Abstract
While ample literature exists on quality—its context, its processes and structures, its phases, its features and its measurement—attempts to foster quality improvements within the firm still frequently fail. A cross-cultural investigation of a telecommunication company in the US and a paper manufacturing company in Israel illustrates that the meaning of quality and its dynamics remains in a cloud of confusion and mystery, leading to the development of a wide variety of misconceptions. The study identifies four clusters of misconceptions that seem to serve as roadblocks for successful total quality management implementations. The paper concludes that quality can result when meaning, learning, discoveries and on-going revision of socially constructed reality are constantly sought through mechanisms of organizational dialogue. Some of the implications for quality improvement programmes, management consultants and the role of management are explored.
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