Quality and Innovation

1.1Literature review

Regardless of what definitions innovation might have, such as, 'the introduction of an invention into methods of production' (Accounting, Business Studies and Economics Dictionary), 'the introduction of a new concept or significant improvement into the marketplace in the form of a new product line' (MoneyGlossary.com) or 'the design, development and implementation of new or altered products, services, processes, organizational structures and business models to create value for the customer and financial returns for the firm practicing innovation' (Department of Commerce), this concept is almost unanimously viewed as being one of the most important factors positively influencing the economic growth and as constituting a process which involves a very high level of research and development. All in all, according to most experts in this field, it is obvious that the implementation of innovation within a company encompasses the combinations of both tangible and intangible assets, meaning knowledge and skills of the labor force on the one hand and technologies in the development and commercialization of products and services on the other hand, for instance. Consequently, the appropriate unique combination of these assets should lead to the fulfillment of the ultimate goal sought for by customers: quality, which can represent 'the standard measure of excellence established by the customers in a market niche a company serves' (MoneyGlossary.com), 'a measure of excellence or state being free from defects, deficiencies and significant variations' (Business Dictionary) or 'the totality of features and characteristics of a product or service that bears its ability to satisfy stated or implied needs' (ISO 8402-1986 standard). Therefore, it is obvious that one single conventional definition for either of these two concepts cannot be settled for, but the connection between quality and innovation is irrefutable when referring to its contribution to a company's capability of keeping pace with the necessities of an ever-growing market. In spite of the fact that there are indeed doubts regarding the situation of simultaneously achieving the highest level of both quality and innovation caused by several reasons, such as, for example, the lack of sufficient financial support appointed for the maximum development of these two aspects, the key to success is to find the appropriate solution in order to allow the company to constantly provide quality by means of permanent innovation.

1.2Personal opinion

There are numerous ways of perceiving the term of 'innovation' when referring to a particular product or service; we could analyze, for instance, the initial process of developing several ideas which would eventually lead to the materialization of a specific concept that has never yet been approached or we could, on the other hand, meditate upon the continuous attempts to ingeniously renew the methods of providing quality features of an already existing concept. As far as I am concerned, regardless of the standpoint adopted with respect to this term, I believe it is of the utmost importance to realize the fact that the entire sequence of stages starting with the creation of a concept and ending with the 'struggle' of delivering quality actually represents a permanent appeal and use of innovation. In other words, innovation is vital when talking about all the steps involved in designing, promoting etc a product, taking into account the interdependency of these procedures; that is, just the sole idea of an innovative concept cannot trigger its future success unless its subsequent development is given the same amount of ingenious consideration. Therefore, I might state the fact that innovation represents a never-ending process and an extremely important condition in the productive essay of implementing quality as an essential characteristic of a certain product, as businesses must constantly seek for new strategies of dealing with the requirements of the market, of overcoming their competitors or, most importantly, of setting the trends on a particular market.

II.RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN QUALITY AND INNOVATION

The common primary source initiating a company's attempt to generate value for its customers partly translates itself into the external aspects of the business, mostly represented by the clients themselves, which are basically the ultimate reason for the venture's existence. Given the fact that quality and innovation are two of the most important factors involved in the process of delivering the best products and services, which is basically synonymous to achieving excellence, the appropriate way of attempting to maximize them would be to ensure the success of the company not only to an internal, but also an external extent: 'Excellent companies are not only better on service, quality, reliability and finding a niche, they are also better listeners'. In order to create and maintain a proper symbiotic partnership between customers and businesses, the importance of this issue must be initially acknowledged, followed by the company's focus on paying attention to the clients' needs and wants. Therefore, simply listening and understanding the requirements that they would want fulfilled means taking the first step for succeeding in offering quality through constant innovative ideas.

Although there are contradictory opinions regarding the connection between quality and innovation, there is no doubt whatsoever about the fact that the combination of these two certainly brings an improvement to customers' experience in various ways. First of all, implementing innovation with respect to new products and services not only helps clients to make the necessary adjustments, but also aids the company in gaining a larger market segment, getting new materials that are liable to be required in the future, focusing on generating new skills and modifications in production methods and equipment and so forth, which are all attempts to create quality as a main characteristic. Secondly, in order to attain the previously mentioned goal, a business should direct its investment strategies towards research and resources dedicated to employees' qualifications, as well as towards continuously improving product and service design. Therefore, it can be concluded that innovation has, taking into consideration these two main perspectives, a major influence in the process of quality improvement by reducing the gap between customer needs and process yield and by forecasting upon customers' future expectations.

While quality can be considered as one of the outcomes deriving from the implementation of innovation, an opposite judgment can be applied to this issue, as well, that is, innovation might be efficiently fostered only within the corresponding environment, generated by the total management quality (TQM). In other words, the success of the relationship implying quality and innovation depends on the selection and deployment of the skills and capabilities required for getting the organization members involved in the innovation process; thus, total quality provides the company with the impetus and commitment necessary for the creation of an innovative climate. All in all, despite the conflicting arguments concerning the influence of quality management on innovation, it is obvious that these arise because of the various definitions of the latter; however, there are certain principles which support the idea of a beneficial combination of these two concepts, namely the principle of customer orientation (innovation through consistent search for new customer needs and expectations), the principle of continuous improvement and the principle of empowerment, commitment and teamwork (innovation through changing attitudes of employees reluctant to change).

- Evans, J.R.; Lindsay, W.M. (2008). The Management and Control of Quality, 7th Edition, Thomson&South Western, International Student Edition

- Liu V., Kleiner B. (2001) Global Trends in Managing Innovation and Quality Management Research News 24

- Thompson J. (2004) Innovation through People Management Decision 42

- Brown A., Patrickson M. (2003) Introduction: Quality, Innovation and Knowledge International Journal of Manpower 24

- Prajogo D., Sohal A. (2003) The Relationship between TQM Practices, Quality Performance and Innovation Performance International Journal of Quality and Reliabilty Management 20

- Berawi M. (2004) Quality Revolution: Leading the Innovation and Competitive Advantages International Journal of Quality and Reliability Management 21

- Wang C., Ahmed P. (2002) Learning through Quality and Innovation Managerial Auditing Journal 17

- Singh P, Smith A. (2004) Relationship between TQM and Innovation: an empirical study Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management 15

- Jones S. (1995) The Democratic Dimension of Quality, Innovation and Long-term Success The TQM Magazine 7

- Johannessen J., Olsen B., Lumpkin G. (2001) Innovation as Newness: what is new, how new and new to whom? European Journal of Innovation Management 4

- Muller A., Valikangas L., Merlyn P. (2005) Metrics for Innovation: guidelines for developing customized suite of innovation metrics Strategy & Leadership 33

- Rose S., Shipp S., Lal B., Stone A. (2009) Frameworks for Measuring Innovation: initial approaches

- Creativity, Innovation and Quality from http://www.qualitydigest.com/dec96/godfrey.html

- Innovation: the new face of quality from http://www.qualitydigest.com/magazine/2009/apr/article/innovation-new-face-quality.html