A KNOWLEDGE MANAGEMENT BASED APPROACH TO QUALITY MANAGEMENT FOR LARGE MANUFACTURING ORGANIZATIONS

摘要

Customers expect highest product reliability, usability and serviceability which can only be achieved through effective management of quality. Companies that do not consider quality at all times quickly face unbearable high cost. A rapidly changing, unpredictable, complex, and ever-increasing paced global business environment calls for improved quality management (QM) strategies. Traditional QM systems at large organizations do not consider knowledge management (KM). This research adds to the body of knowledge by offering a QM strategy that has KM at its foundation. The research demonstrates the effectiveness of a KM/QM strategy through empirical research using actual data. It shows that a company with a KM/QM strategy is more effective than not having one.