Total Quality Management (TQM) is "a system of continuous improvement employing participative management and centered on the needs of customers." Key components of TQM are employee involvement and training, problem-solving teams, statistical methods, long-term goals and thinking, and recognition that the system, not people, produces…

Ways that school administrators can develop or improve their strategic thinking and learning skills are presented in this guidebook, which forces the planner to change his or her actual thinking about planning before taking action. Chapter 1 deals with overcoming single-issue thinking and becoming proactive. Basic concepts and tools are provided,…

Strategic planning in higher education is seen in this book as an essential element in the life of a successful college or university. This book begins by defining strategic planning and explains how to identify the core problems a college or university wants to address and solve through the planning process. It continues with advice on how to…

This book presents a wide array of sophisticated problem-solving tools and shows how to use them in a humanizing way that involves all stakeholders in the process. Chapter 1 develops the rationale for educational stakeholders to consider quality tools. Chapter 2 highlights three quality group-process tools--brainstorming, the nominal group…

Planning and management strategies used in the private sector have practical applications for higher education in a period of systemic and organizational stress. Promising strategies include organizational delayering; employee empowerment; boundless thinking, problem-solving teams; accelerated processes; quality management and improvement; and…