| In the last twenty years colleges and universities have felt increasing pressures to reform and improve. In the 1990s many institutions adopted Total Quality Management (TQM) techniques in an attempt to become more competitive. However, results of TQM efforts in higher education have received disparate results with notable successes and failures. This paper explores the idea that one reason implementation of TQM in some institutions has failed is due to a lack of inclusion of all college and university stakeholders.; This study examined the perceptions of all stakeholders, internal and external, of TQM implementation in the arena of higher education. A literature review of TQM, TQM in higher education, and stakeholder management was provided to help determine the relationship of stakeholder perceptions to the implementation of quality measures. Furthermore, a conceptual model of organizational variables including stakeholder satisfaction, commitment, knowledge of process, and top management support, and length of association with the university was hypothesized and tested in terms of perceived TQM success.; Survey data were collected from internal and external university stakeholders of a small university in the southwest. External stakeholders consisted of community members, public school personnel, and supervisors of a local mining company. Internal stakeholders included administrators, faculty, staff, and students. Respondents were asked to complete a 30-item questionnaire adopted from previously validated scales.; Results of analysis determined that satisfaction had a linear relationship with stakeholder perceptions of TQM implementation, however the internal-external interaction was not significant. Top Management was found to have a linear relationship with stakeholder satisfaction, commitment, and stakeholder perceptions of TQM implementation. Commitment was found to have a linear relationship with stakeholder perception of TQM implementation. The internal-external interaction was not significant. Although awareness was a significant predictor of satisfaction and commitment as well as stakeholder perception of TQM implementation, the internal-external interaction was not significant. Length of association was negatively related to satisfaction for external stakeholders.; Results are discussed in terms of implications for managers and administrators implementing continuous quality processes in higher education. |
