How quality management can enhance performance? A model of relationships mediated by innovation

Abstract

The aim of this study is to analyse how soft and hard quality management (QM) practices enhance incremental and radical product and process innovation, and operational and financial results, and the paths from QM to financial results via innovation and operational results. The paper examines these relationships applying Partial Least Squares (PLS) and using data from 105 firms. The results show that soft QM is associated with hard practices, with incremental and radical product and process innovation, and with operational and financial results, but hard issues have no positive association with innovation, nor with operational and financial results. The results also show the path from soft QM to: (a) operational results via innovation, and (b) financial results via innovation, via operational results, and via both innovation and operational results. This study adds to the literature the mediating role of both innovation and operational results on the relationships between soft QM and financial results. It contributes to practitioners by showing the importance of both innovation and operational results to strength the association between QM and financial results, and the different paths from QM to financial results.

Keywords:

• Quality management
• soft and hard practices
• product and process innovation;
• incremental and radical innovation
• operational and financial results

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Juan José Tarí

Dr. Juan José Tarí ([email protected]), Professor in Business Management at the University of Alicante, Spain. His Ph. D. dissertation was an analysis of quality management. His current research includes Total Quality Management and its relationship with sustainability, environmental management, organisation design, innovation and higher education.

Enrique Claver-Cortés

Dr. Enrique Claver-Cortés ([email protected]), Professor in Business Management at the University of Alicante, Spain. He received this PhD in Business Management from the University of Valencia. His research interests are strategic management, international strategy and quality management. Note: Professor Enrique Claver died last year.

Mariano García-Fernández

Dr. Mariano García-Fernández ([email protected]), Lecturer in Business Management at the University of Alicante. His Ph. D. dissertation was an analysis of relationship between quality management, innovation, and operational and financial performance. His current research includes Total Quality Management and the relationship between quality management and innovation.