Current health of quality management practices in service sector SME

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to assess the current quality management practices of service sector SMEs in Pakistan, and to provide an insight for policy development for SMEs. Design/methodology/approach – A focused investigation of 100 SMEs in northern Pakistan was conducted through focused interviews and e‐mail survey. The survey is based on a list of 19 quality management techniques selected through Delphi research. Findings – A significant gap is reported between the knowledge of quality management techniques and their usage by SME entrepreneurs. The results show strong usage of CRM related techniques while low usage of suppliers' development related and statistically extensive techniques. Significant correlation is found between the usage of TQM and other quality management techniques, particularly six sigma and 5S. Practical implications – The results offer insight into quality management practices in Pakistani SMEs which represent the broader South Asian business culture that is host to a huge share of outsourcing from developed economies. Besides being of huge value to policy makers in the country, the results are useful for firms in developed economies that outsource their businesses to developing economies in South Asia. Originality/value – The paper provides an insight into the quality management practices of Pakistani SMEs.