Role of government in an Era of total quality management (TQM) and globalization: Challenges and opportunities

This article addresses the changing role of government in the rapidly changing environment of globalization, a process through which worldwide integration is pursued by forces of global capitalism. Government is challenged by conflicting and contradictory forces of globalization of corporate capitalism seeking absolute profit, while at the same pressures for quality services and quality assurance are mounting worldwide. As a result, an impossibility theorem develops, with new challenges and opportunities facing governments. Alternative theories of government are presented, and suggestions are offered on what government should do to promote quality assurance and TQM in the age of globalization. © Springer Science + Business Media, Inc. 2005.