NCJ Number
148888
Journal
State Court Journal Volume: 17 Issue: 3 Dated: (Summer/Fall 1993) Pages: 17-22
Date Published
1993
Length
6 pages
Annotation
Fewer resources and increasing public demands are causing courts to look at new ways of improving efficiency and productivity, and total quality management (TQM) may be useful in the court setting.
Abstract
TQM is about empowering employees and reversing the typical court's organizational pyramid. It is also a mechanism for courts to focus on customer service, professionalism, and quality. The National Center for State Courts (NCSC) conducted a telephone survey to identify trial courts that have instituted or have been thinking about implementing some kind of TQM program. Telephone contacts revealed that few trial courts have implemented TQM and only a few more are planning to do so. Of 14 trial courts that have been experimenting with TQM, most courts have done so fairly recently. Experimentation with TQM has occurred with State-level support and in individual trial courts. The use of TQM in Minnesota, Oregan, Utah, and New Jersey is discussed, and specific findings of the NCSC survey are presented. Sources of resistance to the implementation of TQM are identified, as well as training needs associated with TQM and benefits of the approach. The TQM program of the NCSC is described. 2 figures