IDENTIFICATION OF BARRIERS TO THE EFFECTIVE FUNCTIONING OF QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS OF ENTERPRISES IN UKRAINE

Abstract

The article examines the barriers to the effective functioning of quality management systems of enterprises in Ukraine under conditions of wartime instability, energy constraints, logistics disruptions, labor shortages, stricter regulatory requirements, and the digital transformation of the business environment. The relevance of the topic is determined by the fact that, under current conditions, quality management systems at many enterprises often function formally and do not ensure an adequate level of preventive quality management, process stability, or timely response to deviations. The aim of the article is to identify the barriers to the effective functioning of quality management systems of enterprises in Ukraine, to systematize and assess them, and to substantiate directions for their minimization. The methodological basis of the study includes methods of theoretical generalization, systematization, logical analysis, comparison, scientific abstraction, structuring, and score-based assessment. In the course of the study, the content of the concepts of “quality management,” “quality management system,” and “barrier to the functioning of a quality management system” was clarified, which made it possible to reveal the systemic nature of barriers as factors that distort or block the effective implementation of processes, procedures, decisions, and interrelations in the field of quality assurance. The expediency of dividing barriers into external and internal ones was established. External barriers include energy, logistics and supply, market and competitive, regulatory, financial and economic, technological, socio-demographic, and security-related barriers, whereas internal barriers cover organizational and managerial, process and technological, personnel and competency-related, economic and resource, information and analytical, cultural, communication and coordination, and control-related barriers. A priority score-based methodology for assessing barriers according to the criteria of impact, frequency of occurrence, and controllability is proposed, which makes it possible to determine the level of their managerial priority and link the assessment results with specific actions aimed at elimination, minimization, adaptation, or monitoring. The practical significance of the results obtained lies in the development of generalized directions for responding to barriers depending on their nature and level of controllability. The scientific novelty of the study lies in clarifying the essence of barriers to the functioning of quality management systems and developing an applied approach to their assessment and overcoming. Prospects for further research are associated with testing the proposed methodology at specific enterprises and adapting managerial response tools to sector-specific operating conditions.