ISO 9001 certification research: questions, answers and approaches

Effect of ISO 9001 non-conformity process on cost of poor quality in capital-intensive sectors

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether there are differences in terms of the effect of the ISO 9001 non-conformity process on the cost of poor quality in different sectors. In particular, to investigate the effect on six sectors of companies which manufacture their products mainly through machines and plant (i.e. capital-intensive companies). An additional aim is to understand what the reasons for these differences are and why ISO 9001 has limitations in reducing the different categories of costs of poor quality.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper is based on a questionnaire administered to a sample of 42 companies divided into six different sectors: chemical, pharmaceutical, mechanical, food, ceramic and steel. Respondents were asked to give a percentage score for the contribution the ISO 9001 non-conformity process makes to the reduction in total cost of poor quality and to its categories: scrap, rework, machine stoppage, re-inspections, rejected products and recall cost. A one-way Anova test was applied to the means of the percentage scores to determine whether there are differences between the means of the total cost of poor quality and its categories. Qualitative comments and suggestions from the companies provided information that helped explain the reasons for such differences.

Findings

– The results of the research show that there is no difference within and between the sectors in the means of the total cost of poor quality and scrap cost, whereas there are significant differences in the means of the other costs of poor quality between the six sectors. The ISO 9001 non-conformity process has limitations in reducing the costs of poor quality and suggestions concerning the limitations of ISO 9001 in the Research and Development process emerge.

Research limitations/implications

– The generalizability of the research findings is limited because of the use of just six sectors of capital-intensive companies. Further research about differences in different sectors is needed.

Practical implications

– The implications of this research are useful for consultants and managers who want to understand what the limitations of the ISO 9001 non-conformity process are on the cost of poor quality in the six sectors. The findings clearly show how, together with ISO 9001, they should take into account other improvement processes such as periodic maintenance and revamping.

Originality/value

– The paper discusses in a quantitative way and for the first time the effects of the ISO 9001 non-conformity process on the cost of poor quality.

The impact of ISO 9000 certification on firms’ financial performance

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to explore the relationship between the acquisition of an ISO 9000 certification and the overall financial performance of the certified firms. More specifically, the study proposes a multidimensional conceptual framework, including “customers’ demand”, “ISO adoption”, “operation efficiency”, “market efficiency” and “overall financial performance”. Such a multidimensional approach has randomly been explored in the existing literature, making the examination of the proposed conceptual framework an interesting research topic.

Design/methodology/approach

– The proposed conceptual framework was tested on a sample of Greek ISO 9000-certified companies of various economic sectors. Quality managers were used as key respondents. The final sample consisted of 168 companies. The reliability and the validity of the questionnaire were thoroughly examined. Empirical data were analyzed using the structural equation modelling technique. The findings are based on the 2000 version of the ISO series, which is generally accepted and has widespread use, as it has eliminated most of the disadvantages of the 1994 version. The present study is empirical (it is based on primary data), explanatory (examines cause and effect relationships), deductive (tests research hypotheses) and quantitative (includes the analysis of quantitative data collected with the use of a structured questionnaire).

Findings

– The findings of the study provide strong evidence that ISO 9000 implementation is highly associated with improvements in overall financial performance. Moreover, it was found that ISO implementation is directly associated with significant improvements in quality awareness, operations execution, market share, customer satisfaction and sales revenue. Finally, customers’ demand was not found to be the most important motivation for implementing an ISO certification. Rather, it seems that companies seek for quality improvement due to internal motives.

Research limitations/implications

– A limitation stemming from the implemented methodology is the use of self-report scales to measure the constructs of the proposed model. Moreover, the present paper lacks a longitudinal approach, since it is cross-sectional and provides a static picture of ISO implementation.

Practical implications

– The paper makes an analytical effort in order to point out areas that companies should emphasize in order to successfully implement ISO 9000 and, therefore, harvest its potential benefits. Certain practical implications are offered in the final part of the paper.

Originality/value

– The paper proposes an enhanced conceptual framework that examines vital issues concerning the successful implementation of ISO 9000, thus, providing valuable outcomes for decision makers and academics. Moreover, the results of the study may be generalized in other developed countries whose economy faces similar significant challenges as Greece.

Performance measures of ISO 9001 certified and non-certified manufacturing companies

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to compare ISO 9001 certified and non-certified manufacturing companies with regard to performance measures, both financial and non-financial.

Design/methodology/approach

– A research study was carried out in 140 Greek manufacturing companies by means of a questionnaire. The questionnaire was sent by e-mail and it was requested that it should be answered by a company representative. Exploratory factor analysis is applied in order to extract the latent factors of performance measures. The differences between the ISO 9001 certified and non-certified manufacturing companies are determined through non-parametric tests such as the χ2-test and the Mann-Whitney U-test.

Findings

– The ISO 9001 certified manufacturing companies significantly outperform the non-certified with regard to product quality, customer satisfaction, operational, market and financial performance. This is evident in a business environment where an economic downturn and financial crisis dominates.

Research limitations/implications

– The sub-samples of the responding ISO 9001 certified and non-certified manufacturing companies are small sized and they are limited to small- and medium-sized enterprises. The subjective character of the data collected through the company representatives involves the risk of receiving biased responses regarding the performance measures. The above limitations suggest future research recommendations.

Practical implications

– The increased performance measures of the ISO 9001 certified manufacturing companies may motivate the non-certified ones to implement the ISO 9001 standard and apply for the certification in order to increase their performance and withstand the current economic downturn and financial crisis. The present study may also stimulate manufacturing companies to adopt traditional and modern benchmarking techniques, in an additional effort to improve their businesses and competitiveness.

Originality/value

– The present study compares performance measures of ISO 9001 certified and non-certified manufacturing companies operating under unprecedented circumstances due to the current economic downturn and financial crisis.

Standards and innovation in manufacturing and services: the case of ISO 9000

Purpose

– The research empirically investigates the firm-level impact of ISO 9000 certification on innovation propensity. The study aims to distinguish between manufacturing and service sectors and adopts different innovation definitions aimed at capturing the peculiarities of innovation in services and small firms.

Design/methodology/approach

– Relying chiefly on Community Innovation Survey data for Luxembourg, the impact of certification on innovation probability is assessed using a logit model that controls for relevant firms characteristics and market features.

Findings

– The innovation potential of services and small firms is understated when adopting innovation definitions restricted to technological aspects and more formalised innovation activities. ISO 9000 certification may promote innovation when adopting definitions that captures sectoral innovation specificities. In particular, certification increases innovation propensity in manufacturing when the focus is on technological innovation and formalised innovation expenditures. On the contrary, when non-technological aspects are included and allowance is made for wider innovation activities, the impact of certification on services tends to emerge. However, sharper statistical evidence for manufacturing indicates a more important role of certification for innovation success in this sector.

Research limitations/implications

– Case-study research could supplement the findings concerning the relative effectiveness of certification in services and manufacturing. The investigation would also benefit from extensions in the econometric analysis to address comparisons across samples and potential causality issues.

Practical implications

– Findings are interesting to practitioners and registrars in order to identify the specific characteristics of firms for which certification provides higher innovative potential.

Originality/value

– The study highlights the relevance of sectoral specificities and innovation definitions for the debate about the effect of ISO 9000 certification on innovation.

ISO 9001 in health service sector: a review and future research proposal

Purpose

– This paper aims to describe the state-of-the-art in ISO 9001 research in healthcare service sector and propose the future research agenda.

Design/methodology/approach

– A comprehensive literature review of the ISO 9001 studies in healthcare service sector was carried out.

Findings

– The effectiveness of ISO 9001 implementation in healthcare service sector is still not clear. Previous researches show common stages for implementing ISO 9001 in a healthcare service organization. However, there is no previous research that reveals the content of the system implemented. In addition, there is no previous research that reveals the interpretation of ISO 9001 based on the practice of ISO 9001 implementation in an organization. Based on the review, eight future research agendas were proposed.

Originality/value

– The paper is believed to be the first to discuss the state-of-the-art of ISO 9001 researches in healthcare service sector.

ISO 9000 impact on product quality in a defense procurement environment

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide insights into the relationship between ISO 9001 conformance of suppliers and the quality of products they provide, within a procurement system of a manufacturer operating under contracts with the US Department of Defense.

Design/methodology/approach

Chi‐square tests of independence were performed to compare the receipt acceptance rate of material provided by ISO 9001‐conforming suppliers to that of non‐ISO 9001‐conforming suppliers, for more than 46,000 receipts representing 21 material commodity groups provided by almost 800 suppliers. Acceptance of receipts required conformance to both hardware and paperwork requirements. Tests were also performed on data subsets, to determine the impact of ISO 9001 conformance on product quality for each of the 21 material commodity groups, for manufacturers versus distributors, and for two material control levels.

Findings

For the overall data set, and for the majority of data subsets analyzed, the product quality of non‐ISO 9001‐conforming suppliers was significantly better than that of ISO 9001‐conforming suppliers. When only hardware non‐conformances were considered to cause rejections, the results were similar, but effect sizes were generally smaller.

Research limitations/implications

The quantities of receipts and suppliers included in this investigation were very large; however, care should be exercised in generalizing the results, because of the potential influence of the defense industry‐related requirements imposed upon the material and the suppliers.

Originality/value

This is believed to be the first paper to investigate the impact of ISO 9001 conformance on product quality using a large quantity of actual product data, for both ISO 9001‐conforming and non‐ISO 9001‐conforming suppliers, in contrast to numerous assessments of quality impact performed using interview and survey data.

Change and stability interaction processes in SMEs: a comparative case study

Purpose

The aim of this paper is to explore interactions between change and stability during the implementation of a specific change initiative (ISO 9000). It attempts to develop a theoretical framework on change and stability management in small firms.

Design/methodology/approach

This research uses a process approach based on retrospective comparative case study methodology. Data collection in the six companies lasted over a year. This gives the opportunity to contrast failed change initiatives against successful ones.

Findings

Two models emerged from this approach; they support the notion that change and stability could be complementary during the different phases of the change initiative the authors analyzed. The findings show that total absence of stability variables in the change initiative could have negative effect on results.

Research limitations/implications

The research is based on a multiple case study approach, which limits the generalizability of the findings.

Originality/value

This is one of the first studies that applies and empirically tests the change and stability relation in small firms.

Quality models in industrial and engineering educational scenarios: a view from literature

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to report a literature review which was conducted to trace the quality journeys occurring in industrial and educational scenarios.

Design/methodology/approach

First, the literature was reviewed to trace the efforts made to implement quality models in industrial scenarios. Quality models include International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) 9000 certification, Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA), Deming Prize and European Quality Award (EQA). Next, the literature was reviewed to trace the quality journey being undertaken in an engineering educational scenario.

Findings

Modern Engineering Educational Institutions (EEIs) are required to first accredit their programs by following Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology (ABET)‐based stipulations. Then, these EEIs have to strive to implement quality models.

Research limitations/implications

Because of the low volume of research conducted, relatively very few papers dealing with ABET and quality models could be reviewed. However, the exhaustive review of most of these papers has overcome this limitation.

Practical implications

First, modern EEIs should gain accreditation to ABET and then strive to obtain quality models. This endeavour would make fresh engineers employable in industrial scenarios.

Originality/value

It appears that no researcher has so far attempted to examine the implementation of quality models in an engineering educational scenario. In this context, the results of the literature review reported in this paper could be utilized while implementing quality models in EEIs via ABET‐based accredited programs.

ISO 9000 as an organisation development intervention

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the nature of ISO 9000, illustrate how ISO 9000 can be implemented in face of strong resistance to change, and demonstrate how comprehensive work redesign for higher organisational effectiveness can be realised through ISO 9000 implementation.

Design/methodology/approach

A novel model and process for ISO 9000 implementation in an Indian public sector manufacturing industry have been described. After successful implementation in several production units, the model was examined for congruence with well‐known frameworks in Organisation Development (OD).

Findings

The model has congruence with several OD frameworks. It complements OD by harnessing organisational knowledge through creative involvement of organisational members, adopting three‐tier working to involve the organisation at different levels, employing three‐phase execution to sustain organisational members' motivation throughout the programme; and realising comprehensive work redesign while attaining ISO 9000 certification.

Originality/value

The study show‐cases ISO 9000 as an excellent OD intervention.

A proposal of a new paradigm for national quality certification systems

Purpose

The goal of this paper is to suggest a new incentive model that is capable of creating the conditions for the autonomous growth of diffusion and credibility of the ISO 9000 national quality certification system.

Design/methodology/approach

The first part of this work contains some considerations about the general interest of organisations in quality certification systems, emphasising the advantages and the drawbacks in being certified. Next, the attention shifts to future scenarios. Specifically, a new model is proposed that is capable of encouraging certified organisations (COs) and certification bodies (CBs) that operate blamelessly and seriously, while at the same time penalising those that do not.

Findings

The suggested model consists of two inter‐connected sub‐models relative to COs and CBs, respectively. Each sub‐model includes different states with different incentives/penalties. The switch‐over from one state to another depends on the practical results recorded in recent years by the CO/CB of interest. The switching rules are based on a set of objective, transparent, and non‐manipulable indicators.

Research limitations/implications

On‐site analyses and simulations are necessary so as to tune optimal switching rules to balance the whole model.

Practical implications

The (possible) future implementation of the model could have great impact on COs' and CBs' modi operandi, promoting the real implementation of quality management practices but – at the same time – not requiring significant additional effort from the state and the authorities accrediting/controlling CBs.

Originality/value

The proposed model is absolutely new and may represent a proper way to combine the interests and expectations of COs and CBs into a unique “virtuous circle” for improving the real implementation of quality management.

The willingness of professionals to contribute to their organisation's certification

Purpose

This paper seeks to find out which factors influence the willingness of professionals to contribute to a certification process and to understand the rationale behind this willingness.

Design/methodology/approach

Based on literature, prerequisites are formulated for the willingness of professionals to contribute to certification. These are compared with the results of a study among lecturers at Universities of Applied Sciences in The Netherlands and Flanders about their willingness to contribute to accreditation of their schools. This study combines survey and Delphi research.

Findings

Professionals agree on the added value of certification systems. They are willing to contribute to the certification process, provided that a set of conditions is fulfilled.

Research limitations/implications

The case focuses on large organisations for which certification is obligatory. The findings may not apply in small or medium‐sized organisations or if the main driver for certification is internal improvement. Further research is needed to verify the generalisation of the results to other sectors and countries.

Originality/value

Research has shown that it is difficult to motivate professionals to contribute to certification. Little research has been done on the reasons why. The paper provides more insight into the difficulties that organizations face to commit their professionals to become involved in certification and turns these into requirements to be fulfilled to achieve commitment. These are relevant for organisations, which need the support of their professional employees to achieve management system certification.