Integrated lean TQM model for global sustainability and competitiveness

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore an integrated total quality management (TQM) model for global sustainability. Design/methodology/ approach - It has been well-recognised that Japanese firms compete in quality, cost and speed of delivery. Over the last century, the Japanese have formalised the technique and call it "5S" Practice. Through his research in Japan under the "Oshikawa Fellowship" of the Asian Productivity Organisation in 1988, the author has re-defined the name as "the 5-S" and developed the world's first 5-S Audit Checklist. Recently, in the wake of the soaring oil prices, the author developed another Checklist on Lean 5-S, aiming at minimising wastage of all kinds. Thus, the author adds another dimension to the Japanese competitiveness trio above - environment. Since 1993, the author has used the proprietary 5-S Checklist for training and consultancy in no less than ten countries with over 100,000 persons from around 8,000 organisations worldwide. On the other hand, HKSAR takes the lead in the global oil energy consumption/GPD. The experience is shared in this paper. Findings - On entering into year 2008, the price of oil soared to US$148/barrel, and kept rising. This calls for the pressing need for lean, the most important word for any organisation in the contemporary world. By now, the oil crisis seems to be over. Unfortunately, it has ignited the financial tsunami, a much bigger problem than the oil crisis, which we can live with. The lean management model proposed in this paper has shown some evidence to help organisations overcome the damages caused by the financial tsunami. Research limitations/implications - As the Integrated Lean TQM Model has only been tested in HKSAR, China and Japan, interested academics and related parties are invited to join in to validate this model for the global sustainability and competitiveness. Originality/value - The greatest contribution to the field of TQM in this paper are the two checklists created, each of them with 50 checkpoints, and tested by the author. When used properly, these two checklists are the corner stones for competitiveness and global sustainability in resources management. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited.