[Movemout]

"And before Six Sigma there was TQM, and before that.... "

The first buzzword of this nature that I recall was "Zero Defects" back in the 70s. You are correct. All of these faddish management approaches seem to last a few years and then fade into obscurity. In the end the defining characteristics of any organization are leadership and training. If you have strong leaders and good trainers you can whip any problem that exists or arises.

[FreedomPoster]

>>The first buzzword of this nature that I recall was "Zero Defects" back in the 70s.

I remember "Zero Defects" banners being splashed around the hangers of one of Dad's Army Aviation units when I was a kid. I'm pretty sure it was Fort Rucker in the '67-'68 time frame, but it might have been Benning a year or so earlier.

[LTCJ]

The first buzzword of this nature that I recall was "Zero Defects" back in the 70s.

Ha! Remember the Zero Defects rallies? I went to one where - honest to goodness - they handed out pencils emblazoned with "Zero Deflects". They were complete with erasers. Erasers which broke off the first time you tried to use them.

That day I stopped being a wide-eyed college graduate new-hire and became a bemused observer of professional management.

Still have that pencil somewhere. I really need to mount it in a shadowbox.