Peter Walgenbach: From Statistical Control via Quality Systems to Total Quality Management-The Institutionalization of a New Management Approach

The theory of new institutionalism has become a prominent approach in organizational analysis. Despite its prominence institutional theory has a number of shortcomings, e.g. the fact that the process of institutionalization remains unexplained. The present paper suggests that institutional theory should be combined with the theory of resource mobilization, which was developed in the study of social movements. It argues that the theory of resource mobilization is especially suitable to serve as a complementary approach to institutional theory in that it explains the emergence of institutions and institutionalized elements. Empirical evidence is provided to demonstrate the fruitfulness and explicatory power of the theory of resource mobilization as a complementary approach to institutional theory. The case which is analysed-the institutionalization of quality management in Germany-is presented in two steps. The first part contains a historical account of the strategies and activities employed by the quality management movement in order to anchor its own value-system in important subsystems of society. Based on the historical analysis, hypotheses concerning the institutionalization of quality management are deduced and tested in the second part of the study. The changes in the composition of the group of authors contributing to the most important German journal of quality management are submitted to quantitative analysis. Findings show that the strategies of the quality management movement have been successful, though only partially. Attempts to mobilize resources have resulted, for example, in an increasing number of authors who are willing to dedicate their time and their high reputation and qualification to quality management and the quality management movement.