COURSE DESCRIPTION AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The aim of this course is to strengthen students’ capability to integrate managerial/economic and technological knowledge in adequate way to solve problems of adapting quality of agri-food products to customer needs (legislation) and assuring required quality level, in other words, to assure continuous quality of products. This module explains quality as a fundament of achieving and sustaining competitive advantages based on differentiation and efficiency improvements, done through improved organization, information flow and reduction of all types of wastes (including “time waste”). In other words, module focuses “external” quality characteristics (efficiency of production process, marketing and environmental impact) which are usually neglected in the practice, and thus preventing faster sector development.

Knowledge:

• definition of quality, QMS, quality policy, as well as total quality management as a basis for development of sustainable business performances;
• define and describe global quality assurance system, recognize actors and their roles in this system – define and recognize elements of this system that ensure sustainability;
• define the way of building QMS based on TQM principles;
• identify challenges and barriers in agri-food sector TQM.