On March 30, TKU held the 2012 Total Quality Management (TQM) Seminar. The seminar is an annual event attended by all TKU faculty and staff. It is conducted simultaneously at the Tamsui, Taipei, and Lanyang campuses, which are connected via webcam. In total, 650 staff members attended the event.

The seminar was this year divided into two sessions – a morning and an afternoon session. Both sessions were hosted by the President of TKU, Dr. Flora Chia-I Chang, and attended by each of the TKU vice presidents. President Chang, in her opening comments, noted that TKU has already applied TQM to its operational procedures for the past 20 years. In the process of implementing TQM, Tamkang has experienced the full spectrum of highs and lows; a process that President Chang likened to the ebb and flow of the economic cycle.

This year, the seminar featured speeches and experience-sharing from departments that previously won the Tamkang Quality Award in the hope of inspiring other departments to follow suit. The award-winning departments that delivered keynote speeches include the Office of Information Services, the Office of Finance, and the Office of Physical Education. The Dean of Financial Affairs, Yen Sin-hui, shared insights gained while taking part in the Tamkang Quality Award. He explained that the essence of TQM lies in enhancing employees’ awareness of quality issues on a day-to-day basis.

In the second part of the seminar, the Deputy Chairman of Unimicron Technology Corporation – one of the world’s leading technology product companies – delivered a keynote speech. He described Unimicron’s experience in TQM, and the strategies used to increase overall company efficiency, leading to Unimicron being the first Taiwanese company to receive the prestigious Deming Prize. The speech explained the company’s operational philosophy, including its ‘customer focused approach’ and its use of the PDCAB strategy.

Finally, the seminar featured a Q&A segment hosted by TKU vice presidents and the rector of Lanyang Campus, in which participants asked questions regarding the successful approach used by Unimicron over the past several decades.