Yet management inevitably requires compromise or at least a balancing of competing demands, each with some important impact on business performance, in a context of constrained resources. Advocates of TQM typically insist that a TQM programme requires the complete commitment of top management. That sets up unrealistic demands because of the inevitable trade-off between various aspects of the business. If there should be a total commitment of top management it is to Total Performance Management, ie to TPM rather than to TQM or any other individual factor contributing to business results. TPM requires professional attention to multiple aspects of the business and to performance improvement.
Quality improvement is frequently a major part of performance improvement.
Rarely is a firm in a position to give each of these all the attention it would wish. In a company that follows TPM, many of these elements particularly measurement, analysis tools and activity monitoring are applied to all important aspects of the business, including quality. They are used in a way that allows the organisation to balance its commitment of resources to current operations and to improvement in a way that maximises real value. This approach applies also to decisions about priorities in developing various aspects of the business. Shop floor or individual customer-contact staff are normally not in a position to make these judgements.