The second edition of this best-selling textbook provides a comprehensive introduction to the theory and practice of quality in the context of management thinking. Fully revised and updated, it reviews the study of the quality movement throughout the twentieth century. The wide-ranging approach encompasses both traditional and contemporary approaches based on systems thinking.Improvements on the first edition include:* revised and updated chapters which explore the notion of quality in greater depth, and relate quality directly to organisational effectiveness* consideration of the substantial changes brought about by the introduction of ISO9000:2000 and exploration of the links to IIP, ISO14000, ISO19000, Management Charter and the Business Excellence Model* revised examination of Business Process Re-engineering which emphasizes the application of chaos and complexity theories* a completely rewritten approach to statistical methods* a new section on ‘Skills Based Quality Management’ – an approach to quality in the professional sector developed by the author and his colleagues* an entirely new chapter dealing with the Business Excellence Model.