Development of Total Quality Management in Kaunas University of Technology

Abstract

We reflect on the activities of Department of Quality Management, Faculty of Economics and Management, Kaunas University of Technology in this article. The reasons which lead to the establishment of the Department of Quality Management are briefly presented. Since 1997 the members of the department research various problems of quality management, co-ordinate programme for Master’s degree (Quality Management specialization) and communicate its research to business and public organizations. These three activities of the Department research, teaching and communication of the results of research are reviewed in this article. First, the topics of the research conducted from the establishment of the Department could be generalized under these themes: Total quality management (TQM) as conceptual core, quality culture, quality and performance measurement, stakeholders’ interests harmonization, processual approach, quality of life, wage administration under TQM. Research under these topics is reviewed. A theoretical contribution and results are discussed. Second, the courses underlying Quality Management specialization are also analyzed. It is argued that during the decade more than a hundred of students became quality managers. The content of the courses is discussed. Third, the ways of communication of quality management methods to business and public organizations is highlighted. The main means of communication of TQM are: the Lithuanian Association for Quality Management and the Center for Total Quality Management. The article presents the discussion on possible and relevant research topics. Five possible directions was identified: to proceed on research, that has been already conducted, look for new approaches to explain how quality is achieved, incorporate knowledge from other disciplines, reinterpret the main concepts of quality in the context of present changes, analyze the effects of quality management practices.