469 Copyright © 2013, IGI Global. Copying or distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited. Chapter 25 DOI: 10.4018/978-1-4666-3966-9.ch025 INTRODUCTION Since the 1990s, many quality models have been widely adopted by firms, such as the Deming Prize in Japan, the Malcolm Baldrige National Qual- ity Award in the USA, and the European Quality Award in Europe as frameworks for implementing Total Quality Management (TQM). The wide- spread assumption is that these are operational frameworks that reproduce TQM by capturing its main constituent parts and replicate its core ideas in a clear and accessible language (Cua et al., 2001). However, TQM is an approach to management embracing both social (“soft TQM”) and techni- Alessandra Vecchi University of London Arts, England Louis Brennan Trinity College Dublin, Ireland Quality Management: An Evolutionary Cross-Cultural Perspective ABSTRACT The purpose of this chapter is to address the extent to which quality management is “culture-specifc.” The chapter presents the results of a survey administered across 21 countries that seeks to examine quality priorities and practices by adopting the Global Leadership and Organizational Behaviour Efectiveness (GLOBE) framework (House et al., 2004). Drawing on previous research (Vecchi & Brennan, 2011), data was collected in 2009 as part of the ffth iteration of the International Manufacturing Strategy Survey (IMSS). The methodology involved the use of a self-administered questionnaire to director/head of operations/manufacturing in best practice frms within the sector of frms classifed by ISIC codes (rev.3.1) Divisions 28-35. From this study, it emerges that adopting the GLOBE framework provides an invaluable insight into understanding quality management across countries. While some previous research portrays quality management as a comprehensive management paradigm with elements and relationships that transcend cultural and national boundaries, the current study provides evidence that the adoption of certain quality practices across diferent countries can follow distinctive patterns.