Impact of Business Excellence Practices on Technology Management in India

This paper explicates, how the global industry has approached to employ Total Quality Management (TQM) and Business Excellence to obtain substantive benefits. The rationales, why Indian companies adopted these movements and how those companies have embellished their quality of operations are rationalised. The case of Tata Steel, one of the best examples of adoption is parleyed in this paper. Over the last 20 years, the author has visited, interacted with, studied, assessed, designed and carried out several TQM/BE initiatives in large and small companies. Based on these, he has now positioned together his thoughts on the subject. It has been observed that the practice of TQM/BE advances the performance of companies in several dimensions. In future, more companies may be studied in depth, data analysed to validate some of the conclusions, and a refinement of conclusions may help companies to exercise specific tools and techniques in unique cases. The paper ascertains that companies need to devise methodologies as appropriate to their situations to benefit from TQM/BE. These methodologies comprise how to draw up a vision, how to deploy strategy, how to monitor and control performance and so on. The paper also demonstrates that exercise of TQM/BE will lead to lower costs, waste reduction, better environmental awareness and employees well being. Practitioners of TQM/BE, CEOs and business leaders may appraise this contribution useful.