استفاده از معیار جایزه کیفیت در ارزیابی پروژه "تحقیق و توسعه"

Due to the problematic characteristics and complexity of R&D, the applicability of Total Quality Management (TQM) and quality award criteria in the assessment of a company's R&D process is very challenging. This study concentrates especially on the application of the Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award (MBQA) Criteria to R&D assessments at project level. The applicability of quality award criteria in the assessment of R&D projects is first discussed with the help of a literature review at conceptual level. The meaning of different sub-areas of quality award criteria is analyzed from the point of view of R&D activities and single projects. The measures, performance criteria and concrete measurable aspects for R&D project evaluation are then derived on the basis of the analysis. In the empirical part of the study, the analysis of the utilization of criteria for R&D project assessment is discussed from the viewpoint of a manufacturing company that has successfully applied the Finnish National Quality Award Criteria based on the MBQA. The study gives examples of the derivation of new R&D project measures from the quality award criteria framework.

An important consequence of the introduction of systematic approaches of quality management, e.g. quality awards, is the increasingly widespread use of their models and criteria for company self-assessment. Several similar types of national criteria are used for assessment, e.g. the Malcolm Baldrige Quality Award Criteria, the European Foundation for Quality Management (EFQM)-model, the Deming Prize and the Finnish National Quality Award Criteria. This study concentrates on application of Finnish criteria to R&D project assessments. The Finnish Criteria were formerly based on the MBQA, but from the year 2001 they are based on the EFQM-model. The framework utilized in this study is based on the MBQA. In a number of earlier studies, the Total Quality Management (TQM) philosophy has been argued to be an applicable approach also for the management of R&D. However, due to the problematic characteristics and complexity of R&D, the application of quality award criteria in the assessment of a company's R&D process is very challenging (see e.g. Bellary and Murthy, 1999; Boyer, 1991; Fisher and Heywood, 1992; Kiella and Golhar, 1997; Lovett, 1992; Patino, 1997). Companies have different types of R&D projects and in addition to the process level, suitable performance criteria are needed also at the project level. There is a need in many organizations to bring the criteria also to project-level assessment in order to effectively control and manage different types of single R&D projects and the whole project portfolio.

Approaches like the utilization of quality award criteria are widely recognized as good starting points for self-assessment in companies. Award assessments and self-assessments may, however, have distinct purposes. When assessing and measuring performance at the R&D project level, the main purposes for assessing different types of projects need to be carefully clarified. The aim of the research was to study the application of quality award criteria in the assessment of R&D projects by combining theory and practice so that new potential measures could be derived with the help of our phased systematic analysis approach. The literature review helped to identify the possibilities and potential problems related to the issue at conceptual level. The meaning of different sub-areas of quality award criteria was analyzed from the point of view of R&D activities and single projects. New measures, performance criteria and concrete measurable aspects for R&D project evaluation were derived on the basis of the analysis. In practice, the analysis of the application of criteria for R&D project assessment was discussed from the viewpoint of a case company that has successfully applied the Quality Award Criteria in its business development. Example derivations of measures for R&D project assessments were described in the study.