Over the recent decades, quality management practises have been documented extensively, with concepts often being termed the latest management fad. This study tackles a debate that has been a topic of discussion within academic literature for several decades; is Total Quality Management a management fad, which should be replaced by a new quality philosophy. This paper presents the TQM versus Six Sigma debate, by critically reviewing existing literature on the two approaches, as well as providing results from research within a leading construction equipment manufacturer. The results highlight that Six Sigma should be implemented using TQM as a foundation; thus presenting the overall finding that TQM and Six Sigma are compliments, not substitutes
