The Adaptation of Industry 4.0 for Total Quality Management (TQM): Empirical Observations from the Banking Service Sector

Industry 4.0 (I4.0) emerging concepts affect banking services in multiple dimensions. This research assessed service quality and the successful adaptation of I4.0 to enhance the implementation of Total Quality Management (TQM) in Tanzania’s banking sector. Such transformation of I4.0 for TQM is sometimes referred to as TQM 4.0. This study used a mixed-method approach whereby qualitative and quantitative data were analysed from 9 banks operating in Tanzania. The qualitative data were collected through semi-structured interviews, whereas the quantitative data were collected through questionnaires, document reviews, and observations from 150 bank staff and 22 bank customers, all from 9 banks. SPSS® 21.0 performed the Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA). EFA results were subjected to Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) in AMOS version 21.0 to confirm their usefulness by testing their relationship’s strength. The findings indicate that the overall readiness level is 3.54 out of 5, demonstrating a medium level of adaptation readiness. Such readiness level signifies that manual interventions augment some degree of I4.0 adaptation in implementing TQM in banks. The confirmed driving factors for the TQM 4.0 adaptation include legislation, political will, strategy, and policy. Ultimately, this study proposed a TQM 4.0 adaptation framework for the banking sector.