 9000 and Baldridge requirements. In this study, goals are set to carry out a research that would look into the differences between the service and the manufacturing industry and the similarities too. The service industry that is chosen is the health care industry while the manufacturing industry is a mobile phone industry (Clark 1999). The methodology employed was observation as well as filling up questionnaire forms by the workers of the enterprise and finally a primary analysis of the company’s documents (Farrar 2000). A literature review was also carried out on the articles of scholars who had studied the same. The differences revealed include the kind of output and the kind of input, which differ in both cases (Kanji 1998). It also revealed that the processes of production also differed between the two industries. The management and leadership in both industries should also observe some characteristics such as flexibility, dependability, and accountability to give the best results. Table of Contents Table of Contents 3 Context/background 4 Goals to achieve objective 5 Methodology 5 Situation appraisal 6 Complications from research 7 Analysis of situation appraisal 8 A. The differences between a service and a manufacturing industry 8 The similarities between service and manufacturing industry 10 B. Literature review 10 C. Leadership and management practices 11 Conclusion 13 References 14 Context/background Quality management has three major components, which are quality assurance, which is the systematic, and the planned actions that are necessary to provide the evidence needed to prove that a product or service provides the given requirements. Quality control is a continuous effort, which maintains reliability on a program (Bamford and Deibler 2003). In addition, quality improvement is done on purpose to improve reliability of achieving a given outcome (Abrahamson 1996). The process is not only based on the quality of the product or service in question but it focuses on the achievement of the same. Quality management System standards that are created by ISO 9000 usually certify the processes as well as the systems of an organization. The quality management is not meant to certify the quality of the product or the service. It is important as it helps a company to deliver the promises it made in its vision and mission statement (Harry & Schroeder 2000). ISO 9000 when applied correctly helps a company to retain their customer’s trough satisfying the customers. For organizations to receive ISO 9000 it has to undergo an audit by a third party certified firm and conform to all the standards stated in ISO 9000 (Kanji 1998).This then serves to assure the customers of the company that the particular organization is in a position to satisfy the needs of the customer. Six sigma is on the other hand a strategy in business management that seeks to improve the products and services of an organization by removing the existing errors. It also seeks to remove the difference that occurs in goods and services production. This system has several steps and the financial targets of the method are usually quantified (Harry & Schroeder 2000). In a sigma process, 99.99966% of products should be free of defects. Balbridge is a performance excellence program that is used in the US to improve the competency and performance of organizations. Goals to achieve objective 1. Identify a service industry that has been ISO 9000 Certified and get the appropriate information concerning the company and how ISO 9000 has helped in the accomplishment of the same. Six Sigma and Baldridge requirements should also be met by industry. 2. Identify a manufacturing industry that has been ISO 9000 certified and research on how the ISO 9000 has helped in the achievement of the goals of the organization 3. Compare the two effects in 1 &2 above and contrast them to come up with clarity of the similarities and differences that are exhibited above. 4. Use the information in (3) above to draw a conclusive report as to why this would be the case. 5. Identify reliable literature b y scholars or case studies on the subject of Six Sigma, ISO 9000, and Baldridge for each of the cases above to view the information given (Farrar 2000). 6. Identify management and leadership practices that can help in the further achievement of organizational quality management. This will be done both for the service industries and for the manufacturing industries. Methodology The methodology used for this research was primary documentation analysis if the company where the research was carried out, the review of ISO 9000, Six Sigma, Baldridge was also done and applied, and the data gathered from a theoretical background was examined (Abrahamson 1996). Observation method was also used where information was directly collected from the source firms. This included watching the process of production to get the first hand information from both the service and the manufacturing industry (Bamford and Deibler 2003). Data was also collected by handing standardized questionnaires to managers of both manufacturing and service industries (Harry & Schroeder 2000). Questionnaires were also handed to people in the same organizations who take part in the production process so as to ensure that first hand information was collected (Kanji 1998). Situation appraisal We set out to several health facilities in the city with the main intention of finding out what goes on in the service industry. The research was done in one health organization of a private nature and this was mainly run for the purposes of making profits (Abrahamson 1996). The other study was carried out from a health facility that was run by a church organization and the other two institutions in the city were government hospitals (Clark 1999). This diversity in the nature of the health facilities was geared towards ensuring that the nature of the result was inclusive irrespective of the type of business involved. The team set out to these organizations to literally observe what goes on and how the services are carried out in the different sectors .Apart from this the primary documents of these organizations were observed and data was analyzed so as to get s clear view of the activities of the entities and specifically how the organization has been performing over the last ten years. A particular concern was laid on the quality management of the entities and how it aids in improving the quality management of the organization. Furthermore, questionnaires were handed to the managers of these health facilities so that they may give their view concerning the same question (Farrar 2000). A similar study was done in the case of a manufacturing industry where we set out to an organization that is involved in manufacture of phones and phone accessories (Clark 1999). The team set out to carry the same procedures that they had carried in the health sector to ensure that the findings would be drawn from a similar context and that it would be unbiased form carrying different studies (Farrar 2000). Complications from research The study was limited by several issues which included the duration of the research was very short which was 8 weeks. The case study was also carried out in one country and therefore the results from the study may not indicate the view of the study in all the nations of the world, which may not reflect the same results (Abrahamson 1996). This is mainly because different studies have different characteristics that may be experienced in the different sectors off the world due to different environmental factors (Bamford and Deibler 2003). The other constraint is that the study of the service industry involved only the health sector and this may not indicate the true reflection of what other service industries may be like the tourism industry or the travel industry. The differences in the above reflections may be caused by the fact that health is a necessity while most other services may be of a luxurious nature (Bamford and Deibler 2003). The manufacturing industry from which the study was carried out was also of one nature, which is phone manufacturing. This may differ from other manufacturing industries such as the car manufacturing industries. Therefore, the report may not be so conclusive where all manufacturing industries are involved (Hahn, Hill, Hoerl and Zinkgraf 1999). Analysis of situation appraisal A. The differences between a service and a manufacturing industry The first difference that occurs between the two entities is the kind of output that they produce. Manufacturing entities usually produce goods that are semi finished or finished while service industry serve the end user by delivering the service directly to the user (Abrahamson 1996). The finished goods that are produced by the manufacturing industries are ready to be used by the final user while the semi-finished products are used by the next processing organization as a raw material (Farrar 2000). The second difference is the mode of payment whereby for the manufacturing industry the goods are paid for either in cash or installments by the buyer or the user organization while for service industries the goods can be paid for by a third party which could be an insurance company like in health services. It could also be made by the government or an arm of the government as was revealed by the hospital records (Clark 1999). The natures of products that are produced by the two industries also form a significance difference between the two industries (Naveh and Marcus 2004). The manufacturing industries produce tangible products, which are goods while the service industry produces intangible products, which are services. The products of manufacturing industries are things like fridges, which can be seen while the products of service industries like health industry are abstract. They usually include knowledge and ideas other than things that can be seen. The process of production is also a difference between the two industries where in the manufacturing industry the product is always predictable and the process of production is always well defined. in the service industry like the health industry there are some factors in the process of production that cannot be defined and the practitioner in that case goes b y the unique case that the patient is in. In this case, manufacturing can be referred to as an exact science while the service industry like medical practice is not exactly an exact science (Abrahamson 1996). This is proved by the fact that in manufacturing industry the organization seeks to increase its production by increasing the quantities produced and reducing the costs of production to increase the profits that the entities make. This is proved by the fact that manufacturing entities have even a system of predetermining or forecasting the profits, they intend o make in a particular season (Clark 1999). Service industry on the other hand requires that each particular customer be held as an individual and thus handled uniquely thus, there is no pre determination. Input is also a difference in the two industries. This is proved by the fact that for a particular number of manufactured goods to be produced the inputs are usually the same (Bamford and Deibler 2003). However, this is not the case in a service industry where the inputs vary according to the differences between the patients. The well being or the profitability of manufacturing entities is usually determined by the economic forces, the market conditions while for the service Industry, and in particular, the health care industry medication does not depend on seasons. The similarities between service and manufacturing industry The industries share similarities like they are both geared towards satisfying a particular need in the society (Farrar 2000). The service industry meets the needs of the consumers of the services and manufacturing industry meet the needs of the consumers of the goods. Both entities are also geared towards profit realization unless if an organization is a non-profit making organization (Kanji 1998). B. Literature review Many scholars have carried out a study concerning the subject of quality management in the service as well as the manufacturing industry. Cheng (2007) in his thesis concerning the same highlighted that the service industry is emerging to be on demand more than the manufacturing industry. He further noted that this mainly because the service industry represented the basic needs especially healthcare. In this thesis, he was also referring to the health industry and thus he found it very basic to the needs of the individual. The manufacturing industry on the other hand he gauged like representing the luxurious needs and he therefore contrasted the two (Abrahamson 1996). He added that the manufacturing industry depends on the economic conditions in the country to thrive while the service industry and in particular the health industry did not depend on the current situations in the market (De Feo & Barnard 2005). He further suggested that the quality management of the two industries ought to be prepared to always conform to the standards that are expected by Six Sigma, ISO 9000 and Baldridge theoretical approaches. Leo (2006) on the other hand in her thesis differed from the perspective that was presented by Cheng as he suggested that the manufacturing industry is in more demand than the service industry in the current world. He attributed this to the fact that in the current world people are looking for the latest technology. He therefore suggested in his thesis that the demand for cars and phones and other luxurious goods was on the rise especially in the current world (Clark 1999). He further noted that quality management had failed as entities were now more concerned about the quantities and not the qualities. He procrastinated that in future this would change. The differences in the perspective they held could have resulted from the different backgrounds where they based their studies and the methods of research that they employed. The difference in time between their theses could also have posed the problem. C. Leadership and management practices The leadership and management functions of an organization are very core to the success of any given organization. They are at the center of decision making for the industry and therefore their decisions go a long way in determining the activities of an entity (McAdam and Welsh 2000). It is for this reason that it is held that the quality management of either a manufacturing or a service industry is very dependent on the leadership team. Some characteristics that are important in the leadership of both manufacturing and service industry are listed and discussed 1. Appraisal /training of the workers. The HRM team should set out to ensure that the workers of the organization are sharpened in knowledge as they carry their duties (Leo, 2006). This involves the constant training of the workers by ensuring that there are forums of training and upgrading the standards that are held by the workers. In this training sessions the workers are taught of the new trends in the industry and new technology is introduced to them to ensure hey are always informed. 2. Consistency. Consistency in the management team is also highly called for to ensure that the entity they run can count on them (Flynn and Saladin 2001). Consistency is especially important when it comes to the achievement of the organizational goals. This will ensure that the path hat was drawn is followed until the goals are achieved. This will serve to create trust on the entity where the shareholders and the stakeholders of the organization are concerned (Pike & Barnes 1996). 3. Dependability. This is especially important in the service industry like the health industry, which we studied, as the patients need to be sure that they can depend on the decisions of the management team. It in this case means that the leadership must largely understand that there are wide ranges of people who depend on the entity and are counting to see how much they can depend on the given entity (Clark 1999). In the manufacturing industry, it means that the quality of the products should always be considered by the management so that they always satisfy the customers in they meet the expectation of their customers. This will serve to create further loyalty from the customers. 4. Flexibility. This is also a core characteristic that is counted on as long as the leadership and the management of an entity are concerned. The leadership and management of booth service and manufacture industries must be flexible enough to ensure hat thy change with the changes that happen in the market place. This will result into conformity with the expected standards. This is further necessitated by the fact that the customer needs and preferences keep changing and it is therefore very important that the company also conform (Bamford and Deibler 2003). This will create dependability on these organizations. In the service industry, this means that the current trends and designs must be incorporated in the services that are offered by the company and this will ensure that the organization meets the demands. 5. Accountability. The service and manufacturing industry’s workers are also expected to be accountable to the public and to the customers whom they serve. This accountability is also expected by the shareholders of the company and the stakeholders of this particular organization. This means that the company results are largely depended on by the public domain to gauge the company. In this context, it is important to conform. 6. Conformity. The service industry has some rules that must be adhered to for a certain entity to survive in this industry and this calls for the management team and the entire team to be conformed to the expected standards (Clark 1999). Some of these could be legal requirements from the government. Others could be requirements from the professional bodies that run these industry and therefore the teams must be fully conformed. Conclusion It is evident that quality management as laid down by Six Sigma, ISO 9000, and Baldridge theoretical approaches is of utmost importance for entity success. This is true for both the service industry as well as the manufacturing industry s indicated above. The two forms of industries have major differences in their approach to fulfillment of production, which range from the production method to the inputs and outputs. They however n the other hand share some characteristics like the fact that they are all geared towards profit realization. The management teams of both enterprises are expected to be very aggressive as far as quality management is concerned to ensure that the best products are produced by the entities. References Abrahamson, E 1996, Managerial fashion, Academy of Management Review, vol. 21, no. 1, pp. 254-285. Bamford, R & Deibler, W 2003, ISO 9001: 2000 for Software and Systems Providers: An Engineering Approach (1st ed.), New York, CRC-Press. Cheng, H 2007, Service enterprise integration: an enterprise engineering perspective, London, Butterworth-Heinemann. Clark, T 1999, Success through quality: support guide for the journey to continuous improvement, New York: American Society for Quality. De Feo, J & Barnard, W 2005, JURAN Institute's Six Sigma Breakthrough and Beyond - Quality Performance Breakthrough Methods, Tata, Tata McGraw-Hill Publishing Company Limited. 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