The relationship between total quality management (TQM) and corporate strategy: the strategic impact of TQM

This paper examines the relationship between Total Quality Management (TQM) and Corporate Strategy by investigating the strategic impact of TQM on organizations. There is a paucity of in‐depth research examining this complex relationship. The research methodology is a grounded theory inductive approach involving nineteen case studies. In this approach the dialogue and storytelling within the research study enables key constraints and areas of interest in the TQM/Strategy discourse to emerge. The key findings indicate that: (1) in many cases the bureaucratic/functional approach to strategy is paralleled in the approach to TQM; (2) a number of organizations had difficulty in identifying the ‘driving’ influences of TQM in relation to corporate strategy; (3) TQM is found to be a useful catalyst for developing corporate strategy; (4) some organizations were found to restrict their TQM efforts to operational levels rather than adopting Strategic Total Quality Management. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.