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- Hellsten, Ulrika, et al.
(författare)
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A sucessful quality award in Northern Sweden
- 2001
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Ingår i: Annual Quality Congress Transactions. - : American Society for Quality. ; , s. 696-706
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- Since the start of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award in 1987 several quality awards have been established to stimulate systematic quality improvement in different parts of the world. In Sweden, the Swedish Quality Award (SQA) was established in 1992 by SIQ, the Swedish Institute for Quality. This award, and other activities by SIQ, have had a great impact on the quality progress in Sweden. However, the criteria of the SQA are experienced as too complicated by many small enterprises. In 1996 a regional quality award, common to two counties, was established in Northern Sweden. The main purpose was to stimulate quality improvements, in particular in small organizations, and to establish better cooperation between the two counties. During a couple of years the award has had far more applicants than any other regional quality award in Sweden, even more applicants than the SQA. One reason for this seems to be that the evaluation is based on a particular model, the Springboard, which is less thorough and also has a simpler language than other evaluation models. The paper will describe the background, the evaluation process, the evaluation model and some results and effects obtained within the Quality Award in Northern Sweden. (14 refs.)
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- Hellsten, Ulrika, et al.
(författare)
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Self-assessment as a facilitator for learning
- 1999
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Ingår i: Proceedings of the 1999 ASQ's 53rd Annual Quality Congress. - : American Society for Quality. - 9789992892329 ; , s. 423-431
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Konferensbidrag (refereegranskat)abstract
- As a tool and as an approach, self-assessment supports organizational learning. For example, self-assessment is a tool in systematic problem solving and an approach in new experimentation. In addition to these two elements, a learning organization should be skilled in learning from the best practices and experience of others and in quickly and efficiency transferring knowledge throughout the organization. When based on total quality management (TQM), the best known self-assessment tools include the European Quality Award and the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. The TQM perspective suggests a three-phase approach to self-assessment: preparation, accomplishment, and continuous improvement through generation and implementation of action plans. A pilot study of TQM-based self-assessment with about 25 employees at the Lule� University of Technology used a springboard assessment tool that covered four areas: customer cooperation, employee commitment, leadership, and process management. The springboard questionnaire analyzed employee opinions on the tool and approach of this self-assessment. For the preparation phase, the analysis suggested better reconciliation of improvement work with everyday tasks. For the accomplishment phase, the assessment demonstrated the useful but time consuming nature of teamwork. Meeting times needed to be better allocated. And for the continuous improvement phase, the self-assessment was incomplete as of this writing.
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- Hellsten, Ulrika
(författare)
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The springboard : a strategy for continuous improvement of small and medium-sized companies
- 1997
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Ingår i: Total quality management (Print). - : Informa UK Limited. - 0954-4127 .- 1360-0613. ; 8:2-3, s. 189-192
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Presents edited versions of the proceedings of the Second World Congress for Total Quality Management in Great Britain in 1997. Assessment model for small and medium-sized business enterprises; Dimensions of the model
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- Hellsten, Ulrika
(författare)
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The springboard : a TQM-based tool for self-assessment
- 1997
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Licentiatavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The interest in self-assessment has increased during the last few years. Self-assessment with regards to Total Quality Management is often proposed as a tool for measuring the progress of Total Quality Management. National and international institutes such as the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) in the USA and the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM) in Europe have played key roles in the dissemination of self-assessment as a process of reviewing, in a systematic way, an organization's approach to Total Quality Management (TQM). Many models are available for self-assessment purposes. Quality awards criteria, as for instance the criteria of the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award and the European Quality Award, are maybe the most well-known self-assessment models among organizations. However, studies of organizations that are using self-assessment indicate that so far this approach is more common among large organizations than among small organizations. One reason for this could be that the assessment models available are not suitable for small organizations, as some researchers propose. Thus, the main objective of this research has been to develop a tool for self-assessment which will facilitate the use of self-assessment for these organizations. The thesis presents the results of this research, the Springboard, which aims at being more appropriate for small organizations than the existing quality award models. As a result, one of the aspects that has been considered when developing the Springboard is the scope of the assessment model. The Springboard comprises only four areas: Customer Cooperation, Leadership, Employee Commitment and Management of Processes. These areas are all derived from a set of core values of Total Quality Management. Furthermore, the Springboard puts more emphasis on continuous improvement compared to the quality award models presented in the thesis. The research has also included an evaluation of the Springboard. Interviews have been held with two small organizations that have used the Springboard for self-assessment. Their experiences are that the proposed tool as a whole is favourably reviewed. However, their opinions also indicate that there are still some parts regarding the evaluation guidelines that need to be further developed. The research has also indicated that in order to facilitate small organizations' use of self-assessment more attention should be given to how the work is carried out, the process of self-assessment. Consequently, two of the issues that future research should be aimed at are the process of self-assessment and appropriate approaches for small organizations.
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- Hellsten, Ulrika, et al.
(författare)
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TQM as a management system consisting of values, techniques and tools
- 2000
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Ingår i: TQM Magazine. - : Emerald. - 0954-478X .- 1758-6887. ; 12:4, s. 238-244
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The interest in total quality management (TQM) has increased rapidly in recent years. Some people see TQM as something necessary to reach competitiveness but others claim TQM to be merely a management fad. We believe that there are several reasons for the different opinions about TQM. One is that the gurus, who often are seen as fathers of TQM, do not like the concept. Another one is that there are several similar names for roughly the same idea. A third one, which, maybe, is the most severe, is that there are many vague descriptions and few definitions of what TQM really is. In this paper we will discuss some of the problems with TQM and describe and discuss our own view of TQM as a management system consisting of the three interdependent components: values, techniques and tools. We strongly believe that this definition will help to understand and implement TQM.
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