IMPACT OF INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY STRATEGY ON TOTAL QUALITY IMPLEMENTATION AND MANAGEMENT

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to posit the conceptual model which pretends to investigate the relationship between the use and implementation of Total Quality Management driven Information Communication Technology strategy in organizations.Globally, organizations have realized the important part that controlled quality of goods and services plays in the organizational growth and therefore every organization is making a deliberate effort in implementing Total Quality Management (TQM) irrespective of the business sector. Initially TQM was more prevalent and associated with the manufacturing sector, but presently other sectorsalso have chosen to adopt the TQM primarily due to its successin manufacturing, (Dias, 1998). The term “Total” implies that quality isimportant in every function of the organizationincludingsystems and processes, services, products, suppliers, customers, internal andexternal stakeholders as each and every activity’s outcome has to be controlled and governed by the predetermined quality. Total Quality Management (TQM) is aintricate structure. At the same timeit is a perception that is then translated into a process that will make a difference, process that will add value, system that will improve efficiency, philosophical approach, business strategy that will give a competitive advantage, technique,etc. There has been a pervasive consensus that Total Quality Management is a way of ensuring that organizations functions at the optimum capacity in their endeavor to achieve customer satisfaction. For this reason, TQM has become a “lifestyle” for all departments in the way they do their various tasks as their contribution towards Business Excellence (BE).Based on the literature review carried out, I have identified Information Technology Strategy as a key factor in driving quality management principles and practices in organizations’ quality management. Hence looking at an organization’s ICT as a driver to reducing uncertainty and variability from the expected quality. To validate this, I will conduct several semi-structured interviews with ICT directors or managers and quality managers in different organizations in Kenya.A questionnaire will be developed, based onthe literature review carried out and on the main contributions of the semi-structuredinterviews. This questionnaire will be sent to all the Kenyan companies both certifiedaccording to the ISO 9001 standard and non-certified ones.