Point out the importance of a company being appropriately prepared for the TQM prior to an implementation. Although many best industry leaders find TQM practices integral to their maintaining their leadership positions or helping them get there in the first place, the investment that is required to successfully implement TQM in the business is significant enough to ensure the company has thoroughly planned for the program.

Expensive programs that were touted as "game changes" fail a miserable expensive project death due to the company failing to properly prepare for the program. STM went as far as revising their mission statement to reflect the new realities of their industries and support their strategic efforts to integrate TQM within the business (Oakland, 2003). This is the type of core foundational preparation a company needs to consider prior to implementing a program as important as TQM. It also shows the entire organization how much the top managers support the program.

QUESTION: What other types of preparation would you consider important prior to implementing a TQM program in a company?