able of Contents
Introduction. 3
Case Overview.. 3
Problem Statement 4
Problem Analysis. 5
Alternatives. 6
Implementing a
Customized Total Quality Management System.. 6
Acting on Consumer
Complaints. 6
Obtaining the ISO 9001
Standard. 7
Best Alternative. 7
Implementation. 9
Competitor Analysis. 10
Modified Quality System.. 11
Conclusion. 11
Appendix. 12
References. 13
Nahdi Medical Company
Introduction of NAHDI Medical Company and
Quality Management
Al
Nahdi Medical Company is a renowned virtual pharmacy in Saudi Arabia with its
headquarters in Jeddah. It is a global organization and operates in over 125
villages and cities across Saudi Arabia, which makes it a rapidly growing firms
in the region. The belief of firm is to be a community pharmacy. It serves the
community and also raises awareness through its preventive and health awareness
campaigns. In order to develop the Saudi society, it depends on its network and
local knowledge. It is an objective of the firm to operate with efficiency and
discipline while achieving excellence and being the best.
Another
objective of the organization is to lead the market and be creative while
ensuring the inherent character of its processes. Although the organization
strives to achieve efficiency, there have been some issues in operations
management, particularly in quality management. It has been reported by clients
on their website that services are inefficient and their standards haven’t been
met by the medical firm. This poses a threat to the goal of Al Nahdi Medical
Company(Nahdionline, 2019).
Case Overview of NAHDI Medical Company and
Quality Management
Al Nahdi Medical Company is an online retail
pharmacy and it operates in over 125 cities and villages across Saudi Arabia. In
KSA, it has numerous consumers and the organization cares more about their
satisfaction than their growth. Unlike other retail stores, the focus of Nahdi
Medical Company is on community rather than their revenues. However, in the
recent year, the customer care staff began to receive complaints about either
not being delivered the right product, not on time, or not even the product
that they ordered. In the beginning, these complaints were not substantial and
this was considered a normal issue by the customer care department. Thus, this
issue was not reported to the department of operations management. When the
issue was not reported, operations were continued in the same way and this
served to initiate the chain of complaints from all cities and regions in which
the products were delivered.
The
issue was reported to the department of operation management by the sales
department when a significant fall in the sales was experienced. This was
something that could not be ignored and it was reported as soon as possible to
the department of operations management. The operational manager took it upon
himself to inspect the causes of delivery and quality issues and determined
that there were several issues which were influencing the quality management. Following
are the issues identified by the operational manager:
· Reaching
customers in a limited amount of time was difficult due to unpredicted issues
in transport.
· Distribution
was not successful because of ineffective advertisement on the website.
· Quality
of products was degrading.
Due to these issues, consumers were not only
receiving different products that they ordered, the delivery of products was
being delayed, and the quality of products was not as decent as what customers
expected. These issues were only growing with time and their solutions could
not be determined by the operational manager. The operational manager was
confused by the number of issues. If there had been only an individual problem
then solving it would have been easier than resolving several issues at the
same time. In addition to it, these issues posed a risk of further decline in
sales of products. The sales manager had already given the reports on these
declines and if a measure was not taken quickly, sales could decrease even
more.
Problem Statement of NAHDI Medical Company
and Quality Management
Due
to an increase in customer complaints, sales of Al Nahdi Medical Company are
declining and upon identification, three issues have been determined. These issues
include not being able to reach customers in a limited time, not distributing
products effectively to customers as they reported about not being delivered
the product that they bought, and not maintaining the quality of products. These
were the issues which were identified by the operational manager which played a
vital or prime role in decreasing sales. In order to increase the sales, these
issues have to be resolved in a timely manner or a further decline in sales
could be experienced by the Al Nahdi Medical Company.
Problem Analysis of NAHDI Medical Company and
Quality Management
In the cities and areas where Al Nahdi Medical
Company operates, there has been a significant decline in sales. Customers have
stopped purchasing products from the organization due to several reasons. These
reasons include not being delivered the right product, the product not being
delivered on time, and the product quality not being maintained.
The
underlying causes of these issues include lack of automation in the management
of supply chain, lack of professional tools in the department of quality
manager, and inefficient coordination between quality management department and
marketing department. These are the underlying causes which make the issues
appear in the Al Nahdi Medical Company and experience a decline in the sales.
Lack of Automation: In the modern retail business, there has been a
revolution in how processes were conducted, especially in IT and supply chain
process. For instance, in the IT department, there are efficient tools which
can help the experts in controlling the website while supply chain managers are
able to track the product on mobiles and other devices. All of these resources
are lacking in the organization (Oracle.com, 2019).
Lack of tools in the QM department: In the department of quality, teams don’t have
the necessary tools which can help them in evaluating the product quality.
Teams have to manually evaluate the products and determine if the products are
matching the expectations of customers or not.
Lack of
coordination between Marketing and QM department: There is no effective
communication or coordination between the department of quality management and
marketing. Due to it, the products being advertised are not similar to actual
products. Consumers get the right product since advertisements are not
accurate, they tend to believe that they are not delivered the right products. Due
to this inefficient connection between the departments, it is not analyzed
whether advertisements match the products or not.
Alternatives of NAHDI Medical Company and
Quality Management
There are three alternatives which
can be implemented to resolve the issues. These alternatives include:
· Implementing a Customized Total Quality Management
System
· Acting on the Complaints of Consumers and Tending to
them
· Lastly, Obtaining the ISO 9001 Standard
Implementing a Customized Total Quality Management
System
Total quality management is actually
a concept of management that emphasizes the significance of superior quality
within products and projects. Generally, this system includes organizational
support for quality, accurately measuring and recording quality, managerial
involvement, customer satisfaction, and consistent improvement as vital
aspects. However, this system can also be customized for fulfilling the
requirements of an organization. This system can be adjusted to resolve the
issues occurring within Al Nahdi Medical Company. It can involve the implementation
of quality management tools, tracking on technological devices, and integrating
quality control with other managerial processes.
Pros: The first benefit of
implementing total quality management system is that it eliminates the need of
implementing any other system because it has all processes incorporated. The
second benefit is that it is a time and cost-effective method of improving
quality within an organization.
Cons: The only drawback of
implementing this system is that it increases the complexity of the existing
system within an organization(Goetsch & Davis, 2014).
Acting on Consumer Complaints of NAHDI
Medical Company and Quality Management
The second solution is to act on the
complaints of consumers and earn the trust of consumers again. There have been
complaints by customers that they haven’t been delivered the right product or
the delivery hasn’t been on time. Another issue reported by customers is that
the quality of delivered project didn’t meet their expectations. Since these
issues were not resolved quickly, customers continued to experience these
issues and gradually, they stopped purchasing from the Al Nahdi Medical
Company. Due to it, a significant decline was experienced by the firm. In order
to attract these customers again and increasing sales, the organization can act
on the complaints of customers and tend to them.It will help the firm in
attracting customers and earning their trust. For instance, the organization
can send the right products with decent quality to those customers who
complained about not receiving the right product while the firm can also give
discounts to customers who didn’t receive their products on time.
Pros: The first benefit of
this alternative is that it will not consume significant time. Meanwhile, the
second benefit is that it will be cost-effective and the organization will not
have to adapt to different changes in its processes.
Cons: It is a short-term
solution and will not resolve the issues properly. It will not help in
attracting new customers to the firm.
Obtaining the ISO 9001 Standard of NAHDI
Medical Company and Quality Management
ISO 9001 is actually a standard of
quality which is obtained by organizations that comply with all of its
guidelines and fulfill its requirements. This standard is utilized by firms for
demonstrating their capability of consistently providing services and products
which meet regulatory and customer requirements, and for demonstrating
continuous improvement. It is a quality management system with its specific
guidelines. By following these guidelines, Al Nahdi Medical Company can improve
its quality.
Pros: It is a
cost-effective method of improving quality and it helps the firm in improving
not only quality but also other organizational aspects.
Cons: It will help in
improving quality of products and services but it will not help the firm in
focusing on more specific issues such as lack of effective tools available in
the IT and quality management department(Priede, 2012).
Best Alternative of NAHDI Medical Company and
Quality Management
Implementing a customized system of
total management quality is the best alternative for Al Nahdi Medical Company
to improve quality and resolving the issues that it is currently facing and the
issues which have caused a decline in its sales.As stated above, in general,
several aspects are included in this system such as organizational support for
quality and improvement, precise measurement of quality, the involvement of
management in quality improvement, customer satisfaction, and continuous
improvement in processes. In this case, however, all of these aspects are not
considered as it is possible to customize this system to fulfill the
requirements of an organization. Therefore, in this system, the focus will be
on the implementation of quality management tools in the department of quality
management, automating the process of product tracking, and incorporating
quality control with several other managerial processes including the
department of marketing. These will be the main priorities or tasks of this
quality management system. Once
the existing issues are resolved, this system can be further expanded to
resolve other issues occurring within the organizational systems (Ma, Zhang, Wang, & Zhang, 2017).
Quality Management Tools: The tools of quality management include
Fishbone Chart, Paetro Chart, and Qualcy Bio-Med Software. The fishbone chart
is also referred to as a diagram of cause and effect. It will help in recording
the causes of a specific issue and it will also play an important role in the
identification of prime cause of a problem. The Paetro Chart will have a
similar role as Fishbone Chart in the department of quality management. It will
help in identifying issues, prioritizing them, and determining the frequency of
these issues. Bio-Med is a digital software which will help employees in
managing the records of quality management. Overall, these tools will help
employees in evaluating the quality of products.
Product Tracking Automation: This aspect will help the supply management
department in tracking the products and determining whether they will be able
to reach the destination on time or not. When employees will be able to
identify the location of product, they will be able to determine the time that
it will take to reach the destination and can notify the customers about it. It
will not only make the process of tracking products easier but it will also
enable customers to know when they will exactly receive the product. This way,
deadlines will not be missed and deliveries will not be delayed(Bergman & Klefsjö, 2010).
Integration of Quality Control with Other
Departments: It has
been determined that marketing department hasn’t been effective in matching the
advertisements with the actual products and that is why delivered products
differ from the ones which are being advertised. When there is an effective
connection between the QM and marketing departments, advertisements will be
more accurate and the expectations of customers will be met (Wang, Bi, & Xu, 2014).
Implementation of NAHDI Medical Company and
Quality Management
There
are three steps in the process of implementation with respect to Figure 1 in
the appendix.
First
step: The timeline of implementation plan will be two
months. Although more time can be consumed, it would not be effective for the
organization to invest more time than eight weeks in implementing the
customized system of quality management because it would adversely affect the
sales. The very first step in the implementation of this system is concerned
with introducing tools of quality management in the department of quality
management. Before implementing the Bio-Med Software, Fishbone and Petro Charts
will be introduced and employees will be trained to utilize them. These charts
will help both the manager and employees in identifying issues and their main
causes. With the identification of these issues, it will become easier
for the quality manager to work on them. In the first week, these graphs will
be implemented while in the second week, Bio-Med Software will be introduced.
It is a digital software which helps
in recording quality of products and there are several other processes which
help in tracking quality across different services and products. Such type of a
digital application hasn’t been introduced in the organization before and in
order to implement it effectively, employees will be trained for the whole week
in using this software. This software will require time to be utilized and that
is the reason why six days are selected for this software (Nof, 2009).
Second
Step: The second step is concerned solely with automating the process of
tracking the product delivery. Traditionally, the product was not tracked and
due to it, customers suffered from issues like experiencing a delay in
receiving their products. The automation of this delivery system will
facilitate both the supply chain management and consumers as well. Employees
will be able to locate the product and notify the customer about the status in
a timely manner. With a sensible reason by customer care staff for delay,
customers will not be dissatisfied with the delivery. This step will take two
weeks because one week will be required for the development of this system and
the second week will be required for understanding how the system operates in
the organization.
Third
Step: The duration of third step will be two weeks in which meetings will
be held about how different departments will also play an important role in
quality management, especially marketing department. A proper connection will
be developed between the quality management and marketing departments. Marketing
teams will be required to evaluate the product before advertising it. This way,
inaccurate advertisements will not be made on the website and once customers
receive the products, their expectations will be met by the products. If there
is any issue in marketing, it will be reported immediately to the operational
manager who will work on the issue and resolve it before it influences the
firm.
In two weeks, different processes
will be incorporated among the marketing and advertising departments.
Meanwhile, the next and remaining two weeks will be used for running all the
processes in a combination and results will be recorded and evaluated. On the
basis of these results, it will be determined whether any changes should be
made to the quality management system or it should continue to work just as it
is. This system will effectively resolve the issues and help in satisfying
customers in terms of quality and delivery.
Competitor Analysis of NAHDI Medical Company and Quality
Management
Nahdi Medical Company
has various competitors in the market, however, there is the intense
competition in the industry. Al-dawaa pharmacies are in one of the major
competitors of the Nahdi Medical Company. However, al-dawah pharmacies have
products related to customers' demand in the market, they focus on providing
quality medicines, beauty products, baby care, health and wellness, home care
products, etc. However, the al-dawa pharmacies are concerned much about profit
therefore, provided the quality products regarding market demands.
Consequently, al-dawaa pharmacies, Nahdi Medical Company and other Medical
Companies in the industry need to focus on the customized system of total
management quality to bring the effectiveness as discussed below. Nahdi Medical
Company and al-dawaa pharmacies can follow an effective strategic and
systematic approach and there could be fact-based decision making through total
management quality.
Modified Quality System of NAHDI Medical Company and Quality Management
A customized system
of total management quality can be helpful for the Nahdi Medical Company and al-dawaa
pharmacies because it can be proved as the best alternative in improving
quality and resolving the issues that are related to the decline in its sales.
However, Nahdi Medical Company through the total management quality can focus
on the continuous improvement in customer satisfaction as a customer-focused
aspect can be followed through training employees that how they could focus on
integrating quality in the customer service. There is the need to respond to
clients efficiently this will also help to promote the total employee
involvement.
Moreover,
process-centered and integrated system benefits can also be attained through
total management quality. Total management quality can help the medical company
to track the services for patients or customers regarding the decided objective
example, quality policies, objectives,
continual improvement, etc. and in this way, Nahdi Medical Company can also
archive ISO 9000 standards.
Conclusion of NAHDI Medical Company and
Quality Management
Overall, it can be said that in the cities and areas where Al Nahdi Medical
Company was operating, there was a significant decline in the sales. Customers
stopped purchasing products from the organization due to several reasons. These
reasons included not being delivered the right product, the product not being
delivered on time, and the product quality not being maintained. In order to
resolve these issues, the best alternative was chosen and this alternative is
concerned with customizing the quality management system to focus on
implementing quality management tools, integrating mobile tracking automation,
and incorporating quality control with other processes. It would help the firm
in resolving issues and preventing them from happening in the future.
Appendix of NAHDI Medical Company and Quality
Management
Figure:
1
References
of NAHDI Medical Company and Quality
Management
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