ASPECTS OF TOTAL QUALITY MANAGEMENT APPLIED IN ...

Annals of the University “Constantin Brâncuşi”of Tg-Jiu, No. 1/2008, Volume 2,
ISSN: 1842-4856
3. Hassle. The heart of the hassle factor is that the desired change program fails because it demands
out-of-the-ordinary efforts that are unsustainable over the long run: "To apply these concepts, I had to
go out of my way, doing extra things that were on top of all the other things I was obliged to do and
was in the habit of doing. I just didn't have the energy and willpower to keep that up."
4. Isolation. The isolation factor reflects the powerful influence of social forces in virtually every
aspect of our lives: "I was out there all by myself, a Lone Ranger. Most of the folks in my unit, and,
even worse, my boss, thought I was nuts. They didn't understand what I was trying to do. And although
they didn't actively fight it, they sure didn't try to help me out, either. I couldn't continue trying to
march against the tide."
5. Incentives. Any change effort is easily undermined by the apparent absence of immediate rewards
for success: "After a couple of weeks, I couldn't honestly say that even my own decisions were making
a dramatic difference in how well things were going in my work. And I certainly don't think that my
boss was dazzled by spectacularly better decisions in our office. So I said, 'What's the point?'"
To avoid it adding decision management experiences, it must somehow defeat every one of these
errors. Doing so requires that it personally devises, adhere to, and continuously refine a plan that will
ensure that it follows through, a plan that directly addresses each of the main contributors to
backsliding.
Elements of a Successful Action Plan
If the manager develops a plan himself, it will have the sense of personal ownership success demands.
Moreover, the plan will be tailored to the unique circumstances of personal situation and the situation
inside company. Nevertheless, experience has demonstrated the wisdom of weaving a limited set of
elements into a decision management action plan, elements that fall into just two broad categories:
partnership and institutions.
1. Partnership
It needs partners-allies in decision management mission. Acquiring partners helps most directly with
isolation and incentives. With partners, a manager will no longer be the sole voice for change. And
when manager and his partners achieves even subtle successes, at minimum it will be rewarded by
mutual congratulations. Just as important, though, the manager and his partners will be able to work
collaboratively to put into place and sustain measures that combat all the remaining contributors to
backsliding.
What kinds of partners should it seeks to recruit? Although it should never turn away anyone in the
company, it makes sense to start by seeking partnerships with a few close peers, managers at its own
rank. It probably already knows these folks well, including how they think. And managers cans
empathize with the kinds of problems that occupy their attention day in and day out. Thus it haves a
natural bond on which you can build. Collectively, all of these should be motivated to craft measures
that speak directly to the decision management ills that make jobs harder than they ought to be and that
are impeding advancement. After getting things going, manager and his peer collaborators would be
wise to seek partners in the ranks above manager, starting with his own bosses. After all, those are the
people who control the richer resources and authority required for broad change.
How should it approach the recruiting task? The same principles that guide effective sales practices
apply here, too. A prospective partner's self-perceived needs have special importance. Start by asking,
"What keeps this person up at night? What company problems cause the biggest worries? What does
this person see as obstacles to personal advancement?" Using the kinds of ideas, figure out how and to
what extent those problems arguably are caused or aggravated by weak decision management. Then
manager makes those arguments to his prospective partner as convincingly as it cans. Experience has
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