Many companies now focus on reducing defects in finished products with the goal of zero defects. This is called .

A. total quality management.
B. activity-based costing.
C. balanced scorecard.
D. value chain.

This answer is A. total quality management.

Explanation:

A. total quality management - This is a term used to describe a situation where all business functions are involved in a process of continuous quality improvement. It is also the continuous process of detecting and reducing errors to the barest minimum. All parties involved are held accountable for the overall quality of the final product or service. Four costs are associated with TQM, which are prevention costs, appraisal costs, internal failure costs and external failure costs.

B. Activity-based costing aims to provide management with a simplified method of introducing and managing "process and organization change". It can also be seen to include activity analysis, cost driver analysis, continuous improvement, operational control and performance evaluation.

C. Balanced scorecard is a strategic performance tool that is used by managers to track the performance of their subordinates.

D. Value chain connotes all business processes that are involved in providing a product or service.

A. total quality management

Explanation: William Deming, a management consultant whose work had a great impact on Japanese manufacturing developed the concept of total quality management. Total quality management is defined as the ongoing, continual, process of detecting, reducing or eliminating errors or defects in manufacturing. It is also applied to streamlining supply chain management, improving the customer experience, and ensuring that employees are properly trained. It ensures that superior quality of products or services are created and parties involved in the production process are accountable for said quality—that is to say that the focus of total quality management is to improve the quality of an firm's outputs through continual improvement of internal practices.

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