Assessing quality management in China with MBNQA criteria

This study reports a recent survey of the current state of quality management implementation and practices in China with reference to the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA) criteria. Comparisons are made between firms in three different stages of the development of a quality system: firms that focus on inspection, statistical quality control, and total quality management. The results support the common wisdom that firms practising total quality management have superior performance in leadership, strategic planning, customer and market focus, information and analysis, human resource focus, process management, and business results. The survey results also indicate that most Chinese firms still lack a full understanding of strategic quality management although a higher percentage of them claim that they are total quality management companies. To further the quality movement in China, quality managers and professionals should take a leading role in promoting contemporary, strategic quality management concepts and practices.