Quality management practices and their impact on performance

Purpose This paper aims to explore the relationship between quality management practices and their impact on performance. Design/methodology/approach First, critical quality management practices are identified and classified in three main categories: management, infrastructure, and core practices. Then, a model linking these practices and performance is proposed and empirically tested. The empirical data were obtained from a survey of 133 Tunisian companies from the plastic transforming sector. Findings The results reveal a positive relationship between quality management practices and organizational performance. Moreover, the findings show a significant relationship between management and infrastructure practices. In addition, the results illustrate a direct effect of infrastructure practices on operational performance and of core practices on product quality. Research limitations/implications The conceptual model proposed and tested in this study can be used by researchers for developing quality management theory. In addition, this model may offer a flow chart to practitioners for effective quality management implementation. Originality/value The proposed model is the first one to distinguish the direct effects of infrastructure practices on performance from the indirect effects of these practices through the core practices. Besides, the use of path analysis method to study the direct and indirect relationships between quality management practices and their effect on performance dimensions.