The Quality Management of the Adidas Football Boots Wear - Case Study Example

Title: Quality Management. Institution Course Module: Name: Instructor August 13, 2009 Executive Summary In the current competitive world, Managers of companies need to implement effective control and evaluation measures through emphasis on systems and skills of management. The economics around quality has been in existence for many years, while the concept of Prevention, Appraisal and Failure costs (PAF, see Appendix. 4) has been taught for many years to students and managers alike. Although concepts of economics quality together with model of PAF have been tried by various organizations, Adidas is one of the few companies that have managed to strike the delicate balance in this field. Nevertheless, aspects of customer satisfaction and actual costs that determine the price have been instrumental in determining the success of the brand in the market. Managing quality through a number of theoretical models and theories suggested by a number of management experts has ensured that Adidas, which has long been living in the shadows of American brand Nike, and compared to its other family business rival Puma. However, the brand has quickly gained a fair share of the global market more so in the soccer/football boots market in the last decade. Total Quality Management has featured as the most prominent quality management theory in the company’s quality management initiatives. One principal product whose marketing and production conspicuously shows TQM from its production to marketing is the soccer boot F50.8 launched last year. Table of contents Executive summary ………………………………………………………… Introduction ………………………………………………………………… Comparison Table…………………………………………………………… TQM ………………………………………………………………………… Customer Focus ……………………………………………………………… Toyota Way ………………………………………………………………… Six Sigma …………………………………………………………………… Ethics ………………………………………………………………………… Conclusion …………………………………………………………………… Bibliography ………………………………………………………………… Appendix …………………………………………………………………… Introduction Adidas is a sportswear and footwear manufacturing company based in Germany. The company is involved in a number of sports such as football, volleyball and tennis among others. It was established in 1924 by two brothers Adi and Rudolf Dassler, hence the name Adidas. However, in 1948, Dassler left to form his own company called Puma to compete with his brother. The company success story is highlighted by the use of celebrities and sports personalities as their brand ambassadors. This includes Run DMC, Missy Elliot among others. However, the use of celebrities was more of a tactic used in the American market than globally, a move which was replicated by Nike which produces sub brands of sports celebrities such as Jordan, and Allen Iverson. This paper will thus trace the quality management of the Adidas football boots wear and specifically targeting the F50 series with the latest being the F50.8 TUNiT which was launched early least year. Product Comparison table F50.8 TUNiT features Rating F50.8 TUNiT  5 colored F50.8 uppers, with 3 different materials, 2 different chassis, 3 stud systems and 2 insoles  The new engineered lightweight TUNIT microfiber synthetic upper offers soft and glove-like fit. 2nd density, semi-clear, 3-D heel/bottom unit for optimal combination of stability and flexibility. Lace cover for increased kicking area. Agion antimicrobial lining to stop odor, bacterial and fungal growth  All TUNIT elements are compatible and interchangeable. These uppers work with all other TUNIT elements including those of the F50.6 and F50.7.Not a complete shoe  WEIGHT: (5.8 oz) Imported.Note: All TUNIT elements are compatible, including those of the F50.6 and F50.7. Predator absolute Revolutionary exchangeable PowerPulse technology, meaning the player can decide between a light boot or a powerful boot. Versatile sockliner gives the player a choice between speed with the light option or power with the PowerPulse sockliner. Improved the ’swervability’ of your strike with an enhanced region on the side of the boot. Made with Kangaroo leather, these boots feel very comfortable Predator Powerswerve Features an extra 10 grams of additional tungsten powder in the insole additional liquid rubber on the medial vamp TQM and Adidas John Stark (1998) claims, Total Quality Management is an approach to structure of management borrowed from Japanese Industry of 1950's which has increasing become popular in western countries from early 1980's. According to John Stark associates, Total Quality describes organization culture and attitude of a company with the objective of providing services and products that satisfies customer needs. The program is built on policy of eradicating waste and defects in company operations through quality cultural practices (Stark 1998).Roy Dutta defined TQM as a set of practices conducted by management in any organization that have clear aim of ensuring consistent in meeting requirements of customers (Dutta n.d.). The Adidas Company has incorporated a tag line, “Tuned for Speed”, to go with the marketing of the shoes to demonstrate its most conspicuous quality as speed. While sped might be better associated with runners and sprinters, the element of speed is important to football players. In fact according to some critics, the idea of speed is deeply borrowed from the “air” in Nike basketball shoes that meant to imply the shoes assist in taking off into the air or jumping. The main focus of TQM is to control and measure the continuous process of improvement (Appendix 3). Adidas has always emphasized on quality and performance from its products and all the preceding processes that have maintained the company as a global brand since its inception. This is ideally reflective of the objectives laid out by TQM. The model operates on the principles of quality control, planning, auditing, surveillance, circle, assurance and changes in the health of the organization through awareness and networking of the organization activities (Dutta n.d.).Total quality management (TQM) is characterized by commitment and leadership by top leadership, fast response, customer- driven quality, continuous improvement, actions based on facts, participation by employees and TQM culture as the key aspects. Development of products in TQM environment is driven by customer needs and focuses on quality, management that is focused on managing the overall process, team work culture that is process-oriented, interaction with internal customers, and team appraisals (Stark 1998). Customer focus Most manufacturing firms face competition from similar products. Therefore, to win over the competition, the companies engage in strategies that include innovations, distribution and marketing, wholesale price among other areas. Success depends on the competitor who manufactures appealing products at lowest prices and has effective distribution channels. They adopt head-to-head rivalry, performance, and predatory competition models (Kurtus 2007). The case of Adidas has been very significant in explaining business rivalry when compared against Puma. Since the inception of Puma, the company utilized the same management models and business processes used by Adidas with minimal variation if any. As such, Adidas realized that products differentiation was the ultimate solution to maintaining its position in the market as Puma had encroached on its product niche and had used the same technology and know-how to produce the literally similar product albeit a different brand. One of Puma’s oldest brand in the market, the King soccer boots series is remarkably similar to some of original Adidas makes (Smit 2009). Therefore, the F50 series has been undergoing changes and technological improvements, a strategy that has been cultured out of rivalry with other players in the market. In the face of all this, Adidas has had to operate along the line thin of competition and ethics. According to recent survey, majority of American companies have impressed competitive strategies based on time to beat competition cold by considering speed of product delivery. The companies have realized that quick delivery of orders creates customer satisfaction and offers flexibility to their workers. This has been occasioned by the tremendous changes and turmoil in the business environment which has happened for the past two decades that has accelerated the pace of innovation for services and products to meet worldwide industrial competitive scope. Consumers on the other hand have a reason to smile since competition has improved quality of products on market, lowered the price and opened up more avenues to make choices. Transformations in business management has taken different trends form Just-in-time, TQM, six sigma concepts, lean production and other programs to enhance competitiveness (Hassall& Associates 2006). As aforementioned, Adidas has been vigorous in recruiting famous football stars as their brand ambassadors. While the company’s marketing division is charged with that role, it is important to associate the brand with success and quality from a third party. Football Stars such as Lionel Messi, Didier Drogba, Raul and Djibriel Cisse have acted as brand ambassadors of F50.8 Tunit at various times. While this might be considered as marketing gimmicks, the endorsements of the brand by these famous players point out at the quality level of the footwear. On the other hand, the reviews provided by the customers of the brand are very essential in the development and improvement of the brand. Toyota way Liker (2004) identifies The Toyota Way as another quality management strategy that is observable in Adidas and its production and subsequent marketing of the new F50.8 Tunit. The Toyota Way recommends that companies should not only limit their eyesight in their products only but also seek to compare their products with competitors. Liker (2004) says that the main reason why Toyota cars penetrated the US market very quickly soon after introduction was because the cars were durable and that they needed very little service as compared to Americans models such as Ford and Chevrolet. Since the company’s establishment, Adidas had little competition and hence comparison with other brands was not highly developed. Fast forward into the modern world and a number of players entered the market, more so in the football boots market powered by the popularity of the sport. This thus triggered Adidas into a mode of comparing its products with other brands taking reviews from customers and more established football players. According to the Toyota marketing team, the company interacted with consumers of competing vehicles in order to understand what customers want. American automakers however concentrated their efforts on non essentials such as appealing car design with little emphasis on the vehicles performance and utility aspect. Later on the company's life, Toyota gave a lot of emphasis on performance and operation costs such as fuel efficiency. On the same length Adidas has over time improved on existing models to produce excellent quality products. Earlier football boots design gave emphasis on durability and grip. Modern technology has however allowed Adidas in its F50.8 Tunit boot to incorporate speed, swerve among many other intricate details that go a long way in rendering the wearer a better football experience. Other models compared to the F50.8 have also been a culmination of years of research. The Predator series has a number of generations, such as Absolute Power and Powerswerve, having been the company’s first football sub-brand. Six sigma Macharia links Motorola success to the Six Sigma quality management model which was first used by the company. The theory calls for continuous reduction in wastage in all processes. Technological advancements have facilitated better methods of production and also reduce wastage but still a lot can be done. Reduced wastage in the long run leads to good performance of the company and even enhancement of quality. Oakland (2003) says that there is always room for improvement and this phrase needs to be realized at an organizations’ end as it has been said that if an organization can continuously improve in customer satisfaction and the product quality branch, success is not a far reaching story for the organization. It is one way through which an organization can gain its goals that have been aligned by the management and this concludes one of the most importantly held principle in quality improvement. For instance the F50.8 Tunit encompasses 3 detachable sets of studs and 2 sets of insole. This gives the wearer different levels of satisfaction and also reduces wastage on the part of the wearer who enjoys three levels of experience from one pair. Ethics With the company set to mark its 60th anniversary, the company since the invention of the brand, the company will also be celebrating a renewed commitment to environmental conservation though production of environmentally friendly products. This is being achieved through various levels in production and even marketing. Macharia says today’s organization that ignore the green production euphoria that is sweeping across the globe is doomed to fail. Consumers have become more aware of the need to conserve their environment and are thus more inclined to identify with products that align with their desired perception in the environment. In that case, Adidas has been involved various environmental conservation initiatives through sponsoring programs and even reducing wastage and emissions from their factory. In recognition of this the company was rewarded with the ISO 14000 recognition. The environmental issue has also been an ethical concern for organization. With such recognition from ISO, Adidas has set the foundation for positioning the F50.8 Tunit as exemplary product in the market that not only delivers customer satisfaction and performance but has achieved that in an environmentally friendly manner (Hassall& Associates 2006). Conclusion Although there exist a number of quality management theories, the case of Adidas above highlights the main ones being six sigma, TQM, the Toyota way and the main elements in quality management as focusing on customer satisfaction. The company has risen from humble beginnings, has acquired some other companies and diversified its products offering. All in all, it is apparent that quality is pegged on the satisfaction achieved by the customer. However, the ability of a manufacturer to convince the customer to try out something new on the promise by the manufacturer that the new product offers more satisfaction lies greatly in the trust that the manufacturer has cultivated. As such, is also shown by the theories that there has to be a non business relationship between an organization and its customers in order to allow fluent communication that powers research and development of new products by the manufacture. In this, Adidas has succeeded in introducing a line of series on its main sub brands such as F50 to produce F 50.8 Tunit. Bibliography Davis, A. G., 1995.Time-based competition strategy gains momentum. Available from http://pffc-online.com/mag/paper_timebased_competition_strategy/ (Accessed 20 July 2009). Dutta, R. D. n.d. Total Quality Management: An Introduction. Indian Statistical Institute. Kolkata. Available from http://www.geocities.com/dduttaroy/tqm.html (Accessed 20 July 2009). Goetsch, D.L., and Davis, S., 2009. Quality management for organizational excellence: Introduction to total quality management, 6th ed. Upper Saddle River: Pearson Education. Grobler, W. J., 1995. Managing the economic effects of Total Quality Management. Meyerton. Available from http://www.simplyquality.org/Economic%20Effects/Quality%20Economics.htm (Accessed 20 July 2009). Hassall & Associates Pty Ltd. June 2006. The Australian Apple Industry Squeeze: Current Practice versus Best Practice, Economic Impacts of Apple Juice Imports, Options to improve Industry Competitiveness. Sydney: AU1-034 Liker, J. The Toyota way: 14 management principles from the world's greatest manufacturer, New York: McGraw Hill, 2004, Smit, B. (2009) Sneaker Wars: The Enemy Brothers Who Founded Adidas and Puma and the Family Feud That Forever Changed the Business of Sports (New York: HarperCollins) Just-style. 2009. Footwear retailing in Australia. Industry market research report. Available from www.just-style.com/product.aspx.htm (Accessed 31 July 31, 2009). Kurtus, R. 2007. Business Competition. Available from http://www.school-for- champions.com/competition/business.htm (Accessed 20 July 2009). Stark, J.1998. John Stark Associates. A few words about TQM. Available from http://www.johnstark.com/fwtqm.html (Accessed 20 July 2009). Appendices Appendix.2. Shows schematic representation of Customers satisfaction is influenced by satisfier, dissatisfier, and delighter factors in conceptual a representation developed by Kano (cited in Gobler 1995). Appendix. 5. Displays how team work and employee involvement in problem solving helps in TQM (Source: Hassall & Associates Pty Ltd survey of June 2006. for the Australian Apple Industry Squeeze). Read More