A Critique of TQM: Problems of Implementation in the Public Sector
Item
Title
A Critique of TQM: Problems of Implementation in the Public Sector
Abstract/Description
In 1988, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) was designated as a prototype quality improvement agency by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and praised for its work (Miller, 1988:1). Three years later, a survey by Fortune magazine found EEOC one of the 10 least respected agencies in the federal government.
In 1988, the Government Printing Office was praised by the magazine Government Executive which commented, "In what must be considered one of the most impressive turnarounds in government services, GPO's reputation is at its highest in level in a decade" (Paller, 1988:40). Just two years later, the Government Accounting Office (GAO) found "unresponsive relationships with client agencies, weak managerial accountability, and a lack of strategic planning" (Houk, 1991:2).
These two vignettes set the scene for a critical discussion of TQM. The examples are vexing and raise questions about perceptions of success as well as about the temporal nature of management change. They suggest that the glow that has accompanied the experience of the other contributors to this symposium may not provide the whole picture in an assessment of TQM.
This article is written from the perspective of two skeptics who, while sharing many of the goals of the TQM advocates, believe that the approach confronts a very different situation in the public sector (particularly the U.S. federal government) that it met in its application in the private sector. The concern of these skeptics is not whether TQM fits into the theories of public administration(1), but whether it fits into the "realities" of the world of public administration practice. The authors have emphasized several points in this piece: 1) the multiple "faces" of TQM; 2) the attributes of the public sector that constrain its utilization; and 3) the possibilities for its use in government.
In 1988, the Government Printing Office was praised by the magazine Government Executive which commented, "In what must be considered one of the most impressive turnarounds in government services, GPO's reputation is at its highest in level in a decade" (Paller, 1988:40). Just two years later, the Government Accounting Office (GAO) found "unresponsive relationships with client agencies, weak managerial accountability, and a lack of strategic planning" (Houk, 1991:2).
These two vignettes set the scene for a critical discussion of TQM. The examples are vexing and raise questions about perceptions of success as well as about the temporal nature of management change. They suggest that the glow that has accompanied the experience of the other contributors to this symposium may not provide the whole picture in an assessment of TQM.
This article is written from the perspective of two skeptics who, while sharing many of the goals of the TQM advocates, believe that the approach confronts a very different situation in the public sector (particularly the U.S. federal government) that it met in its application in the private sector. The concern of these skeptics is not whether TQM fits into the theories of public administration(1), but whether it fits into the "realities" of the world of public administration practice. The authors have emphasized several points in this piece: 1) the multiple "faces" of TQM; 2) the attributes of the public sector that constrain its utilization; and 3) the possibilities for its use in government.
Author/creator
Date
In publication
Volume
17
Issue
1
Pages
42-54
Resource type
Research/Scholarly Media
Resource status/form
Published Text
Scholarship genre
Reflection/Retrospective
Other
Open access/full-text available
No
Peer reviewed
Yes
ISSN
0734-9149
Citation
Radin, B. A., & Coffee, J. N. (1993). A Critique of TQM: Problems of Implementation in the Public Sector. Public Administration Quarterly, 17(1), 42–54.
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