United States Sports Academy - "America's Sports University"

Introduction

As we move steadily through the first few years of the twenty-first century, it is only natural to reflect upon the most significant events of the twentieth century, and look ahead at what awaits us, particularly the next few years. Perhaps one of the largest groups of people pondering the future is the business community. Given all of the technological changes which occurred during the twentieth century, corporations have had to endure almost non-stop change to remain competitive in the global market. Open any history book to see the political changes...the end of the Cold War, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the disintegration of the Soviet Union...or the social changes...the development of the entertainment industry with things like the television, VCR, compact discs, personal computers, and the Internet...and the economic changes...the global economy, instant communication for business purposes, planes, and even the beginning stages of video-conferencing.

Combine everything and one can see the unprecedented changes which have influenced business all over the world. The reality of the world-wide economy and the proliferation of information and technology has made corporations large and small begin competing in a whole new manner. As a result, effective management skills and leadership often determine whether or not a company will survive. Open any business journal or trade magazine and the myriad of articles talking about how to stay afloat amid the flood of changes is overwhelming.

In addition to businesses being forced to deal with a changing society, education has also had to confront changes. One issue involves the public desire for strong results in the end product of children (Berry, 1997). According to Blankstein (1992), the structures schools use to manage daily operations need to be updated and changed in order to be relevant and meaningful in today's society. Blankstein also argued that without creating a framework and structure for educational systems, all of the current practices in schools are simply individual programs which function ineffectively. While dealing with the above management and organizational issues, school must also focus on the need to graduate students capable of leadership in a diverse and changing society (Seitz & Pepiton,1996).

As we look toward the future, we must reflect on the past, evaluate what has worked and begin plans for the twenty-first century. What will leadership effectiveness mean in the next millennium? Perhaps the best way to begin a conversation on this subject is to turn to the greats in management theory--Deming, Shewhart and Greenleaf. By examining different perspectives regarding effective leadership and combining the best aspects of each person, a mixture of philosophies and practices should emerge which can continue to change with the times.

Review of the Literature

A review of the literature reveals countless articles regarding total quality management (TQM), effective management, quality controls, employee empowerment and servant leadership. Articles have been written applying these ideas to areas which include everything from education (Berry, 1997; Blankstein, 1992; Napier, Sidle, Sanaghan, & Reed, 1988; Scholtes, 1997; Seitz, & Pepiton, 1996) to government (Levin, 1996, Scholtes, 1997) and even sports (Ho, 1997). What do all of these things mean? What do the philosophies and methods have in common?

Total Quality Management Concepts

On a very basic level, all of the ideas revolve around a few concepts. First of all, management officials should always act as leaders within their organization. It is the opinion of the author that true leaders always give 100%, stick to their beliefs, act for the good of their people/organization, and accept the consequences of their actions. Managers acting as leaders inherently produce quality products, interact with employees in a positive manner and create a healthy working environment based upon mutual trust. Furthermore, leaders should always strive to bring out the best in people and encourage the constant growth of every individual within the company. Naturally, the leader must hold himself/herself accountable to the same standards as the employees. If leaders create a vision for their company and their people, and then take the necessary actions to achieve their goals, businesses will prosper in the years to come. On the other hand, as Scholtes (1997) said, "if leaders don't understand and lead systems, organizations and communities will forever falter and will probably not survive" (p 49).

Officially speaking, the ideas mentioned above are all found in the theories which exist in the business journals. For example, take the total quality management approach. According to Grandzol, & Gershon (1997), TQM can be best defined as, "a holistic approach to running an organization such that every facet earns the descriptive quality" (p 44). Every facet obviously refers to a slew of other topics. Anderson, Rungtusanatham, & Schroeder (as cited in Grandzol, & Gershon in 1997), found seven guiding principles which repeatedly occurred in the research of TQM: leadership, continuous improvement, internal/external cooperation, customer focus, learning, employee fulfillment, and process management. Each of the above mentioned principles may be broken-down into the categories listed below.

For example, in a broad sense, leadership refers to the clarity of vision and the long-range orientation of the leader. It also includes management through a coaching or participatory style. Furthermore, leadership covers topics such as employee empowerment and the planning/implementing phase of change. The continuous improvement component allows for the refinement of ideas and specific improvements to be made to the final product or service. In addition, cooperation must be collaborative between individual employees and teams of coworkers. The ultimate goal of cooperation is to operate from an organization-wide perspective where the entire business functions as one system based upon trust and not fear. In terms of education, this means schools need to focus on: implementing long-term planning, addressing turnover rate of management (principals and superintendents), eliminating arbitrary goals/quotas, revising the current appraisal process of teachers, studying merit pay for teachers, and reducing fear among educational participants (Blankstein, 1992).

Of course, businesses should always focus on the customer--all actions should ultimately be based upon what the end result provides the customer. One of the ways in which customer driven focus occurs is through the continual process of learning among corporation employees. The training provided through the company enhances employees' foundational knowledge as well as process knowledge. The resulting educational development and continuous self-improvement of all employees enables the business team to better serve the customer. In fact, the training and development often leads to an increased level of employee fulfillment (job satisfaction, commitment, and pride).

Once again turning to education, Berry (1992) indicated schools must begin being considered as service organizations concerned with the needs of their clients/customers. As a result, Berry argued schools must actively provide both employees and students with services in the areas of educational programs, advice, care, information and opportunities for specific skills training. More specifically, Berry stated a TQM approach should include the following areas: leadership roles, development of vision, management by fact, team building, human resources, bench marking, cycle time reduction and customer focus/satisfaction/measurement. Unfortunately for educators, Berry also pointed to barriers which face educators when applying TQM practices to school systems: philosophical barriers, unclear relationships between TQM and improved learning outcomes, difficulties with statistical analysis, the customer/supplier relationship, customer-defined quality concept, the industrial culture in education, the introduction/development process and the inspection/evaluation process.

Finally, the last component of qualities associated with TQM revolves around the concept of process management. The managers of a business are directly responsible for prevention of mistakes and reduction in mass inspections. Management must focus on the company's design quality and statistical control. The managers and leaders are required to understand the concept of variation and be able to use the idea to eliminate numerical quotas and merit ratings. Furthermore, management must truly understand motivation and be able to direct employee motivation toward cutting total costs within the company and maintaining a stable level of employment among the workers. All of these ideas constitute the seven indicators of total quality management (as described by Anderson, et al., 1994 and cited by Grandzol, & Gershon, 1997)...but where did these ideas originate?

Deming, Shewhart, and Greenleaf

It is important to backtrack to the works of W. Edwards Deming and Walter A. Shewhart. Both men were classical American pragmatists (Lovitt, 1997) that believed, "knowledge is grounded in hard, measurable data" (p 99). Deming viewed businesses as systems designed to please the customers. In order to please the customer, Deming realized that a number of factors must be addressed. First, the business must clearly identify the customers and know what they want. Then, the business must produce quality products that meet the customers' needs and desires. In order to do this effectively, the business must function as a system of interrelated processes working at optimal performance. Deming based his standards of optimization on the work of Shewhart. Levels of acceptable variation could be determined based upon the data collected by the business (Roehm, & Castellano, 1997). A key component of this view is the idea that when the system was not functioning at the correct level, management officials need to find the cause and solve the problem. Deming even modified Shewhart's work to create a method for problem solving to aid in this procedure. The PDSA cycle (plan-do-study-act) refers to the process by which people learn and improve (Lovitt, 1997).

Already one can see the relationship between the unofficial definition of leadership and the works of the Deming and Shewhart. If every employee at a given business focuses on expending 100% effort and takes pride in their work, then it naturally follows that the corporation would run at optimum levels and produce high quality items. When the leader treats everyone with respect and creates an atmosphere of trust, then employees will be able to work towards continuous improvement, personal growth/development, and learn. Few employees would be able to argue they were unfulfilled! Even the customers would feel well taken care of when they bought quality products which served their needs and met high standards.

Before continuing with more details about Deming and Shewhart, take a moment to relate Robert Greenleaf's work to effective leadership in the twenty-first century. Greenleaf's concept of servant leadership focuses on putting the needs of others above one's own needs. A leader concerns himself/herself about the employees, the customers, and the community as the number one priority. One knows he/she is truly adhering to servant leadership when the people being served grow as individuals, are happy, and become more autonomous. Perhaps the best reward is when someone you have served takes on the role of a servant leader (Spears, 1994). Once again, these ideas fit with the first concept of leadership--leaders strive to bring out the best in people and encourage constant growth. This level of commitment and service, if sincere, would enable businesses to prosper in the twenty-first century.

Now that general ideas have been discussed, a closer look at Deming's work seems appropriate. One of the goals of Deming's TQM movement was to create a culture for change within an organization. In order to create change, the head of the company must commit to the hard work of developing a vision which the employees will embrace. Deming created the following philosophical platform/framework of fourteen quality management points: (1) create constancy of purpose; (2) adopt a new philosophy; (3) stop mass inspections; (4) end price-tag contract awards; (5) improve constantly; (6) institute training; (7) institute leadership; (8) drive out fear; (9) break down barriers; (10) eliminate slogans; (11) eliminate quotas; (12) remove barriers to pride in work; (13) education/re-training courses; (14) action (Berry, 1997). These fourteen steps are not in any particular order but reflect the ideas of Deming.

Other researchers have rearranged the order of the fourteen points so that the points stress the commitment employers have to employees (Roehm, & Castellano,1997). Still others have chosen to focus on specific elements of Deming's work. For example, Ward (1997) zeroed in on the issue of implementing employee empowerment. In the case of Blankstein (1992), five of the points were connected to school related concerns. Additionally, Lo (1997) used seven points to address issues related to major changes within the philosophy of the organization. The bottom line is that Deming's work provides enough information to effectively manage while at the same time, provides enough flexibility to tailor the fourteen points to fit the needs of a specific situation.

As businesses experience the changes that will occur as time goes by, it is important to continuously apply the PDSA model. If businesses make it a habit of planning their course of action, implementing the ideas of Deming, Shewhart, and Greenleaf and studying the results, then corporations will be able to act in the best possible manner to achieve customer demands. When management follows the guidelines and applies 100% of their efforts to achieving company goals, serving the needs of employees/customers/community members, then the corporations will be able to keep up with the changes and survive in the new millennium.

Summary and Conclusion

In closing, businesses and schools throughout the world should practice the leadership effectiveness models currently outlined by Deming's fourteen points, the PDSA learning cycle, and the servant leadership paradigm of Greenleaf. When applied in a consistent manner by individuals committed to working with 100% effort and organized by people in leadership positions willing to adhere to their beliefs, then success should follow. The key is for the leaders to act in manners consistent with the best interests of their people/organization. Of equal importance is for the leadership team to accept the consequences of their actions--both good and bad. Through modifying the process and eliminating sources of inappropriate variations, managers will facilitate the production of quality products. Furthermore, employees will work within a positive, healthy working environment. The high level of mutual trust combined with the encouragement of leaders to pursue constant growth will empower employees to actively participate in the entire business process. With sound vision, people, and methods, companies will achieve their goals, businesses will prosper, and everyone will win together. In terms of education, students will be prepared to enter the work force and educational professionals will experience benefits similar to those in business. Leadership effectiveness in the twenty-first century will ideally be characterized by impeccable customer service, employee loyalty, high standards, and individual growth.

References

Anderson, J. C.; Rungtusanatham; & Schroeder, R. G. (1994). A theory of quality management underlying the Deming management method. The Academy of Management Review, 19(3), 472-509.

Berry, G. (1997). Leadership and the development of quality culture in schools. International journal of Educational Management, 11(2), 52-64.

Blanksetin, A. M. (1992). Lessons from enlightened corporations. Educational Leadership, March 1992, 71-75.

Grandzol, J. R.; & Gershon, M. (1997). Which TQM practices really matter: An empirical investigation. Quality Management Journal, 4(4), 43-59.

Ho, S. H. (1997). Problem solving and the Euro ‘96. Management Services, January 1997, 10-12.

Levin, W. J. (1996). Could a dose of Deming transform government? Journal for Quality and Participation, January/February 1996, 56-61.

Lo, W. (1997). Application of Deming's principles in the management of change--a Hong Kong experience. The TQM Magazine, 9(5), 336-343.

Lovitt, M. R. (1997). The new pragmatism: Going beyond Shewhart and Deming. Quality Progress, April 1997, 99-105.

Napier, R.; Sidle, C. C.; Sanaghan, P.; & Reed, W. S. (1998). Metamorphosis: Creating the capacity for change. NACUBO Business Officer, January 1998, 18-28.

Roehm, H. A.; & Castellano, J. F. (1997). The Deming view of a business. Quality Progress, 39(2), February 1997, 39-45.

Scholtes, P. R. (1997). Communities as systems: Americans need to pick up where W. Edwards Deming left off. Quality Progress, July 1997, 49-53.

Seitz, S.; & Pepiton, S. (1996). Servant leadership: A model for developing college students. Metropolitan Universities, Summer 1996, 113-122.

Spears, L. C. (1994). Servant leadership: Quest for caring leadership. Inner Quest, 2, 9-13.

Ward, J. A. (1997). Implementing employee empowerment. Information Systems Management, Winter 1997, 62-65.