REAL ESTATE : Fieldstone Follows Management Precepts of W. Edwards Deming

The late W. Edwards Deming’s theories of quality control and management technique are followed most closely by industrial companies. But the teachings of the theorist, who died Monday at age 93, had a profound impact on at least one Orange County home building company.

In an industry where the most prevalent leadership style is, “Hey! It’s my company and I can run it any way I want,” Deming’s approach made sense to Peter Ochs and Keith Johnson, co-founders of Fieldstone Co.

The Deming philosophy is to treat employees and suppliers as associates in a joint endeavor rather than foes to be vanquished in the name of more profit.

For almost seven years now, Fieldstone has formally embraced Deming’s concepts in a program it calls partnering: subcontractors are pulled into Fieldstone’s operations, allowed to help make decisions and to share in both the good times and the bad with the company. And employees are treated as people who have a stake in the operation of the company and a right and responsibility to share their thoughts with the managers.

Asked for a comment on Deming after the management expert’s death, Fieldstone President Keith Johnson said:

“Deming was more than a statistician, he was a moral philosopher. He taught us how to design a total system for managing people that fits well” with Fieldstone’s corporate values.