The power of quality models: The example of the SIQ model for performance excellence

Most contemporary total quality management (TQM) practice is influenced, directly or indirectly, bystructured, acontextual and standardized quality models. The present paper focuses on the strategicintroduction of one such model, namely the Swedish Institute for Quality (SIQ) model for performanceexcellence, in a Swedish public-sector organization, which we refer to as ?the Authority.? We take ourtheoretical stance from Foucault?s concept of ?power/knowledge.? In describing the case, we focus onthe management team of one of the Authority?s ten regions. Our analysis shows the members of themanagement team using the SIQ model to objectify both the organization and themselves as managers.However, contrary to many critical or managerial accounts, the SIQ model was not totalizing:management subjectivities changed but were not entirely reconstituted, and some resistance to themwas generated by the members of the management team, in their role as professionals.