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Purpose The purpose of this paper is to review the Russian Federation Government Quality Award (RFGQA) over its 25-year existence. Design/methodology/approach This paper looks into the evolution, model and key provisions of RFGQA, based on the authors’ long-time experience as an Award assessor. Apart from that, methodologically, this study uses the desktop research method, comparative literature review. Findings The research results show that RFGQA over its 25 years has become the most popular approach to the development of organizational excellence for Russian enterprises and organizations, regardless of the sphere of activity. Research limitations/implications This paper presents the core results of RFGQA’s 25-year existence. The comparison of the current Russian Quality Award model with the new European Foundation for Quality Management model is not analyzed. Originality/value This research paper extends current knowledge of national quality awards and presents an original set of information about RFGQA, its methodology and results.

Customer engagement is one of the hottest topics in the customer management area. Most of the customer engagement research focus on the customer with strong psychological connection with the focal ...

Many firms have carried out organisational change, such as mergers and acquisitions, to adapt to the rapidly changing business environment. During such changes, it is crucial for firms to provide a...

Purpose Muda is a Japanese term literally meaning futility, uselessness, idleness, superfluity, waste, wastage or wastefulness. The term was introduced by the Japanese engineer Taiichi Ohno of Toyota Motor Corporation in the 1960s. Therefore, reducing and minimizing Muda is an effective way to increase the operational efficiency and productivity of an organization’s processes. In turn, the technique known as the affinity or TKJ diagram represents a practical way of sorting data or ideas into groups classified by common patterns; it can be regarded as one of the new seven tools of quality. The purpose of this paper is to discover Muda by applying the affinity or TKJ diagram in Mexican organizations. Design/methodology/approach An exploratory qualitative study was conducted. Using theoretical sampling, the authors identified and analyzed data from a kaizen training course. Each course workshop was organized by the Universidad de las Americas Puebla and consulting firm “Mi Empresa”, and given to employees of various organizations in various sectors over three years from January 2012 to January 2015. Findings The research provided the first evidence of Muda in Mexican organizations. The Muda of Ohno’s classification was confirmed, but new common patterns of Muda in twenty-first-century organizations also arose. Furthermore, the TKJ diagram proved to be an effective tool of quality to detect it. Research limitations/implications This paper has the same limitations as all other qualitative research, including analysis subjectivity and questionable generalization of findings. It is also important to highlight the seven KJ diagrams, a seemingly abundant figure. However, it is a small sample for the number of companies and processes to be found in Mexico. Practical implications This paper may prove to be valuable for practitioners and managers involved in the operations and continuous improvement fields. Getting to know Muda in organizations is of great importance for continuously improving organizational processes. This classification will allow greater insight and easier detection. Originality/value The study contributes to the limited existing literature on total quality management, lean thinking and kaizen, and subsequently disseminates this information to provide impetus, guidance and support toward improving the quality of organizational processes.

One major means to address corporate sustainability practices in organisations are sustainability-oriented innovation practices, which tend to result in significantly improved products, services, processes or even management systems. Prior research has widely discussed the relevant issues about integrating sustainability aspects into innovation process; however, little empirical research has been conducted to analyse the link between sustainability-oriented innovation practices and the overall organisational performance. This paper addresses this gap by exploring the underlying structure of sustainability-oriented innovation practices as well as their effects on the particular performance dimensions (i.e. economic performance, quality performance, innovation performance, environmental performance and social performance). The large-scale web-based survey yielded 266 usable responses encompassing both the manufacturing and service industries across 5 countries: Germany, Poland, Serbia, Slovenia and Spain. The results of the regression analysis demonstrate that sustainability-oriented innovation practices are positively related with the overall organisational performance. The empirical evidence suggests that when organisations strongly emphasise sustainability practices, they can improve both economic and non-financial performance. From a practical perspective, the findings of the study may provide a clue regarding how organisations can embed sustainability aspects in their innovation processes with the aim of improving their performance.

This paper proposes an alternative perspective on service quality management (SQM) based on the ecosystem of complex and dynamic service environments. First, the ways in which systems thinking and core principles of Quality Management evolved are analysed in order to understand the past, present and the future. Then, by analysing the theories, models and applications of SQM systems and business ecosystems, the paper proposes a framework model for a service ecosystem. The proposed service ecosystem is based on value co-creation that can be utilised to manage service quality and to increase innovability. Through two case studies, the differences between the traditional approach to SQM and the application of ecosystem theory to SQM are compared and reflected. The case studies indicate that ecosystem theory can be used to manage service quality and to achieve success in value co-creation through new innovative practices.

In the hospital, intensive care unit (ICU) is an isolated space where patients with acute symptoms are treated. When the patients are in ICU, their families are usually in psychological crisis and under great pressure. The value of ICU is thus to provide a complete ICU service by which not only the patients receive good treatment, but the feelings of family members are also considered and managed. In the study, we explored ICU value through finding the factors for the satisfaction of patients and their families. We first studied current ICU operations, identified its corresponding processes and built their process profiles. Then we used de facto ICU satisfaction survey questions and linked them to these process profiles. This linkage offered insights on how ICU processes influenced the satisfaction of the patient and the family. In order to improve the satisfaction with the ICU, we created a simulation model which was statistically tested as valid; then different scenarios of medical staff assignments wer...

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to develop an understanding of how patients experience their health problems and how they can generate innovative ideas about health care services. The research questions that guide the present study are: how can solicited diaries be used for capturing patient ideas? What type of data is generated from solicited diaries used for generating patient ideas? And what are the potential benefits and shortcomings of using patient diaries in generating ideas for improvement of health care services?Design/methodology/approachThe paper is based on an exploratory case study using patient diaries to solicit ideas about how health care services in Sweden can be improved. From the methodological viewpoint, the diaries are used as a tool for patient co‐creation of health care services.FindingsWhen analyzing dairies written by patients four different types of diaries emerged from the study: brief, reporting, descriptive and reflective diaries. Furthermore, 102 ideas for improvements within nine areas were identified from the contents of dairies.Research limitations/implicationsAdopting patients' diaries as a way to activate and promote co‐creation of values is at an embryo stage, and hence more research is needed.Originality/valueOne of the strengths of the paper includes its potential for practical implications, either clinical or methodological, by using patients' dairies. It focuses both on the content generated from the diaries for improving health services, as well as the use of the diaries for practicing the idea of patients as co‐creators in health care service.

In this special double issue, we have selected articles related to the understanding of the complex relationships between enhancing quality and employee well-being. The selected articles are, in di...

PurposeRecently, the operations management academic literature has seen articles focusing on the transfer of “lean” thinking or kaizen concept from the private to the public sector. In Spain, during the last 15 years, some local councils have also followed similar improvement initiatives sometimes under the umbrella of “global quality programmes” trying to support continuous process and service improvement. The research question for this article is: How is lean‐kaizen applied in local councils in Spain? The aim is to shed light on how lean thinking is applied in order to improve those services provided to the public by local councils by describing empirical studies in specific Spanish contexts.Design/methodology/approachThe case study approach was adopted in this research. The research design conducted was of the longitudinal and retrospective type.FindingsThe results of the empirical evidence show that three techniques related to lean‐kaizen have a direct effect on the processes and management systems in local councils. The three techniques are: 5S, gemba kaizen workshops and process mapping. These techniques improved the processes and quality of public services provided by the councils. These results suggest the first indications of documented lean‐kaizen public service.Originality/valueA review of the academic literature of lean thinking and kaizen concept indicates that the managerial application of the techniques in the public sector are few and far between and have been barely explored at the empirical level. The paper makes a contribution to the deeper understanding of the usefulness of applying lean‐kaizen in local government in order to improve the processes and services provided to the public – the emergence of lean‐kaizen public service.

PurposeThe purpose of the paper is to present and discuss the Kansei engineering (KE) methodology, and to reflect on the future development of KE. The paper presents a model of the KE methodology and illustrates how this model was applied on a simple example which all may understand – design of a new chocolate bar.Design/methodology/approachThe research methodology is a combination of desk research (literature analysis), data collection, data analysis, reflections and model building.FindingsThe paper suggests a structural model as a possible expanded framework for future Kansei/affective engineering research studies. According to the model profound affection is a result of the following six enabler factors: sensing experience; emotional experiences (Kansei); behavioural experiences/action; social experiences/interactions and relations; spiritual experiences/moral, ethics; intellectual experiences/cognition.Originality/valueThe paper defines “Profound affection” as a very comprehensive state, which is a result of a combination of sensing, intellectual/cognitive, emotional, social, behavioural and spiritual experiences. “Profound affection” is not only a result of sensing or emotional experiences.

Based on a combination of theories, experiences and cases a sustainable change strategy and self‐assessment method with a focus on the human dimension in TQM are suggested and discussed. The Post Denmark TIQ (Total Involvement in Quality) case will be used to illustrate how breakthrough in people attitudes and organisational culture happened and became the foundation for a new culture focusing on change, continuous improvements and everybody’s participation.

Theoretical and empirical research often points to a positive relation between corporate sustainability and organisational performance; however, attempts to conceptualise the multi-dimensional nature of sustainability practices are rare in the current literature. Thus, the purpose of this paper is to present a conceptual framework to aid in understanding and explaining the relationship between sustainability practices and organisational performance. The concepts of exploitation and exploration are adopted to distinguish between different types of sustainability practices. The research model is then analysed in terms of different outcomes related to sustainability performance, quality performance and business performance. Based on an interdisciplinary perspective, this paper suggests a new approach for the discussion of corporate sustainability and its implications for the organisational context. The results of the research suggest that the organisation may place a stronger focus on developing new sustainability-centred competencies when it is faced with an uncertain and rapidly changing environment. In contrast, efficiency and responsiveness to various stakeholders' expectations and demands might dominate in highly competitive environments. The primary conclusion of this paper is that the alternative relationships between sustainability practices (exploitation and exploration) and organisational performance depend on different factors, including environmental uncertainty, competitiveness, long-term orientation and institutional approaches. These arguments indicate that managers in resource-constrained contexts may benefit from focusing on the management of trade-offs between sustainability exploration and sustainability exploitation demands; however, for long-term success, the simultaneous pursuit of exploration and exploitation is both desirable and necessary. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. (Less)

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present and discuss the development of a system for assessing and improving technology development and innovations. The system components comprise: a framework or model for assessing, measuring, diagnosing and improving innovation enablers and results; a simple methodology for data collection, data analysis and prioritizing improvement areas; and an index for measuring the performance level of innovation, learning and lean (ILL) and the potentials to increase that level. To improve innovation, which is the most complex challenge for today's organizations, there is a need for such a system. Design/methodology/approach – The first two system components have been developed and tested during a period of ten to 15 years in several industrial companies as well as service organizations. The last component has recently been developed to satisfy a need of all types of organizations. Findings – With the last development, the ILL index, the three components comprise a system for assessing and improving innovations. As with any other system, the system components are interrelated. Originality/value – This paper presents a system for assessing and improving innovations. As with any other system the system-components are interrelated. To improve innovation, which is the most complex challenge for today's organizations, there is a need for such a system. It is hoped that the suggested system will be used within all types of organizations and all types of innovations – products, processes and services. Original Publication:SuMi Dahlgaard Park and Jens Jörn Dahlgaard, Organizational learnability and Innovability: A system for assessing, diagnosing and Improving Innovations, 2010, International Journal of Quality and Service Sciences, (2), ISSUE 2, 153-174.http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/17566691011057339Copyright: Emerald Publishing Grouphttp://www.emeraldinsight.com/

Sustainability has become a topic of global relevance: Corporations and other economically acting organizations increasingly need to realize economic, environmental and social objectives in order t ...