Jonas Hansson and Henrik Eriksson
The question of whether an adoption of total quality management (TQM) improves the financial performance has been discussed for several years. Various studies have been conducted…
Abstract
The question of whether an adoption of total quality management (TQM) improves the financial performance has been discussed for several years. Various studies have been conducted to examine the impact of TQM on financial performance, but there is still disagreement concerning the effectiveness of TQM. This paper presents a study of Swedish quality award recipients, which are compared to branch indices and to identified competitors. The comparison concerns the development of different financial performance indicators. The study indicates that the award recipients as a group outperform the branch index and their identified competitors on most of the studied indicators.
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This article has been withdrawn as it was published elsewhere and accidentally duplicated. The original article can be seen here: 10.1108/13683040210451714. When citing the…
Abstract
This article has been withdrawn as it was published elsewhere and accidentally duplicated. The original article can be seen here: 10.1108/13683040210451714. When citing the article, please cite: Jonas Hansson, Henrik Eriksson, (2002), “The impact of TQM on financial performance”, Measuring Business Excellence, Vol. 6 Iss: 4, pp. 44 - 54.
Jonas Hansson and Bengt Klefsjö
Total quality management (TQM) has been recognised and used during the last decades by organisations all over the world to develop a quality focus and improve organisational…
Abstract
Total quality management (TQM) has been recognised and used during the last decades by organisations all over the world to develop a quality focus and improve organisational performance. In spite of this, TQM implementation is still problematic for many organisations. In this perspective important factors to succeed with the organisational change that TQM implementation implies will be discussed in this paper. Also presented is a multiple‐case study of TQM implementation processes in small organisations with a focus on core value aspects. An overarching implementation model is presented based on the multiple‐case study analysis and the theoretical frame. This model implies that TQM implementation will start with core values committed leadership, everybody’s commitment and customer orientation.
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Raine Isaksson, Jonas Hansson and Rickard Garvare
The application of a process view, as complement to the traditional functional division, is often a way to highlight organisational improvement potential. This paper examines the…
Abstract
The application of a process view, as complement to the traditional functional division, is often a way to highlight organisational improvement potential. This paper examines the process of providing university level education in quality management, using Sweden as an example. The purpose is to assess the performance of university education as part of the supply chain of providing quality management to a society. This has been done by studying the actual offering compared to a notional benchmark of best performance. Preliminary results indicate that there could be a significant improvement potential in both providing more education of the right type and in the right way. A lot of similar basic courses are given but with varying names, possibly reflecting difficulties in defining the area of quality management and its constituents. An important reason for the detected improvement potential seems to be the lack of ownership of the studied supply chain of providing university level quality education to the Swedish society.
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Henrik Eriksson and Jonas Hansson
Organisations worldwide strive to develop their management systems for business functions, ranging from quality and environment to safety, information security and social…
Abstract
Organisations worldwide strive to develop their management systems for business functions, ranging from quality and environment to safety, information security and social responsibility. During the latest decade a considerable amount of these efforts has been concentrated on introducing and applying standards such as the ISO 9001 and ISO 14001. The need for Integrated Management Systems (IMS) often arises as a result of decisions to implement Environmental Management Systems (EMS) and/or an occupational health and safety management system in addition to a Quality Management System (QMS) At the end of 2003, approximately 3200 organisations in Sweden had an ISO 9001 certificate, and approximately 3400 organisations had a certificate based on an EMS. Dealing with separate management systems and ensuring that they align with the organisation’s strategies and goals, has proved difficult. Owing to the large number of organisations certified according to multiple types of systems, an increasing number of organisations are establishing IMS. There are examples of companies, which chose to integrate EMS and QMS into a co‐ordinated implementation approach, and although sparse, the research within this area indicates potential benefits of using an integrated approach. This paper presents both a theoretical and an empirical investigation with the aim to elucidate problems related to the integration of management systems. Furthermore, the paper will present recommendations for succeeding in such integrations and, hence, contributing to an increased understanding on how IMS should be designed and implemented.
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Jonas Hansson, Fredrik Backlund and Liselott Lycke
Quality management, by means of total quality management (TQM), is considered to foster organisational performance characterised by competitiveness and long‐term profitability…
Abstract
Quality management, by means of total quality management (TQM), is considered to foster organisational performance characterised by competitiveness and long‐term profitability. Since the benefits of quality management cannot be achieved without the sustained performance of equipment affecting product quality, maintenance management has become important. This has led to the development of maintenance methodologies, such as total productive maintenance (TPM) and reliability centred maintenance (RCM). TQM, TPM and RCM implementation have, however, often failed or been poorly executed. This has affected organisations' performance and ultimately survival in a competitive environment. This paper includes a comparative study of literature on TQM, TPM and RCM implementation, focusing on organisational change. The study found several common categories of activities when implementing TQM and the maintenance methodologies. These categories can be considered crucial to obtain management and employee commitment. Case studies on TQM, TPM and RCM implementation are used to validate the categories identified, and to yield recommendations on the handling of activities within these.
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The purpose of this study was to explore the information behaviors (IBs) of performers and artisan/vendors in American Renaissance faires. This research is exploratory in nature…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this study was to explore the information behaviors (IBs) of performers and artisan/vendors in American Renaissance faires. This research is exploratory in nature and seeks to discover how existing IB theories, including embodied information practices, can explain the information seeking and use of performers and artisan vendors working in American Renaissance faires.
Design/methodology/approach
This study used semi-structured qualitative interviews with three artisan/vendors and 12 performers at Renaissance faires to explore their IBs around the roles at the festivals. Interviews were audio recorded, transcribed and analyzed from an exploratory framework, looking for how existing IB theories might explain the findings.
Findings
Although the participants in this study described information practices that were embodied and corporeal, they shared more experiences around the complex and fraught nature of information sharing within the Renaissance faire community. Information sharing prohibitions were related to power dynamics and the participants' roles as gig or contingent workers.
Originality/value
This was the first study to explore the IBs of Renaissance faire performers and artisan/vendors and as such, was exploratory in nature. The findings point to several areas for additional research.
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This study aims to demonstrate the importance of recognizing stress in the workplace. Accurate novel objective methods that use electroencephalogram (EEG) to measure brainwaves…
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to demonstrate the importance of recognizing stress in the workplace. Accurate novel objective methods that use electroencephalogram (EEG) to measure brainwaves can promote employee well-being. However, using these devices can be positive and potentially harmful as manipulative practices undermine autonomy.
Design/methodology/approach
Emphasis is placed on business ethics as it relates to the ethics of action in terms of positive and negative responsibility, autonomous decision-making and self-determined work through a literature review. The concept of relational autonomy provides an orientation toward heteronomous employment relationships.
Findings
First, using digital devices to recognize stress and promote health can be a positive outcome, expanding the definition of digital well-being as opposed to dependency, non-use or reduction. Second, the transfer of socio-relational autonomy, according to Oshana, enables criteria for self-determined work in heteronomous employment relationships. Finally, the deployment and use of such EEG-based devices for stress detection can lead to coercion and manipulation, not only in interpersonal relationships, but also directly and more subtly through the technology itself, interfering with self-determined work.
Originality/value
Stress at work and EEG-based devices measuring stress have been discussed in numerous articles. This paper is one of the first to explore ethical considerations using these brain–computer interfaces from an employee perspective.
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Jenny L. Davis and Tony P. Love
Role-taking, perspective taking, and empathy have developed through parallel literatures in sociology and psychology. All three concepts address the ways that people attune the…
Abstract
Purpose
Role-taking, perspective taking, and empathy have developed through parallel literatures in sociology and psychology. All three concepts address the ways that people attune the self to others’ thoughts and feelings. Despite conceptual and operational overlap, researchers have yet to synthesize existing research across the three concepts. We undertake the task of theoretical synthesis, constructing a model in which role-taking emerges as a multidimensional process that includes perspective taking and empathy as component parts.
Approach
We review the literatures on role-taking, perspective taking, and empathy across disciplines. Focusing on definitions, measures, and interventions, we discern how the concepts overlap, how they are distinct, and how they work together in theoretically meaningful ways.
Findings
The review identifies two key axes on which each concept varies: the relative roles of affect and cognition, and the relative emphasis on self and structure. The review highlights the cognitive nature of perspective taking, the affective nature of empathy, and the structural nature of role-taking. In a move toward theoretical synthesis, we propose a definition that centers role-taking as a sociological construct, with perspective taking and empathy representing cognition and affect, respectively.
Social implications
Role-taking is an important part of selfhood and community social life. It is a skill that varies in patterned ways, including along lines of status and power. Theoretical synthesis clarifies the process of role-taking and fosters the construction of effective interventions aimed at equalizing role-taking in interpersonal interaction.
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Magnus Hansson, Hanna Gottfridsson and Sandra Raanaes
This paper aims to analyse the construction of gender in business media through identification of media discourses in terms of vocabulary and vocabulary structures.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper aims to analyse the construction of gender in business media through identification of media discourses in terms of vocabulary and vocabulary structures.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors conduct critical discourse analysis and linguistic text analysis of media articles in two Swedish business magazines, focussing on vocabulary and vocabulary structures used to describe men and women as managers.
Findings
Media texts fall into traditional, gender-stereotyped patterns. The use of metaphors, choice of words and sentence structures construct and maintain stereotyped models of gender. The linguistic practices and use of specific and gender-biased vocabulary shape discursive practices, contributing to the construction and reconstruction of institutionalised gender-stereotyped patterns of behaviour and established social norms.
Research limitations/implications
The focus on vocabulary and vocabulary structures extends the technique and application of critical discourse analysis, enabling fine-grained analyses, in this case of media texts. This research also indicates a need for future studies that adopt a critical discourse analysis to take into account analytical procedures that shed light on micro-mechanisms that support the materialisations of gender inequalities.
Social implications
Texts that portray both men and women show gender bias that is deeply rooted in the vocabulary and vocabulary structures and thus help to reinforce established discursive practices and gender inequalities. Therefore, there is a need for a fundamental change in the media reports on managers.
Originality/value
The research contributes to the analysis of media texts and representations of men and women as managers by providing a detailed analysis of discursive practices that takes into account vocabulary and vocabulary structures. The findings show the deeply rooted structure of gender-stereotyped patterns in media texts.