Purpose – This paper is based on a benchmarking exercise involving some 164 QFD practitioners within Ford Motor Company and 27 selected external QFD companies. The predominant response “cell” was from Vehicle Centre 1, Power‐Train Systems Engineering, although there was both a US and...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the critical success factors of total quality management (TQM) implementation in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) banking sector. Design/methodology/approach – Empirical case studies were collected from 250 banks in UAE that have embarked on...

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to enhance understanding of corporate governance (CG) in delivering excellence in corporate social responsibility (CSR). Design/methodology/approach – The paper demonstrates models of CG and the associated elements affecting CSR. It addresses the...

Quick response to customer needs is an important dimension on which a company may compete. However, quick response in and by itself does not achieve much of a competitive advantage unless timeliness is integrated with quality, flexibility and cost efficiency. Discusses the meaning and origins of...

Based on a research project looking at user‐supplier interactions in the context of AMT, attempts to discuss an alternative to the measurement of success, based on a close scrutiny of user‐supplier interaction processes. Closely examines a variety of factors which are both internal and...

Purpose – This paper presents the concepts and principles of quality function deployment (QFD) as they have been implemented by Ford company. The paper illustrates the essential linkages between external and internal customers to suppliers (i.e. “Voice‐Quality‐Satisfaction” Chains)....

Features two case studies. The first of these focuses on Royal Mail, provider of a universal delivery service within the UK. Notes how total quality management has evolved within the organization and how the role of internal good practice has underpinned the development of a continuous...

Part 2 of a two‐part article on the transfer of best practices. This article features two case studies. The first of these focuses on Xerox, the document company, and how quality has become embedded into the culture within the company. It tracks the quality progress from the early benchmarking...

This paper is based on a study which examined the availability of knowledge management Systems in the Kuwaiti private and public sectors. The paper examines the actual situation, and how it could be improved to achieve organisational and national objectives through more effective training...

This is the first of a series of three papers discussing a major benchmarking initiative in the air cargo freight industry sector. The project itself focused on nine major competitors in the cargo industry and included organisations known to be leaders in the areas of service excellence. The...