The Prevalence of Quality Management System Options in United States Academic Libraries

This article examines the different types of quality management systems and extent to which academic libraries in the United States have implemented these approaches. This discussion is based on a preliminary study that supports a larger research agenda on adaptation of ISO 9000 standards for quality assurance in technical services. Various forms of quality management systems and approaches are described, such as quality control, Total Quality Management, Continuous Quality Improvement, ISO 9000, and the Balanced Scorecard. The results of two preliminary data sets, (1) a record of the literature on these quality management systems and (2) a brief survey of technical services directors of academic libraries that are members of the Association of Research Libraries, are presented and discussed.