3.2.

Data Collection The descriptive and qualitative research methodology was used because it goes mo re deeply into the research issue and according to (Robson, 2002); this enables the accurate description of the characteristics and causes of what the research tries to explain. The quantitative approach was selected because the aim of this study was to investigate and provide and understanding of the impact of TQM on employee performance. 3.2.1. Primary data Personal interviews over the telephone to carefully and randomly selected staff at oil companies in the state were used as a vital source of primary data collec tion (see Error! Reference source not found.). Interview with primary source all ows more detailed questions to be asked. It is however expensive, and its outcom e can be influenced by bias and influence of personal opinion if not conducted p roperly. A questionnaire was also be used for primary data collection because it was cost effective, eliminates researcher s bias and results in more accurate answers and ac cording to answers (Malhotra, et al., 2006), it is a structured technique for da ta collection consisting of a series of written questions that a respondent. Def ining clear research questions is one of the key criteria for a successful resea rch process as emphasised by Nutbrown (Clough, et al., 2007). However, the main disadvantages of this type of primary data collection methodology are their low response rates, and it can lead to some unanswered questions and sometimes in ac curate answers. In order to benefit from the advantages of this type of primary data collection, a specially designed questionnaire was used (Appendix B: Questionnaire). The qu estionnaires of the required sample size (see data sampling section) were distri buted to staff. An introduction letter/note was provided to the respondent to ex plain the reason and potential impact and the relevance of this research. 3.2.2. Secondary data Secondary data was collected using journal articles, news paper articles and boo ks. Collecting secondary data was straightforward given that many articles, jour nals and books are written on TQM. Secondary research is a use of previously exi sting resources to meet the research goals (Grossnickle, et al., 2001) and it is a cost effective way of obtaining certain types of data.