Deming Award: World Class Quality Recognition

The importance of quality in the contemporary competitive business environment cannot be over emphasised. Total Quality Management ( TQM), is a company – wide, all pervasive management philosophy, which organisations globally, in many business sectors have embraced, in the attempt to enhance their competitive abilities and provide strategic advantages in the market. TQM, rooted in the core principles of employee focus, customer focus and continuous improvement, creates a quality culture where all employees work towards meeting and exceeding customer expectations.

Deming Prize

The Deming Prize, is the ultimate recognition of TQM practitioners in the world. The award scheme was established in 1951, in commemoration of the late Dr. William Edwards Deming, whose efforts after World War II, contributed greatly to Japan’s product quality being recognised as the world’s best. In appreciation of Dr. Deming’s unique contribution, the Japanese Union of Scientists and Engineers (JUSE) established the Deming Prize. This prestigious global quality award, recognises effective quality management programme development and implementa- tion by an organisation, regardless of the types of business, public or private, large or small, Japanese or overseas, or part of or entire organisation.

The unique characteristic of the Deming Prize is that it does not require applicants to conform to any specific model prescribed by the Deming Prize Committee. Instead, the applicants are expected to understand their own current situation, establish conducive themes and objectives and improve and transform themselves organisation- wide. The award focuses beyond implementation and results and also looks to the continued future effectiveness.

The award criteria considerwhether the organisation has clear management policies and has established proactive customer driven objectives and strategies based on social responsibility of the organisation. The examination process will probe whether TQM principles are being suitably utilised and implemented for the realisation of business objectives and strategies and whether organisational ability for future growth has been aptly secured.

The Deming Prize, promoting TQM in both theoretical and practical platforms, makes its awards in 4 categories. The first two categories recognise individuals or groups. who have made outstanding contributions to the study of TQM or those who have made outstanding contributions in the dissemination of TQM.

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“The right quality and uniformity are foundations of Commerce, Prosperity and Peace”-