An ethnographic investigation into the relationship between mental models and the implementation of total quality management

The objective of my project was to find the reasons why the Quality Improvement Process (QIP) which started enthusiastically in Old Mutual in 1987, has lost momentum. Its initial implementation was characterised by success, but later, certain shortcomings became evident. In brief, the initial success of Crosby's QIP programme was attributable to its organised implementation throughout the organisation. It created a general awareness of key quality principles and gave a common understanding of a uniform language and standards throughout the organisation. However, after some years, senior management realised that this process was too simplistic, and that more was needed. A 'second phase' was implemented. This phase built onto the foundations laid by the QIP and focused on achieving client-orientated improvements in all business processes within the organisation. But this phase gradually lost momentum, as it failed to take into account the fact that lasting and continuous improvement in an organisation requires fundamental changes in almost every facet or part of the organisational whole. These fundamental changes include changes to the organisational structure, its management practices, its work processes and systems , changes in the way that managers view the organisation (that is, their mental models) and not merely a focus on process improvement within the organisation. The hypothesis propounded in this thesis would attempt to prove or disprove a component of the aforementioned, namely that a certain dominant mental model, that is, a belief of how the organisation works, is needed amongst the management of an organisation to bring about genuine improvements. This hypothesis propounds that a high-performing organisation would exhibit a strong correlation between the mental model implied by quality improvement and the organisation's managers' dominant mental model of how their organisation works.

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

Department of Mechanical Engineering

Year dc:date.issued

1994

Author dc:creator

• Tsangarakis, Nicolaos

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Ryan, Tom

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/11427/9655

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:open.uct.ac.za:11427/9655