Harrington Best TQM Thesis/Project Awards

Statement of Purpose

The Hamdan Bin Mohammed e-University in conjunction with a number of European partners from The European Universities Network – TQM has decided to sponsor a prestigious award to encourage pioneering and original research work in the field of TQM, whether through unique contributions through novel ideas and theories or practical applications that are useful and successful.

The Award is named after one of the World’s best known experts in TQM and related areas, Dr. H. James Harrington. The award is meant as a special tribute and in recognition of his unique and immense contribution to spreading the teachings of TQM throughout the World and through assisting thousands of organisations improve and reap out its benefits.

The award recognizes the unique contributions of individual Master’s students in helping develop the TQM concept and in advancing efforts that can demonstrate best practice applications and the documentations of organisational quest for improvement and excellence.

The Harrington Award Process

The award program is administered through two separate strands.

• The European version is administered by The European Centre of TQM (University of Bradford in the UK) and covering students from the European Universities Network (EUN-TQM)
• The version covering the Arab World is administered by the Hamdan Bin Mohammed e-University in Dubai.

The submission process has to be compliant with the criteria that are issued, and it goes through two distinctive stages:

• Intent of entry, by submitting a form with details of the thesis title, category of entry etc.;
• The submission proper which follows subsequently according to the deadline set.

The work to be submitted has to comply with the following requirements:

• It has to be original and must clearly demonstrate the unique contribution it has made either through the theoretical content or the case study application covered;
• Only single authored work is eligible;
• The work must not have been published prior to the application in any shape or form;
• The submission has to comply with the published guidelines otherwise it gets ruled out;
• Participants who enter the competition will be given the opportunity to have their work published in the TQM Magazine;
• The decision from the Jury is final and no appeals are allowed; There could be more than one winner in any particular category;
• The Hamdan Bin Mohammed e-University and ECTQM and EUN-TQM have the right to publicise the work of the winners and to give it maximum exposure;
• The Hamdan Bin Mohammed e-University, ECTQM and EUN-TQM have the right to use the work submitted for the purpose of knowledge dissemination and through compilation of specific publications with of course full acknowledgement of the authors concerned;
• Only one entry per category is allowed per person;
• Applications can be received from the Institutions sponsoring and supporting the award but also from other Institutions that have a Master’s program in TQM and/or related fields.

Entry Requirements

• This award is primarily for students who have gained a Master’s in TQM and/or related topics;
• Only formal academic dissertations and projects are eligible for this award;
• Each nomination has to have the formal endorsement of the Director of Studies of the Program concerned and the formal request signed by the student’s supervisor;
• A nominee must have earned their Master’s degree in the stated period in the guidelines;
• Nomination materials must include an original plus eight copies of the written endorsement;
• An original plus eight copies of an expanded abstract or summary prepared by the student (1000-1500 words) describing the research and its significance;
• An original plus eight copies of the table of contents for the nominated thesis;
• An original plus eight copies of the letter from the department head or major professor. This letter should include information regarding the significance of the thesis, the contribution of the thesis to the program of the degree granting unit, and the impact of the thesis on the knowledge base of the discipline;
• All nominations must be sent by the deadline stated otherwise they do not get considered;
• Initial screening will be based upon four criteria: originality, significance of the study, methodology, and overall quality. The student's contribution to the degree program may also be a consideration. Finalists will be asked to provide three complete copies of the thesis;
• The award consists of a certificate of award and The Harrington Medal.

Criteria for assessment

• Coverage of the literature and the ability of the student to critique, synthesize and bring out key learning points;
• The building of typologies, taxonomies and the presentation of positive contributions in TQM thinking;
• Critical thinking and ability to apply research tools and techniques;
• Models and theories as contributions of key learning;
• Presentation style, structure and language.

• The selection of cases to be analysed and/or tools and techniques to be used;
• The approach adopted to conduct the investigation by examining all of the key areas;
• The mapping of aspects related to various critical factors;
• The analysis of practice versus performance;
• The legitimisation of methods and approaches adopted;
• The identification of key benefits achieved;
• The critique of shortcomings and weaknesses;
• The highlighting of lessons learnt;
• The unique contribution through the proposition of roadmaps, improvement plans, practical guidelines etc.

The Jury Selection Process

• The Harrington Best Thesis/Project Award Jury is constituted of a Chairman and 4 members.
• The Jury members are carefully selected scholars, experts and experienced consultants in the field of TQM and related areas;
• A Jury is selected for the European version of the Award and another Jury is to cover the Arab Region;
• The Jury Chairman coordinates the process of assessment, that includes short listing and selection of winner(s);
• The selection process takes place through open discussions and through the establishment of a consensus;
• Members of the Jury will use the guidelines provided and the assessment templates specifically developed for this task;
• The Jury members are expected to provide feedback to each entrant through a brief report on the strengths and weaknesses of the entry and criteria for rejection. In the case of the winner(s), the specific reasons for selection must also be highlighted;
• The Jury will make its recommendations to the administrative team for the award;
• The administrative representative will make the official announcement and send the feedback reports once the recommendation of the Jury has been accepted;
• The award is presented at a special ceremony where the winner(s) are given the certificate and the Harrington medal.

Expert Mentorship

• Once every two years an open competition is held to select the overall winner(s) from Europe and The Arab Region for the purpose of offering them the opportunity to travel abroad and to spend some time shadowing a prominent expert working in the field of TQM and related area;
• The selection will take place from the winners over the period of two years in all categories concerned;
• The criteria of submission are the same as for the Harrington Award;
• The Hamdan Bin Mohammed e-University and other sponsors will provide funding covering air ticket and contributions to hotel and subsistence to the part of the World where the selected expert lives;
• The period of mentorship is one month and the period will be spent working on a specific agreed agenda with the expert concerned;
• A report has to be produced by the beneficiary student highlighting the key tasks, the processes learnt, and the key benefits;
• The host expert is chosen by Dr. James Harrington himself in consultation with the Hamdan Bin Mohammed e-University, the ECTQM and the EUN-TQM.

Awarded Theses

• 2010, TQM in Healthcare - Impact of waiting time on patients’ satisfaction by Mansour Abed Al Rahman Farhat, Welcare Hospital
• 2009, The Scope of Scientific Research in Security contained by Total Quality Management by Saeed Salem Al Hanki
  click here to download
• 2008, A STUDY OF CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTORS FOR SIX SIGMA IMPLEMENTATION IN UK ORGANIZATIONS by Obaidullah Hakeem Khan
  click here to download

Important Dates

15^th Dec  2010 | Last day for submitting full application including full proposal
Further Details and Information

• Guide for Submission
• Harrington Best TQM Application Form