Total Quality Management – British Airways ( Article Summary)

The vitality of Total Quality Management (TQM) strategies to the success of a company cannot be gainsaid. Anca Madar’s article titled ‘Implementation of Total Quality Management. Case study: British Airways’ depicts the step-by-step process the company employed for successful implementation of TQM to improve its position in a relatively competitive market. I chose to review this article because I am very fond of the airline due to its ability to provide excellent customer service at a very pocket-friendly price. British Airways is an airline in the United Kingdom, which is deeply revered for its immense fleet of aircrafts and affordable travel rates (British Airways, n.d.). The airline’s long-term success has often been premised on the company’s efforts to provide excellent customer services through a continuous reduction of their ticket costs and forging meaningful partnerships and alliances to cover the constant consumer growth (Madar, 2015). However, to be the best airline in its industry, the company opted to implement TQM, which included improving the efficiency of its aircraft test equipment and designing new measures for their employee’s workshop programs to help elevate their performance. Upon implementation, these strategies helped the company record a 23% increase in turnover, which resulted in increasing its fleet to 33 aircrafts (Madar, 2015).

The Step-by-Step Process Employed by British Airways in Implementing TQM

While writing the article, Madar majorly focused on the step-by-step implementation process adopted by British Airways to heighten the success of its TQM strategies. Moreover, he highlighted the need and benefits obtained by the airline in analyzing the cost of quality implementation. Prior to implementing TQM, British Airlines conducted a diagnosis of its current position to outline its major areas of concern, which required improvement (Madar, 2015). Further, the company obtained support and commitment of its managerial staff to implement TQM. In Madar’s view, this step was necessary to ensure that all employees worked in tandem with the anticipated changes. The third step adopted by British Airways in implementing TQM was to educate its staff on the central principles of TQM strategies (Madar, 2015). Such step was necessary to improve the awareness of employees regarding the anticipated changes in the company’s management, policies, procedures and work practices. It enabled British Airways to realign their employees’ views in regard to the company’s new vision. Afterward, British Airways began its quality improvement process. Upon implementation, the company started periodically reviewing its progress status in order to foster its employee’s sustained commitment to quality.

The Method Employed by British Airways to Analyze the Cost of Quality

TQM necessitate companies and their employees to strive to uphold high-quality performance in every area of business, as this increases the possibility for success (Oakland, 2014). However, most companies often experience failure in their TQM as a result of high implementation costs. To help avert this problem, British Airways opted to incorporate an analysis of the cost of quality during its TQM implementation process. Such analysis required the airline’s management to assess the ramifications of quality activities performed by the employees (Madar, 2015). Here, the management was tasked with recording the results of employees’ performance and indicating who of them was showing high compliance with the new standards and who not. Such activity helped them reach significant improvements in educating their subordinates on the concepts and principles of successful TQM strategies. It also led to increased employee training in order to help them overcome their skepticism in regards to TQM strategies. As such, British Airways was able to breed a positive work environment, which is considered central to the success of its TQM strategies implementation.

The Benefits of Implementing TQM to British Airways

The adoption of TQM by British Airways helped the company build a positive work environment where its employees could work efficiently. Moreover, this process improved the attitude of employees towards the company. It also helped boost their confidence, hence, enabling them to better serve the airline’s customers. As a consequence, employees were able to offer improved and efficient customer service, which led to customer turn-over rate rise by 23%. In its turn, it made possible for the company to invest in 33 new aircrafts (Madar, 2015). This fact reveals that British Airways was successful in implementing TQM.

Reflection and Critique of Madar’s Article

Madar’s article is highly articulate in communicating the successful adoption of TQM by British Airways. The airline’s adoption of a step-by-step approach to implementing TQM helped me understand the benefits of breaking down tasks for their successful accomplishment. This lesson is invaluable in reshaping my thinking as it made me realize that a small action done consistently ultimately leads to success. The area I found most intriguing in Madar’s article is his enumeration of the benefits attained by companies when they embrace a cost analysis strategy in implementing TQM. I was intrigued to learn that cost analysis helped companies avoid such pitfalls as employee skepticism in their attempts to implement TQM. Moreover, cost analysis is also beneficial as it fosters better communication between managers and their subordinates, hence breeding a positive environment for business success.

Madar’s article offers insights that are highly beneficial to my future managerial career. The article helped me understand the centrality of open and honest communication to organization’s success. In implementing TQM, British Airways employed its management to routinely assess their subordinates’ progress and help educate them on the proper ways of adopting TQM. This strategy helped enhance a positive employees’ attitude towards the company, as well as their new work guidelines. As a result, they were enabled to commit themselves to the success of TQM implementation, while the airline reached a positive growth in its business. I, therefore, plan to work on improving my communication skills, as it will enable me to become a better manager in the future. Although Madar was effective in presenting his ideas throughout the article, one major flaw was his quick summation of notable points. For instance, he made a quick enumeration of the airline’s TQM strategies necessary for improving the efficiency of its aircraft test equipment and designing new measures for their employee’s workshop programs (Madar, 2015). However, the writer failed to adequately discuss these processes in the article. As a result, it made his article very formal and brief. In my opinion, Madar ought to have extensively enumerated his arguments to make his article more logical. It would have enabled him to reach out to a greater audience interested in capturing his ideas.

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Conclusion

The article ‘Implementation of Total Quality Management. Case study: British Airways’ by Anca Madar enumerates the success of British Airways in implementing TQM. This article largely focuses on the airlines’ strategy to employ a step-by-step approach in implementing TQM. In Madar’s view, this strategy is effective as it helps align employee’s work with a company’s vision for growth. Madar also highlights the benefits of undertaking a quality cost analysis to the successful implementation of TQM. In his view, quality cost analysis helps managers better communicate TQM strategies to their subordinates, hence enhancing its success. Madar’s article gave me a great lesson on the benefits of communication to the success of a project. However, I feel that the writer ought to have broadly expanded on his arguments in order to make them more logical. Overall, his article was highly impactful and will likely benefit many companies endeared to growth.