Total Quality Management and Teamwork in the Public Sector: The Wisconsin Department of Revenue Study

Abstract

In this study, survey questionnaire data was collected on employees' perception of Total Quality Management (TQM). A total of 1278 employees of the Wisconsin Department of Revenue participated in the study. TQM implementation and teamwork can both have positive and negative effects on job design and psychosocial factors, and therefore, on quality of working life. Results showed that teamwork in the context of TQM had positive impact on several job and organizational characteristics and job satisfaction, but also some negative impact on work pressure and job strain. Further research is necessary to understand whether these effects are actually caused by working as a team.