The Effectiveness of Quality Circle Participation in Industrial and Service Organizations in Malaysia

Quality Circle (QC) proponents suggest a wide array of positive results when this participation technique is used either in manufacturing or in service sector. This study is to determine whether QCs in one sector are performing more effectively than the other. This assessment includes technical aspects, length of participation, training, members' feelings about QCs, job satisfaction and job commitment. The study illustrates the impacts of participation on 109 QCs members from five Malaysian companies participated in a survey. Results showed that Industrial QCs members were more enthusiastic than service QCs members in terms of involvement in QCs activities and showed higher job satisfaction and job commitment compared to members in service organizations.