Implementation of Total Quality Management at Nissan Motor Company

This report discusses the implementation of Total Quality Management at Nissan Motor Company, including the background of the company, the challenges faced, and the benefits gained. It also explores the use of Just In Time technology in their production process.

Table of Contents
Introduction.....................................................................................................................................1
Abbreviations...................................................................................................................................1
Company’s Background...................................................................................................................2
Before Nissan implemented the TQM System.................................................................................2
How Nissan company implement TQM system...............................................................................2
Problems encountered implementing TQM....................................................................................3
The major challenges faced by Nissan with Quality management.................................................4
Benefits Nissan gained from implementing TQM...........................................................................4
Specific benefits compared to the TQM System..............................................................................5
Just In Time Technology..................................................................................................................6
Summary.........................................................................................................................................6
Reference.........................................................................................................................................7

Introduction
This report is conducted from a cases study and articles research writing on Nissan Motor
company. This report also outlined how Nissan Motor company implemented Total Quality
Management to focused on improving their business performance. As well as improving their
product quality to meet customers’ need. This report heading is as follows. Firstly, the
background of the company is reviewed (Web.b.ebscohost.com, 2019).
Secondly the stage Nissan were at before the implementation of Total Quality Management
and how they implemented the TQM is described (Web.b.ebscohost.com, 2019).
Problem and challenges encountered while implementing TQM is explained. Lastly, benefits
and specific benefits compared to TQM is well outlined (Web.b.ebscohost.com, 2019).
According to (LLP, 2019). Total quality management is the key to the way Nissan perform
their business. TQM is important to Nissan motors because it involves making customers
satisfaction top priority. Nissan’s goal is to focused on creating high-quality products (LLP,
2019).For Nissan motors to achieve these goals, Nissan needs to implement a TQM system for
identifying the need for a change .. Also to understand customer requirement, identifying and
eliminating the root causes of problems and consider the processes involved in providing
quality(LLP, 2019), which is total quality management.
Abbreviations
TQM Total Quality Management
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Company’s Background
Nissan is one of the Japanese companies that began in 1911. It was created under the name of
Kwaishinsha Motor Car Works by Masujiro Hashimoto (Us and Canton, 2019).
It was then changed to Nissan Motor Company in 1934. Nissan’s first car was the DAT acronym
of three investing partners’ surnames (Us and Canton, 2019).
Nissan’s first plant was built in England during the year 1986. They produced over 400,000
vehicles per year by 2007 (Nissan 2019). Which made them the highest plant producer in
Europe and the best car sellers all over the world. Also leading the industry in technology and
design excellence because of the total quality management system implemented
(Us and Canton, 2019).
Before Nissan implemented the TQM System
With all the improvement of Nissan Motor’s corporate culture, and the improvement in market
share and profits. As soon as Yutaka Kume became the president, he realized that there is a
need for internal change throughout the organization (Hbsp.harvard.edu, 2019).
Even with difficulty affecting the extensive change in kind of organization like Nissan, managers
and employees at Nissan Motors Company got behind this effort (Hbsp.harvard.edu, 2019).
How Nissan company implement TQM system
Nissan implemented the TQM system in 1985- 1995 period. Firstly, Nissan implements the TQM
systems in 1988 for identifying the need for a change as the success of TQM depends upon the
people working in Nissan wants to implement the changes in the business management process
...Since Nissan is responsive to the new ideas therefore, they can easily adopt TQM in such
systems. Nissan clarifies the vision and the mission of their business operation with the
management and the employees ..Secondly, Nissan understands the key customer groups as it
is the major reason for embarking TQM and for that the business are required to survey the key
customer groups for gathering the inputs that the business might require for the improvement
business plan ..Thirdly, the business identifies the critical success factors and in addition to that
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the business should include the measures that are Quantity sold, a number of the closed deals
per day, customer calls answered per day, market share, improved balance sheet figures and
the customer complaints ..
In 1996 Nissan train and retrain the employees as the success with TQM is largely dependent on
the adoption level of the people working in the organization. Whereas certain mechanism in a
car may require the outside consultants for training staffs and system designing, access to
TQM’s intricate process that could be open for the internal workers in the organization (..Nissan
developed the improvement plan and the typical plan set that is comprised of the draft to
transition the TQM ideas for the functioning of employee’s duties and functions (Nissan 2019).
The process improvement initiatives and the development are mentioned in the improvement
plan. The staff training involved in the improvement plan for quality services. The business
follows the performance evaluation techniques for monitoring and ensuring jobs that are
executed in the line with specifications ..
Problems encountered implementing TQM
The problems faced by the business while implementing TQM are as follows:
 The upper management system does not insist on the systematic measurement of the
customer satisfaction level, and the training programs of the customers ..
 Nissan faces la ack of training programs for enhancing the worker’s skills and the
involvement in the quality improvement activities.
 Nissan does not place enough importance on the cases of the goods returned by not
relating such cases to the customers.
 The organization faces insufficient team work facilitators and the team building
strategies.
 The Nissan motors also realizes that the worker evaluations lacks the systematic
approaches and hence the salary adjustments are not commensurate along with the job
functions. Thus, the appreciation for the contributions is not apparent by workers ..
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The major challenges faced by Nissan with Quality
management.
Too many theories: The organizational are mostly striving for the protections and often goes
overboard, the business mostly focuses on the theory than putting the theory into practices for
maintaining the perfect quality management.
Too many documentation: Unnecessary documentation are created, to extent that the
documentation starts hindering the functions of the Quality management system.. In such
cases, it is identified that the employees get stuck working on these irrelevant documentation
and could also lose interest in the Quality Management System ..
Inflexibility: The business faces difficulty while improving because of the rigid and inflexible
business.
There was not enough motivation put place: When the organization implements the Quality
Management System because of the external factors, which becomes hard for the business to
get the desired result (Nissan 2019).
Not giving enough attention to the customers: This is found out that the Nissan is unable to
make their customers satisfied as they are focusing on producing a new vehicle rather than
focusing on customer satisfaction ..
Benefits Nissan gained from implementing TQM
The benefits gained by the Nissan motor by the implementation of TQM are:
 Strengthening viable positions
 Adopting to the changes, and the emerging marketing conditions and to environmental
government regulations
 High output
 Improved market image
 Removal of defects and waste
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 Reduced prices and improved cost management ..
 Advanced profitability
 Customer ‘satisfaction and better customer focus
 Implementing TQM will Improved customer loyalty and retention
 Implementing TQM will improved job security
 Enhanced employee good morale
 Heightened shareholder and stakeholder value
 Increases innovative development
Specific benefits compared to the TQM System
The benefits of the total quality management are endless, Nissan faces the following benefits
by the implementation of TQM:
Cost reduction: The business faces that after applying TQM consistently over time, TQM
reduces the cost through the organization especially in the areas of the argument, rework, field
services and guaranteed cost reduction (Nissan 2019). The cost reduction straightly flows
straight through the bottom-line profits without any type of the additional costs and brings
business profitability ..
Customer satisfaction: As the company produces a better type of products and services, thus
the connections with the customers would be relatively error-free and this would lower
customer complaints. In other words, fewer protests would also mean that the resources for
the customer services can be reduced.
Defect reduction: The business also faces that the TQM has a strong stress on the refining
quality within the system rather than inspecting the quality of the process. This reduces the
time required for fixing mistakes which makes it less essential for retaining the quality
assurance personnel members Nissan 2019).
Good Morale: Continuing of TQM and the establishment success are identified by the team,
and the involvement of the employees leads to noticeable improvements in the employee good
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morale which also reduces the employee income and reduces the cost of engagement and
training the new workers.
Just In Time Technology
Nissan also uses the “just in time approach” (LLP, 2019) on a certain vehicles and other
components are also produced just in time. In other to meet customer demand. Most of their
products assembled separately are moved into the final plant ready to be installed just in time.
“With just in time approach”(LLP, 2019).
, Nissan is able to minimized the amount of space devoted to costly warehousing(LLP, 2019).
According to Nissan’s just in time process depends not only on human weakness but on
machine accuracy(LLP, 2019).
At Nissan Motor Company, every single vehicles is observed throughout the production stage.
Nissan makes sure each of the parts of the vehicle, such as seats arrives just in time for the
vehicles in which they belong (LLP, 2019). At Nissan, production is flexible, which leads to many
advantages sometimes (Web.a.ebscohost.com, 2019). According to (Web.a.ebscohost.com,
2019) if one vehicle is not selling, another vehicle is produced. it is obvious that this flexibility
do not affect the productivity at Nissan.
Summary
In conclusion, There was a huge difference in Nissan’s image and products by the end of the
implementation of the TQM System (Hbsp.harvard.edu, 2019), (Web.b.ebscohost.com, 2019).
Even though most companies implementing TQM faces a common results, it sometimes a
conflict between various quality and practice. With a some little progress at the of the
implementation(Web.b.ebscohost.com, 2019).
The implementation a TQM allow for many changes throughout the Nissan Company.
Implementing TQM also allow for high profits without any type of additional costs, and it also
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brings business profitability. Nissan was able to use TQM to manage the time spent on fixing all
mistakes during production. Which allow for the employees to work effectively(Nissan 2019) ,
(Web.b.ebscohost.com, 2019).
It is believed that with total quality management, Nissan Motor Company were able to meet
customer’s satisfaction and to ensure quality is recorded and recognized. Implementing TQM
System allows Nissan to response speedily to market needs, market demand, rigorous
reliability and quality performance (Emeraldinsight.com, 2019). The implantation of TQM is
successful because there is no lack of integration between quality management and everyday
business practices (Web.b.ebscohost.com, 2019) as well as adapting HR practice to support
total quality management (Web.b.ebscohost.com, 2019).
Maintaining and implementing a new system can be difficulty as a result of poor
implementation (Web.b.ebscohost.com, 2019) but with a successful implementation
Nissan Motor Company will be able to remain successful over the long run
(Web.b.ebscohost.com, 2019).
Reference
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2019].
Us, C. and Canton, N. (2019). Brief History of Nissan | Research | Nissan of Canton. [online]
Nissanofcanton.com. Available at: https://www.nissanofcanton.com/dealer-info/history-of-
nissan [Accessed 19 Mar. 2019].
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LLP, B. (2019). Total Quality Management - Planning for quality and productivity - Nissan |
Nissan case studies and information | Business Case Studies. [online] Businesscasestudies.co.uk.
Available at: http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/nissan/planning-for-quality-and-productivity/
total-quality-management.html [Accessed 22 Mar. 2019].
Emeraldinsight.com. (2019). Japan myth or miracle? | The TQM Magazine | Vol 5, No 3‐ .
[online] Available at:
https://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1108/EUM0000000003082 [Accessed 17 Mar.
2019].
LLP, B. (2019). Just-in-time technology - Planning for quality and productivity - Nissan | Nissan
case studies and information | Business Case Studies. [online] Businesscasestudies.co.uk.
Available at: http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/nissan/planning-for-quality-and-productivity/
just-in-time-technology.html [Accessed 22 Mar. 2019].
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https://hbsp.harvard.edu/product/491079-PDF-ENG [Accessed 22 Mar. 2019].
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Gorrell, M. (2011). E-books on EBSCOhost: Combining NetLibrary E-books with the EBSCOhost
Platform. Information Standards Quarterly, 23(2), p.31.
Web.b.ebscohost.com. (2019). EBSCO Connect. [online] Available at:
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