Employee Commitment
The commitment of all employees is a central element of the Total Quality Management process and securing this commitment must begin at the top of the organisation.
In a successful TQM environment, senior managers act as role models and set the standards for others to follow.
Well designed and comprehensive training programmes along with effective internal communications play important roles in achieving the essential high level of commitment, enthusiasm and sense of involvement with the TQM process.
Employees need to know what is expected from them and why. When the entire team feels engaged in the process and everyone is working towards a common vision, success will follow.
Conversely, a failure to communicate what is required from each individual, will prevent the development of TQM, with potentially disastrous results.
There are a number of important factors to consider when implementing an action plan to encourage employee commitment. These are the key action points:
-
Clarify responsibilities for each individual or team, and fully support these with appropriate training and resources
-
Encourage teamwork and delegate responsibility to allow the team to take ownership of challenges and find solutions
-
Build a feedback mechanism to acknowledge achievement and recognise good performance to inspire employee confidence
-
Advocate a continuous learning ethos and provide training resources to facilitate upward progression within the company
-
Foster a culture of openness to allow problems and issues to be discussed constructively and be satisfactorily resolved
When employees are committed the company will reap important benefits including:
-
A more stable workforce with high employee retention levels
-
Significantly lower rates of staff absenteeism
-
Higher quality output as individuals gain a greater sense of achievement and take more pride in their work
-
An increased level of employee motivation to make suggestions for improvement to processes or products for the overall betterment of the company
Achieving an harmonious workplace, with highly motivated employees, does not require massive investment or resources but rather a mindset shift which places the emphasis on creating a positive employee experience within a relationship infrastructure.