What are the best practices for ensuring customer satisfaction in TQM implementation?

3 Implement quality tools and techniques

The third step to achieving customer satisfaction in TQM is to implement quality tools and techniques that can help you measure, analyze, and improve your processes and outcomes. You can do this by using tools such as quality function deployment (QFD), which translates customer requirements into product specifications; statistical process control (SPC), which monitors and controls process variation; failure mode and effect analysis (FMEA), which identifies and prevents potential failures; or benchmarking, which compares your performance with best practices. By implementing quality tools and techniques, you can enhance your efficiency, effectiveness, and reliability.

4 Communicate and collaborate with suppliers and partners

The fourth step to achieving customer satisfaction in TQM is to communicate and collaborate with your suppliers and partners, who are part of your value chain and affect your quality. You can do this by establishing clear and consistent quality standards and expectations, sharing information and feedback, providing support and assistance, and developing long-term relationships. You should also seek to integrate your processes and systems with your suppliers and partners, and create win-win situations. By communicating and collaborating with your suppliers and partners, you can ensure quality consistency and continuity.

5 Seek customer feedback and improvement

The fifth step to achieving customer satisfaction in TQM is to seek customer feedback and improvement, which are essential for maintaining and enhancing your quality. You can do this by soliciting customer opinions and suggestions, conducting customer satisfaction surveys, measuring customer retention and loyalty, and tracking customer complaints and resolutions. You should also act on the feedback and improvement opportunities, and communicate the results and actions to your customers. By seeking customer feedback and improvement, you can demonstrate your responsiveness and commitment to quality.

6 Review and evaluate your TQM performance

The sixth and final step to achieving customer satisfaction in TQM is to review and evaluate your TQM performance, which is necessary for ensuring your quality goals and objectives are met and aligned with your customer needs and expectations. You can do this by using quality audits, reviews, and assessments, which can help you identify your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. You should also use quality indicators, metrics, and scorecards, which can help you monitor and measure your quality results and outcomes. By reviewing and evaluating your TQM performance, you can ensure your continuous improvement and learning.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?