Strategic Plan Analysis Paper

Strategic Plan Analysis Paper

Total quality management (TQM) involves the application of quality management principles to all aspects of the business. TQM requires that the principles of quality management be applied in every branch and at every level in an organization. Typical of an organization going through a total quality process would be a clear vision, few inter-departmental barriers, employee training, excellent customer relations, and the realization that quality is not just product quality but also the quality of the whole organization to include those functions that do not directly interact with the customer or the production of goods and services. In this paper, the TQM approaches of BAE Systems Information Technology (BAE-IT), and Philips Semiconductor will be compared and contrasted for style and process. First, the paper will look at the organizational vision and mission of BAE-IT.

BAE-IT employs more than 4,900 highly-qualified engineering, technical, and functional personnel, making it one of the largest IT providers to the U.S. Government. BAE-IT represents combined capabilities that span a full suite of managed network services, IT applications, and information assurance solutions for the Intelligence Community, the Department of Defense and its Military Services, and federal agencies and departments, including Homeland Security, Justice, Treasury, and State. Furthermore, the organization "provides an expanded capability set, additional experience and past performance, and significantly more resources (the critical mass) necessary to bid, win, and execute large procurements" (BAE-IT intranet, 2006).

Organizational strengths include: "a highly-skilled technical staff; broad customer base; strong corporate culture and heritage; focus on customer satisfaction; focus on customer intimacy; respected reputation; high-performance staff; strong financial performance; well known in key markets; backing of a strong, global company" (BAE-IT intranet, 2006). BAE-IT as part of BAE Systems North America (a wholly-owned subsidiary of BAE Systems plc) is a U.S. corporation and one of the top 5 U.S. Defense Contractors. BAE Systems North America employs more than 25,000 people and operates in over 30 states, generating annual sales of more than $4 billion (2006).

As part of a global organization, BAE-IT is required to focus on building a sound strategic plan to ensure its long-term success in the global defense industry. To form the catalyst to a sound corporate strategy, the organization developed a mission statement and corporate vision to help guide the principles on which the future of the organization will be based. The following is the organizational vision as shared with stakeholders and available in the public domain:

Our Vision

To be the Leading Systems Company, Innovating for a Safer World

Our Values

To achieve our aim, we have established five guiding values:

Customers - Our Highest Priority - We will delight all our customers, both internal and external, by understanding and exceeding their needs.

People - Our Greatest Strength - All our people will be encouraged to realize their full potential as valued members of the team.

Performance - Our Key to Winning - We will set targets to be the best, continually challenging the way we do things, both as individuals and as members of our teams.

Partnering - Our Future - We will strive to be the partner of choice and be respected by everyone for our cooperation and openness.

Innovation & Technology - Our Competitive Edge - We will encourage a hunger for new ideas, new technologies and new ways of working to secure sustained competitive advantage. (BAE-IT intranet, 2006)

Compare and contrast the management style

The vision and values of BAE-IT are based on the overlying principles of quality management. Within the organization several key programs have implemented ISO and CMMI standards to ensure quality products, customer satisfaction, and essential data storage and retrieval for analysis and variance studies. When evaluating BAE-IT's management style with other companies that have adopted TQM, it is apparent that the overlying principles of quality management are fundamental to those who employ them to achieve strategic objectives.

For instance, when comparing BAE-IT to Philips Semiconductors, one can easily see that both organizations employ the five key principles of TQM within the organizational mission. Specifically, management commitment, people empowerment, continuous improvement, fact-based decision-making, and customer focus are employed to ensure standard, consistent, and data-driven, measurable results for both organizations. When bestowed the prestigious European Quality Award for Business Excellence in 1997, Philips Semiconductor parent company SSG-Thompson Microelectronics, organizational leaders paid tribute to the benefits of TQM in defining the goals and ensuring that strategic objectives were met. For Philips, "TQM is proved to be an integral component of developing strategies to meet changing industry conditions, satisfy customers' needs, and compete effectively" (Pistorio, 1997).

Characteristics of TQM Styles

When Philips Semiconductors decided to implement at TQM strategy within the organization, they decided to develop a plan that would take into the consideration the needs, strengths, and valuable resources that company had its disposal. Accordingly, they developed a plan to implement six main activities or goals for the implementation strategy. Specifically, the organization felt that by establish the quality goals; effectively identifying customers; discovering customer needs; developing product features; developing process features; and finally establishing process controls and transfer to operations, the organization could its goals of a continuous process improvement and quality operation. These six components of process improvement are the foundation on which the Philips TQM strategy is based upon. Accordingly, it can be easily ascertained that data, customers, and processes are paramount to the organizational