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International Journal of Quality & Reliability ManagementEmerald Article: A performance realization framework for implementing ISO 9000Dong-Young Kim, Vinod Kumar, Uma Kumar

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To cite this document: Dong-Young Kim, Vinod Kumar, Uma Kumar, (2011),"A performance realization framework for implementing ISO 9000", International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 28 Iss: 4 pp. 383 - 404

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A performance realizationframework for implementing

ISO 9000Dong-Young Kim

Coggin College of Business, University of North Florida, Jacksonville,Florida, USA, and

Vinod Kumar and Uma KumarSprott School of Business, Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to propose a performance realization framework based on keyfactors of ISO 9000 implementation.

Design/methodology/approach – A three-stage approach of a systematic review is employed toexamine the literature and develop the framework. The review is concentrated on three research topics:motivations; critical success factors; and impacts of ISO 9000 implementation.

Findings – This study identifies five motivation factors (quality-related; operations-related;competitiveness-related; external pressure-related; organizational image-related factors) and tencritical success factors (leadership; training; involvement of everyone; organizational resource;quality-oriented culture; customer-based approach; process-centered approach; communication andteamwork; customizing the ISO requirements; quality audit). This study also develops a performancerealization framework composed of three parts: conversion; enhancement; and competitive prioritystages.

Originality/value – This study contributes to the development of the literature by providing a set ofmotivation factors and of critical success factors that can assist practitioners to effectively implementthe standard. Further, the proposed framework helps to explain causal relationships among ISO 9000impacts and provide guidelines about critical considerations.

Keywords ISO 9000 series, Quality management, Motivation (psychology), Critical success factors

Paper type Research paper

IntroductionIn a dynamic and intensified market, achieving success is determined by various factors;these include speed to market, quality of the product, and the capability of thecompetitors (Soh and Markus, 1995). Among the factors, the organizational ability todeliver a high-quality product consistently is still considered to be one of thefundamental and substantial competencies (Reimann and Hertz, 1994). Reflecting thisbelief, many researchers and practitioners have paid attention to quality improvementprograms such as the ISO 9000 quality management system (QMS) standard and theMalcolm Baldrige National Quality Award (MBNQA) (Oger and Platt, 2002). Inparticular, ISO 9000 has been viewed as one of the most important quality assuranceprograms of the last few decades. This is largely because ISO 9000 implementation is afirst step in establishing a quality-oriented environment and achieving total qualitymanagement (TQM) in organizations (Mezher et al., 2005; Lewis et al., 2006; Magd, 2006).

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at

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Framework forimplementing

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Received January 2010Revised April 2010

July 2010Accepted October 2010

International Journal of Quality &Reliability Management

Vol. 28 No. 4, 2011pp. 383-404

q Emerald Group Publishing Limited0265-671X

DOI 10.1108/02656711111121807

ISO 9000 is the global standard designed to provide assurance about the quality ofservices and goods in supplier-customer relations (International Organization forStandardization, 2009). Implementing ISO 9000 enables organizations to standardizeorganizational processes, to develop appropriate measures, and to improve quality on acontinuing basis (Yahya and Goh, 2001; Williams, 2004; van den Heuvel et al., 2005). Itis widely accepted that to produce high-quality services and products, organizationsmust build an effective QMS by adopting ISO 9000 (Gotzamani et al., 2007; Gingeleet al., 2003; Huarng et al., 1999). Unfortunately, obtaining the ISO 9000 certification is anecessary, but not in itself sufficient, condition to construct an effective QMS and toincrease organizational performance. Without careful design and implementation ofISO 9000, it is difficult for registered organizations to expect a performance superior tothose of non-registered firms (Feng et al., 2008). Along this line, studies postulate thatorganizational efforts and implementation structure play key roles in creatinglong-term, effective performance of ISO 9000 (Lewis et al., 2006). To examine theseefforts and implementation, researchers have explored in a wide variety of ways.

However, during the last decade, there has been much debate on the effectiveness ofISO 9000 implementation (Heras et al., 2008; Singh, 2008). Given the importance ofISO 9000 implementation, the purpose of this study is to propose a performancerealization framework. To develop key components of the framework, this studyidentifies key aspects of ISO 9000 implementation:

. motivations;

. critical success factors; and

. impacts of ISO 9000.

This study is organized as follows. In section two, the research methodology isdiscussed. In section three, existing studies on ISO 9000 are reviewed in terms ofmotivation, critical success factors, and impacts of ISO 9000 implementation. Insection four, a performance realization framework is proposed to improve existingimplementation frameworks. Finally, the study concludes with main findings andcontributions.

Research methodologyThis study relies on the literature review approach that refers to “a form of researchthat reviews, critiques, and synthesizes representative literature on a topic in anintegrated way such that frameworks and perspectives on the topic are generated”(Torraco, 2005, p. 356). We admit that the literature review approach is not free fromlimitations or biases. A reviewer, for instance, might show a bias by omitting orneglecting some portions of the literature because of his or her preferences or mistakes(Stanley, 2001). However, selecting a methodology should be based on researchobjectives and contexts because there is no perfect methodology that will avoid anybias. There are two reasons why the literature review approach is suitable for thisstudy. First, the literature review approach is one of the most appropriate approacheswhere contradictory findings appear (Torraco, 2005). A researcher can carefullyexamine and synthesize different findings by using consistent analytical approaches.The second advantage of the literature review is that a researcher can examine thestate of knowledge on a specific topic (Baumeister and Leary, 1997). The literature

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review on ISO 9000 can offer researchers opportunities to identify the current statusand expand current research areas into divergent and multiple bases.

We employed a three-stage approach of a systematic review:

(1) planning the review;

(2) conducting a review; and

(3) reporting and dissemination (Tranfield et al., 2003).

In the first stage, existing studies on ISO 9000 implementation were located throughfour electronic databases (Business Source Complete, E-journals@Scholors portal,Emerald Library, and CBCA Business & Reference). A joint search approach was alsoused with the following keywords:

. ISO 9000-oriented keywords (e.g. “ISO 9000”, “ISO 9001”, “ISO QMS”, “qualitymanagement system”, “quality system”, “quality standard”, “qualityimprovement standard”, and “documentation tool”); and

. practices-based keywords (e.g. “motivation”, “motive”, “success”, “criticalfactor”, “barrier”, “performance”, “effect”, “impact”, “benefit”, “process,“implementation”, and “framework”).

About 130 studies were found through the first stage. In the second stage, somestudies were excluded from the list because the studies concentrated ontechnological or mathematical issues, not management and business studies.References to the studies were additionally reviewed to find studies dropped or notidentified in the first stage. In the last stage, about 100 studies were identified. Thisresearch scope is limited to the main aspects of the implementation that have beendiscussed in the literature. These aspects, for example, include why organizationsimplement the standard, what factors should be managed, and what organizationalprocesses are established.

Literature reviewMotivation and success factors of ISO 9000 implementationThe literature review reveals that studies on motivation of ISO 9000 have generallyrelied on four categorizing areas:

(1) regulatory and quality management motivation (Anderson et al., 1999);

(2) developmental, non-developmental and mixed motivation (Jones et al., 1997);

(3) direct, indirect, and overseas motivation (Arauz and Suzuki, 2004); and

(4) internal and external motivation (Boiral and Roy, 2007).

Although researchers have used different terms, it could be concluded thatorganizations determine the registration because of either internal drives or externalcircumstances (Yahya and Goh, 2001). Most researchers have applied for theclassification of internal or external motivations in their empirical studies (e.g. Fuenteset al., 2000; Heras et al., 2008; Naveh and Marcus, 2007). In this study, theimplementation motivations of ISO 9000 are categorized into internal- andexternal-driven motivations. Further, a list of motivations for ISO 9000implementation is summarized in Appendix 1. The internal motivations are divided


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into three factors (quality-, operations-, and competiveness-related factors), whereasthe external-driven motivations include two factors (external pressure andorganizational image-related factors).

To identify critical success factors for implementing ISO 9000, researchers haverelied on two approaches:

(1) barrier-based approaches; and

(2) success-centered approaches.

The barrier-based approach assumes that identifying barriers helps organizations toovercome difficulties (Bhuiyan and Alam, 2005b). Using this approach, researchershave examined possible barriers (e.g. Tang and Kam, 1999) and how these barriers canbe overcome (e.g. Zeng et al., 2007). They found that the barriers tend to be based onorganizational, technical, economic, or human resource issues (Fuentes et al., 2000).Among these, the most important barrier is related to the human resource such as alack of leadership, insufficient involvement of employees, and absence of training(Mezher et al., 2005; Bhuiyan and Alam, 2005a; Fuentes et al., 2000). Implementing thestandard considerably relies on employees’ invisible efforts and positive attitude tochange the organizational culture and ways of working (Piskar and Dolinsek, 2006). Bycontrast, the success-centered approach posits that the successful adoption of ISO 9000could be achieved through the management of success factors. This approachconsiders the success factors to be the essential requirements to lead to the positiveimpacts of ISO 9000 implementation. Appendix 2 indicates a set of critical successfactors of ISO 9000 implementation discussed in the literature. The critical successfactors are composed of ten factors, such as leadership, training, and quality audit.

Impacts of ISO 9000 implementationResearchers have tried to classify the impacts of ISO 9000 adoption from variousperspectives. Some researchers split the impacts into two traditional performancecriteria: operational and financial performance (e.g. Naveh et al., 2004). Others haveproposed their own classification criteria for ISO 9000 benefits (e.g. Tzelepis et al.,2006). In this study, to improve the missing points of prior studies, we discuss theimpacts of ISO 9000 classified into four categories:

(1) no impact;

(2) ISO 9000 assets;

(3) ISO 9000 outputs; and

(4) organizational performance.

Level 0: No impact on performance. In this dimension, organizations do not understandthe standard, reasons for the adoption, and ways to connect the implementation to theirperformance. The organizations admit that their implementation motive is externalpressure, instead of motives for internal improvement. Top management is notcommitted to the quality improvement efforts and does not allocate sufficient resourcesand time. Employees frequently complain about the effectiveness of ISO 9000. Theyview the standard to be a paper-driven tool (Hashem and Tann, 2007), to lack flexibilityand to have poor compatibility with other management systems (Zeng et al., 2007), tocontain no guarantee of product quality or market value (McGuire and Dilts, 2008), to

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have high implementation costs (Hashem and Tann, 2007), and to have heavy relianceon the auditors’ subjective interpretation (Seddon, 1997). It is also difficult to find anysignificant and positive relationship between ISO 9000 implementation andperformance.

Level 1: Established ISO 9000 assets. ISO 9000 assets refer to the infrastructureassisting organizations to transform organizational efforts into operationalperformance. The assets are necessary and are the minimum conditions necessaryto improve operational and business performance. To achieve the assets, organizationsshould strategically manage organizational activities such as aligning motivations ofISO 9000 adoption with organizational goals and strategies, customizing the standardto fit their organization, and creating a quality intensive culture. On the basis of theseefforts, organizations lead to the following ISO 9000 assets:

. the improvement of systems – improved measurement systems, enhancedefficiency of QMS, and strengthened feedback systems (Yahya and Goh, 2001;Magd, 2008; Poksinska et al., 2006b; Williams, 2004);

. standardization of processes – standardized work procedures, created workingroutines and instructions, and developed documentation standard (Williams,2004; Yahya and Goh, 2001; Zeng et al., 2007; Jones et al., 1997); and

. learning and communication environment – disciplined work environment,improved quality awareness, and developed employee morale andcommunication (Yahya and Goh, 2001; Zhang, 2000; Zeng et al., 2007).

Level 2: Improved ISO 9000 outputs. ISO 9000 outputs are defined as operationalperformance achieved by managing ISO 9000 assets and critical success factors ofISO 9000 adoption. Many empirical studies have listed the positive relationshipbetween organizational efforts for ISO 9000 and operational performance (e.g. Fenget al., 2008; Magd, 2006). Without organizational efforts, it is difficult for organizationsto convert ISO 9000 assets into ISO 9000 outputs. To produce ISO 9000 outputs,principles and techniques of ISO 9000 should be widely applied and internalized in allaspects of the business, including suppliers and customers (Van der Wiele et al., 1997).ISO 9000 outputs include the following components:

. reduced cost;

. fast delivery;

. flexibility;

. shortened cycle time;

. enhanced employee satisfaction;

. reliability; and

. improved productivity (e.g. Mezher et al., 2005; Han et al., 2007; Jang and Lin,2008).

Level 3: Influence on the organizational performance. Organizational performance isidentified as organizational final results through ISO 9000 implementation.Depending on the types of organizations, they could have different definitions ofperformance, such as financial performance or customers’ satisfaction (Soh andMarkus, 1995). The purpose of ISO 9000 is to assist organizations to establish an


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effective QMS. ISO 9000 does not guarantee any improvement of product quality ororganizational performance (Feng et al., 2008). This is because ISO 9000 is focusedon the development of processes and QMSs, and not on all managerial areas, suchas strategy and business results (Porter and Tanner, 1996). Managing all areascould be covered by quality award models, such as the EFQM model (Czuchry et al.,1997). Therefore, we argue that ISO 9000 outputs (operational performance)conditionally influence organizational performance on a long-term basis.Organizational performance is considerably dependent on the level oforganizational efforts or other external factors that are out of organizationalcontrol, such as competitors’ capability or the particular market conditions. Thisargument is consistent with the views of Soh and Markus (1995), who contendedthat achieving organizational performance is influenced not only by operationalperformance but also by any number of outside factors.

Performance realization frameworkIn this section, existing frameworks on ISO 9000 implementation are analyzed in termsof five criteria. Based on the multiple analyses, we propose a performance realizationframework composed of three parts:

(1) conversion;

(2) enhancement; and

(3) competitive priority stages.

Analysis of existing frameworksIn this study, a framework is defined as a guideline and a road map to assistorganizations in achieving their goals by providing core information aboutimplementation procedures, critical success factors, and causal relationships toperformance (Aalbregtse et al., 1991; Yusof and Aspinwall, 2000). Based on thedefinition, eight existing frameworks are analyzed by the following five criteria:

(1) a type of framework;

(2) an application of prior theoretical model;

(3) a consideration of motivation factors;

(4) a consideration of critical success factors; and

(5) a clarification of links among impacts.

It should be noted that the eight frameworks are not a total list in the ISO 9000literature (see Appendix 3). Instead, the frameworks are only representative samples tounderstand the current status of existing frameworks on ISO 9000.

Reviewing the eight existing frameworks allows us to recognize two importantmissing points. First of all, existing frameworks have failed to identify the causalrelationship among the impacts of ISO 9000 implementation. The frameworks also donot describe the detailed input, expected output, or a feedback loop. For example,researchers have rarely discussed how the certification influences a change inorganizational processes, how the improved processes make an impact on operationalperformance, and how the enhanced operational performance affects financialperformance. Consistent with the views of Yusof and Aspinwall (2000), we contend

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that a framework should explain the links among various aspects of performance.Showing the causal relationship among the impacts can encourage organizations topay attention to specific impacts of ISO 9000 adoption and to make an effort to improvethe impacts on a short- and long-term basis. Second, existing frameworks have notfully investigated and discussed many listings of motivations and critical successfactors. Many frameworks seem to posit that the importance of critical factors shouldbe based on organization-specific contexts. However, we believe that a frameworkshould cover a set of critical success factors, because the framework enablespractitioners to focus on developing a set of critical factors. In particular, it is necessaryadditionally to consider motivation factors in a framework because many empiricalstudies have found a positive relationship between motivation factors andorganizational performance (e.g. Poksinska et al., 2006b; Heras et al., 2008).

Performance realization frameworkTo improve the existing frameworks, we highlight the following three importantfeatures of a new framework. The first feature of the framework is its focus onexplaining causal relationships among ISO 9000 impacts by relying on a process modelproposed by Soh and Markus (1995). Soh and Markus (1995) argued that IT investmentdoes not always lead to enhanced organizational performance because of variousfactors, such as inappropriate use of the systems. Soh and Markus (1995) explicitlyshowed how, why, and when the investment creates IT assets; the IT assets yield ITimpacts; and the IT impacts affect organizational performance. We believe thatadopting the process model in our framework will contribute to the development of theliterature on ISO 9000 by clarifying causal relationships among the various impacts ofISO 9000. Applying the process theory is helpful to explain what links among ISO 9000impacts are expected, why the investment of ISO 9000 adoption influences preferredorganizational performance, and how organizations could accomplish outputs at everystage. Second, the performance realization framework provides guidelines aboutcritical success factors of ISO 9000 adoption. The literature review showed thatobtaining the certification does not ensure positive impacts. Organizations shouldunderstand, identify, and pay attention to the success factors to achieve a favorableperformance. A set of the critical success factors identified in the previous section iscombined in the framework. Further, the framework covers the role of motivationfactors. Highlighting the critical success factors and motivation factors couldencourage practitioners to minimize resource waste and produce high performance.The last feature is that the framework provides information about what inputs,outputs, and screening points are necessary. ISO defines the process as “a set ofinterrelated or interacting activities which transforms inputs into outputs”(International Organization for Standardization, 2005, p. 7). In this viewpoint, aframework should clarify the inputs, outputs, and the interacting activities for eachstage. Identifying the components enables practitioners to understand the keyprocedures, the feedback mechanism, and considerations of ISO 9000 implementation.The following section discusses three stages:

(1) the conversion stage;

(2) the enhancement stage; and

(3) the competitive priority stage (see Figure 1).


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Conversion stage. The conversion stage, the first phase, aims at constructing afoundation to operate quality-based systems, processes, and culture. The main outputof this stage is ISO 9000 assets, composed of:

. improved systems;

. standardized processes; and

. learning and communication environment.

Without organizational efforts, adopting the ISO 9000 standard does not always resultin ISO 9000 assets. Organizations should transform the unfamiliar standard into theirown language in terms of compatibility. The conversion activities are split into twomanagerial areas:

(1) the formation of motivations; and

(2) the management of critical success factors.

To form the appropriate motivations, organizations should understand that theirmotivations are significantly associated with organizational goals and strategies. It isalso important to make an effort to consolidate the internal-driven motivations or toconvert the external motivations into the internal motivations. This is because theinternal motivations can mediate the impacts of the external motivation on ISO 9000adoption ( Jang and Lin, 2008).

The management of critical success factors should concentrate on ten factors, suchas leadership and quality audit (see Appendix 2 for a complete list). ISO 9000implementation accompanies the cultural change (Briscoe et al., 2005). ISO 9000 shouldbe aligned with organizational goals and strategies, and it should change many aspectssuch as culture and employee ways of thinking. In this stage, top managementleadership is very important. Top management plays a crucial role in integrating thestandard with organizational goals and strategies, allocating sufficient resources, andmonitoring organizational efforts (Fuentes et al., 2000; Benezech et al., 2001). Using thesupport of top management, project team members provide employees withquality-centered training that is helpful to understand the mechanisms of ISO 9000and its techniques (Balzarova et al., 2004). When employees have a betterunderstanding of the standard, it could be easy for them to be motivated andinvolved in the organizational efforts (Park et al., 2007). Organizations also providevarious communication channels to encourage employee communication andknowledge sharing (Balzarova et al., 2004). Employees make an effort to understand

Figure 1.Performance realizationframework

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the ways that the standard is customized for achieving their goals (Carlsson andCarlsson, 1996). To assist the organizations, a certification agency offers guidelines andauditing information about the standard (Fuentes et al., 2000). Conducting internal andexternal audits enables organizations to identify their weaknesses and pay continuousattention to the improvement areas (Singh, 2008; Poksinska et al., 2006a). Finally, anorganization obtains the ISO 9000 certification. Depending on the level oforganizational efforts, some organizations can achieve their ISO 9000 assets, whileother organizations fail to accomplish the ISO 9000 assets.

In the screening phase, organizations might decide whether to abandon the adoptionof ISO 9000. It is difficult for organizations to terminate the implementation of ISO 9000because this means accepting failure. The failure tends to increase development andmaintenance costs, but reduce product quality (Magd, 2008; Zeng et al., 2007; Boiraland Roy, 2007; Hashem and Tann, 2007). Similarly, process management does notalways fit all organizations. Increases in process-oriented practices could decreaseradical innovation (Benner and Tushman, 2003). We argue that an objective decision ata right time can minimize additional failure expenses and employee resistance for theISO adoption. Organizations could determine directions by monitoring importantvariables, such as corporate fit, peer supports, potential applications, and firm’scapabilities (Kumar et al., 1996).

Enhancement stage. The purpose of this stage is to make the standard-orientedpractices routine across organizations and improve operational performance. In thisstage, requirements of the ISO standard are incorporated into the ways thatorganizations produce products or service. Main outputs are associated with ISO 9000outputs, such as reduced cost, enhanced flexibility, and improved productivity. ISO 9000assets are necessary to produce ISO 9000 outputs. Organizational efforts in this stagealso should be combined with ISO 9000 assets. In terms of the level of efforts, theenhancement stage requires more organizational efforts than those of the conversionstage. ISO 9000 assets are regarded as a solid foundation to efficiently produce ISO 9000outputs. This argument is supported by many empirical studies, which found that thedepth of ISO 9000 implementation is positively associated with operational performance(e.g. Mezher et al., 2005; Feng et al., 2008; Magd, 2006; Jang and Lin, 2008).

To describe the main characteristics of the enhancement stage, the differencesbetween the conversion and the enhancement stage are discussed in terms of thefollowing two perspectives:

(1) individual capability approach; and

(2) organizational approaches.

With regards to individual capability, in the conversion stage organizations mainlyrely on the support of external consultants in adopting ISO 9000. For instance,consultants support organizations when analyzing their status of quality managementand documenting work procedures. Employees could learn the basic concepts andsimple techniques of ISO 9000. Unfortunately, the consultants’ supports are limited tominimal information to achieve only the certification. The registration can beprogressed with a few quality managers and relevant employees who are responsiblefor preparing quality procedures and manuals and defending from the external audit.Other employees lack knowledge about statistical approaches and quality techniquesand tend to spend a great deal of time preparing for the third-party audit and external


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auditors’ questions. They view the external audit to be an annoying process that couldexpose their weakness or problems. In the audit, they might try to hide problems anddo not share constructive ideas with external auditors. In contrast, in the enhancementstage, employees make an effort to find opportunities to improve their systems andprocesses in their own manner. They do not need external support. They canimplement statistical and quality-based approaches or tools in their work. They knowwhy the requirements of ISO 9000 are important in their work and how therequirements are embedded in daily life. To develop their own capability andcontinuously improve their work, they spontaneously attend training programs andshare their knowledge with colleagues and auditors. Further, they do not spend muchtime preparing for the third-party audit because they want to show auditors their dailywork. They view the audit as an excellent opportunity to identify their weaknesses andareas for improvement. These attitudes and efforts consequently lead to ISO 9000outputs.

In terms of organizational approaches, the level of the organizational involvement isdifferent between the conversion and the enhancement stages. To meet therequirements of ISO 9000, certified organizations should construct the ISOstandard-based circumstance. In the conversion stage, most changes are derived byorganizational force or a few limited employees’ efforts. For instance, organizationsform a project team to motivate employee involvement. The key members are deeplyinvolved in the quality movement, while other employees would resist ISO 9000adoption and any changes. Many changes are determined by a top-down approach andefforts of a limited number of employees. By contrast, in the enhancement stagechanges are achieved by the involvement and efforts of employees, not organizationalforce. Organizations do not force employees to be involved in the implementation.Employees are fully motivated and involved in the quality improvement activities.These motivated workforces contribute to changing organizational culture. Projectteam members concentrate only on nurturing motivated employees, offering advancedtraining programs, and monitoring and guiding organizational performance.Organizational goals and strategies are designed and implemented through abottom-up, instead of top-down, approach.

Competitive priority stage. The competitive priority stage aims to achieveorganizational performance by maintaining a competitive edge in a market. In thisstudy, “organizational performance” refers to financial performance, successful goalaccomplishment, and degree of satisfaction (Soh and Markus, 1995). It is clear that highoperational performance does not always lead to high organizational performance,even though an organization can produce a high-quality product or service. In adynamic market, providing high-quality products or service is necessary, but it is notsufficient to guarantee success because customers consider many other factors (e.g.variety, price, and speed) (Reimann and Hertz, 1994). It is also hard for an organizationto control the factors that are mainly exposed to outside contexts. Thus, it should benoted that ISO 9000 implementation does not always ensure high organizationalperformance. ISO 9000 adoption focuses on improving operational performance andestablishing a continuous improvement culture to produce a product or a serviceefficiently and effectively. In this stage, an organization would realize that it is time toadopt a quality award model that focuses on performance management and valuecreation. This is because their capability already exceeds the coverage of ISO 9000.

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ImplicationsThe findings of this study provide important implications for practitioners andacademics to facilitate the implementation of ISO 9000. First, the benefits of ISO 9000have to be viewed from three different aspects:

(1) ISO 9000 assets;

(2) ISO 9000 output; and

(3) organizational performance.

Managers must understand that standardizing a process, ISO 9000 assets, is only onecomponent among many ISO benefits. The asset is the bedrock to create ISO 9000 output,such as reduced cost, enhanced flexibility, and improved productivity. EstablishingISO 9000 output cannot always guarantee desirable performance because organizationalperformance is influenced by the outside context. To effectively manage the benefits ofISO 9000, it is very important for organizations to understand the multidimensionalaspects of benefits, to specify different benefits, and to invest resources for improvingbenefits on a long-term basis. Organizations that do not understand the differentcomponents of benefits are likely to often complain about the effectiveness of ISO 9000implementation or to simply maintain the certification without any benefit. Thus,organizations may need to recognize the causal relationships among the benefits ofISO 900 and handle resources in a discrete manner according to the development stage.

Second, most attention must be directed to ten critical success factors:

(1) leadership;

(2) training;

(3) involvement of all staff;

(4) organizational resources;

(5) a quality-oriented culture;

(6) a customer-based approach;

(7) a process-centered approach;

(8) good communication and teamwork;

(9) customizing the ISO requirements; and

(10) a quality audit.

Our literature review indicates that these factors play a synergistic role in fosteringorganizational learning and change. It appears that these practices have a greaterimpact than other practices. These factors are vital in continuing to prioritizeorganizational efforts and to monitor relevant progress. It is likely that organizationsfocusing on the success factors might find it easier to realize the benefits of ISO 9000than organizations paying less attention to these factors.

Third, the proposed framework in this study provides academics with futureresearch topics on how organizational efforts generate different benefits throughISO 9000 implementation, such as assets and outcomes. This study outlines thedifferent implementation stages and the benefits expected at each implementationstage. Future researchers should test the framework by focusing on the relationshipbetween organizational efforts and corresponding benefits from a longitudinal


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perspective. It may be necessary to adapt existing scales or develop new scales that areadequate to capture the nature of organizational efforts. For example, to measureorganizational efforts, it is imperative to adapt or customize a set of qualitymanagement practices and a questionnaire developed by Saraph et al. (1989), Flynnet al. (1994), Kaynak (2003), and Sila and Ebrahimpour (2005). Similarly, using the listof benefits suggested in this study, researchers can develop or customize survey items.This attempt will lead to modification of the proposed framework and development oftheories on the link between organizational efforts and the benefits of ISO 9000.

ConclusionOver recent decades, ISO 9000 has been viewed as one of the crucial quality programsto improve the quality of products or services (Lewis et al., 2006). Many organizationshave struggled to obtain the ISO 9000 certification and transform ISO 9000implementation into organizational performance. However, there has been muchdebate about the effectiveness of ISO 9000 adoption. In view of this debate, this studyhas synthesized the literature on various aspects of ISO 9000 implementation andsuggested a performance realization framework to implement ISO 9000.

Crucial findings could be summarized into four points. First of all, it is important tounderstand internal-driven and external-driven motivations of ISO 9000 adoption. Manystudies agreed on the positive relationship between internal-driven motivations andperformance. Some researchers also argued that external-driven motivations could havean effect on organizational performance directly or through internal motivations. Toachieve organizational performance through ISO 9000 implementation, organizationsshould fully understand their motivations in adopting ISO 9000 and establishimplementation objectives and plans. Second, concentrating organizational efforts oncritical success factors is an essential condition to improve both short- and long-termperformance through ISO 9000. In particular, to successfully implement ISO 9000, it maybe imperative for organizations to customize ISO 9000 requirements to be aligned withtheir own organizational goals and strategies. Organizations that do not customize therequirements would face employee resistance and an incompatibility with their ownsystems. Finally, the performance realization framework is provided as a usefulguideline for ISO 9000. The framework has several advantages, such as describing thecausal relationships among ISO 9000 impacts. The framework addresses differentfeatures and corresponding performance in three stages. Using the process model isbeneficial in explaining how and when investments in ISO 9000 are transformed intodifferent performances. These efforts will contribute to the development of literature bystructuring the classification of ISO 9000 impacts and illuminating the causalrelationships among the impacts. To conclude, this study provides an overview of theliterature on ISO 9000 implementation. The new framework is also suggested to helppractitioners implement ISO 9000. We hope that the framework and important findingsin this study will be a valuable foundation for future research.

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Gotzamani, K.D., Tsiotras, G.D., Nicolaou, M., Nicolaides, A. and Hadjiadamou, V. (2007),“The contribution to excellence of ISO 9001: the case of certified organisations in Cyprus”,The TQM Magazine, Vol. 19 No. 5, pp. 388-402.

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Magd, H. and Curry, A. (2003), “An empirical analysis of management attitudes towards ISO9001: 2000 in Egypt”, The TQM Magazine, Vol. 15 No. 6, pp. 381-90.

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Further reading

Benner, M.J. and Veloso, F.M. (2007), “ISO 9000 practices and financial performance: a technologycoherence perspective”, Journal of Operations Management, Vol. 26 No. 5, pp. 611-29.

Bhuiyan, N. and Alam, N. (2004), “ISO 9001: 2000 implementation – the North Americanexperience”, International Journal of Productivity and Performance Management, Vol. 53No. 1, pp. 10-17.

Biazzo, S. and Bernardi, G. (2003), “Process management practices and quality systemsstandards: risks and opportunities of the new ISO 9001 certification”, Business ProcessManagement Journal, Vol. 9 No. 2, pp. 149-69.

Chan, Y.K., Kam, J., Neailey, K. and Ip, W.H. (2002), “How IMS can achieve ISO 9001: 2000certification”, The TQM Magazine, Vol. 14 No. 6, pp. 345-9.

Delgado-Hernandez, D. and Aspinwall, E.M. (2005), “Improvement tools in the UK constructionindustry”, Construction Management and Economics, Vol. 23, pp. 965-77.

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Dereli, T., Baykasoglu, A. and Das, G.S. (2007), “Fuzzy quality-team formation for value addedauditing: a case study”, Journal of Engineering and Technology Management, Vol. 24 No. 4,pp. 366-94.

Dick, G.P.M. (2000), “ISO 9000 certification benefits: reality or myth?”, The TQM Magazine,Vol. 12 No. 6, pp. 365-71.

Dunu, E.S. and Ayokanmbi, M.F. (2008), “The impact of ISO 9000 certification on the financialperformance of organizations”, Journal of Global Business Issues, Vol. 2 No. 2, pp. 135-44.

European Foundation for Quality Management (2003), Assessing for Excellence, EuropeanFoundation for Quality Management, Brussels.

Evans, J.R. and Lindsay, W.M. (2008), Managing for Quality & Performance Excellence, ThomsonSouth-Western, Mason, OH.

Gotzamani, K.D. and Tsiotras, G.D. (2002), “The true motives behind ISO 9000 certification: theireffect on the overall certification benefits and long term contribution towards TQM”,International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 19 No. 2, pp. 151-69.

Heras, I., Dick, G. and Casadesus, M. (2002), “ISO 9000 registration’s impact on sales andprofitability”, International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 19 No. 6,pp. 774-91.

International Organization for Standardization (2000), ISO 9001:2000 Quality ManagementSystems: Requirements, International Organization for Standardization, Geneva.

International Organization for Standardization (2006), The ISO Survey – 2006, InternationalOrganization for Standardization, Geneva.

Jahnke, B., Bachle, M. and Simoneit, M. (1995), “Modelling sales processes as preparation forISO 9001 certification”, International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 12No. 9, pp. 76-99.

Lee, P.K.C., To, W.M. and Yu, B.T.W. (2009), “The implementation and performance outcomes ofISO 9000 in service organizations: an empirical taxonomy”, International Journal ofQuality & Reliability Management, Vol. 26 No. 7, pp. 646-62.

Lee, T. (1995), “The experience of implementing ISO 9000 in Hong Kong”, Asia Pacific Journal ofQuality Management, Vol. 4 No. 4, pp. 6-16.

Lima, M.A.M., Resende, M. and Hasenclever, L. (2000), “Quality certification and performance ofBrazilian firms: an empirical study”, International Journal of Production Economics, Vol. 66No. 2, pp. 143-7.

Lipovatz, D., Stenos, F. and Vaka, A. (1999), “Implementation of ISO 9000 quality systems inGreek enterprises”, International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 16No. 6, pp. 534-51.

Mahadevappa, B. and Kotreshwar, G. (2004), “Quality management practices in Indian ISO 9000certified companies: an empirical evaluation”, Total Quality Management, Vol. 15 No. 3,pp. 295-305.

Mann, R. and Voss, M. (2000), “An innovative process improvement approach that integrates ISO9000 with the Baldrige framework”, Benchmarking: An International Journal, Vol. 7 No. 2,pp. 128-45.

Martınez-Costa, M. and Martınez-Lorente, A.R. (2003), “Effects of ISO 9000 certification on firms’performance: a vision from the market”, Total Quality Management & Business Excellence,Vol. 14 No. 10, pp. 1179-91.

Martinez-Costa, M., Martinez-Lorente, A.R. and Choi, T.Y. (2008), “Simultaneous consideration ofTQM and ISO 9000 on performance and motivation: an empirical study of Spanishcompanies”, International Journal of Production Economics, Vol. 13 No. 1, pp. 23-39.


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Mokhtar, M.Z., Karbhari, Y. and Naser, K. (2005), “Company financial performance and ISO 9000registration: evidence from Malaysia”, Asia Pacific Business Review, Vol. 11 No. 3,pp. 349-67.

Morris, P.W. (2006), “ISO 9000 and financial performance in the electronics industry”, The Journalof American Academy of Business, Vol. 8 No. 2, pp. 227-34.

Najmi, M. and Kehoe, D.F. (2000), “An integrated framework for post-ISO 9000 qualitydevelopment”, International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 17 No. 3,pp. 226-58.

National Institute of Standards and Technology (2009), “Baldrige National Quality Program”,available at: www.baldrige.nist.gov/ (accessed April 2009).

Rahman, S. (2001), “A comparative study of TQM practice and organizational performance ofSMEs with and without ISO 9000 certification”, International Journal of Quality &Reliability Management, Vol. 18 No. 1, pp. 35-49.

Sroufe, R. and Curkovic, S. (2008), “An examination of ISO 9000:2000 and supply chain qualityassurance”, Journal of Operations Management, Vol. 26 No. 4, pp. 503-20.

Struebing, L. and Klaus, L.A. (1997), “Smaller businesses thinking big”, Quality Progress,February, pp. 23-7.

Tayler, W.A. (1995), “Organizational differences in ISO 9000 implementation practices”,The International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, Vol. 12 No. 7, pp. 10-27.

Taylor, W.A. and Meegan, S.T. (1997), “Senior executives and the ISO 9000-TQM transition: aframework and some empirical data”, The International Journal of Quality & ReliabilityManagement, Vol. 14 No. 7, pp. 669-86.

Terziovski, M., Power, D. and Sohal, A.S. (2003), “The longitudinal effects of the ISO 9000certification process on business performance”, European Journal of Operational Research,Vol. 146 No. 3, pp. 580-95.

Tsekouras, K., Dimara, E. and Skuras, D. (2002), “Adoption of a quality assurance scheme and itseffect on firm performance: a study of Greek firms implementing ISO 9000”, Total QualityManagement & Business Excellence, Vol. 13 No. 6, pp. 827-41.

Van der Wiele, T., Williams, A.R.T. and Dale, B.G. (2000), “ISO 9000 series registration tobusiness excellence: the migratory path”, Business Process Management Journal, Vol. 6No. 5, pp. 417-27.

Vouzas, F.K. and Gotzamani, K.D. (2005), “Best practices of selected Greek organizations on theirroad to business excellence”, The TQM Magazine, Vol. 17 No. 3, pp. 259-66.

Wayhan, V.B., Kirche, E.T. and Khumawala, B.M. (2002), “ISO 9000 certification: the financialperformance implications”, Total Quality Management, Vol. 13 No. 2, pp. 217-31.

Wilson, J.P., Walsh, M.A.T. and Needy, K.L. (2003), “An examination of the economic benefits ofISO 9000 and the Baldrige Award to manufacturing firms”, Engineering ManagementJournal, Vol. 15 No. 4, pp. 3-10.

Wong, K.Y. and Aspinwall, E. (2004), “Knowledge management implementation frameworks: areview”, Knowledge and Process Management, Vol. 11 No. 2, pp. 93-104.

Corresponding authorDong-Young Kim can be contacted at: [email protected]

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Appendix 1

Motivation Supporting literature

Internal-drivenmotivation

Quality-related– Improving product/service quality– Enhancing quality management

practices– Developing standardized processes

and rules– Resolving quality problems– Establishing the documentation

system– Achieving customer satisfaction

Arauz and Suzuki (2004), Bhuiyanand Alam (2005b), Briscoe et al.(2005), Buttle (1997), Gotzamani et al.(2007), Huarng et al. (1999), Jang andLin (2008), Magd (2008), Magd andCurry (2003), Tang and Kam (1999),Williams (2004)

Operations-related– Improving organizational efficiency

and productivity– Developing organizational control

system– Increasing consistency of operations– Reducing costs due to internal and

external failures– Reducing cost of customer

complaints

Arauz and Suzuki (2004), Buttle(1997), Fuentes et al. (2000), Hashemand Tann (2007), Jang and Lin(2008), Magd (2008), Magd and Curry(2003), Tang and Kam (1999),Williams (2004)

Competitiveness-related– Enhancing international

competitiveness– Developing a new international

market– Differentiating with respect to

competitors– Building disciplined organizational

culture– Managing employees’ knowledge– Increasing and maintaining market

share

Bhuiyan and Alam (2005b), Briscoeet al. (2005), Buttle (1997), Fuenteset al. (2000), Gotzamani et al. (2007),Hashem and Tann (2007), Jang andLin (2008), Mo and Chan (1997)

External-drivenmotivation

External pressure-related– Complying with customers’

demands/pressure– Reflecting pressure from

competitors/partners– Meeting the regulations of the

European Union or governments– Avoiding potential export barriers– Following the market’s behavior

Arauz and Suzuki (2004), Bhuiyanand Alam (2005b), Briscoe et al.(2005), Buttle (1997), Fuentes et al.(2000), Gotzamani et al. (2007),Hashem and Tann (2007), Huarnget al. (1999), Magd (2008), Magd andCurry (2003), Mo and Chan (1997),Tang and Kam (1999), Williams(2004)

Organizational image-related– Promoting corporate image– Achieving marketing advantage– Improving the firm’s quality image

Arauz and Suzuki (2004), Buttle(1997), Fuentes et al. (2000), Huarnget al. (1999), Tang and Kam (1999),Williams (2004)

Table AI.A set of motivations for

ISO 9000 implementation


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Appendix 2

Critical factor Description Supporting literature

Leadership Commitment of top management in theallocation of resources andorganizational efforts. Understandingof principles, efforts needed, andpossible impacts of ISO 9000implementation. Emphasis onsystematic planning, quality-focusedgoals, and strategies on a long-termbasis. Periodic review of quality auditfindings and demonstration of strongwill about continuous improvement

Benezech et al. (2001), Bhuiyan andAlam (2005a, b), Chin and Choi (2003),Chin et al. (2000), Feng et al.(2008),Fuentes et al. (2000), Heras et al. (2008),Magd (2008), Piskar and Dolinsek(2006), Poksinska et al. (2006b), Singh(2008), Tang and Kam (1999), Williams(2004), Zeng et al. (2007)

Training Provision of training programs aboutmechanisms, roles, and terminologiesof ISO 9000. Development of educationprograms about statistical tools andtechniques. Nurture of qualifiedpersonnel and internal auditors

Balzarova et al. (2004), Bhuiyan andAlam (2005a), Carlsson and Carlsson(1996), Fuentes et al. (2000), Heras et al.(2008), Magd (2008), Park et al. (2007),Poksinska et al. (2006b), Rohitratanaand Boonitt (2001), Singh (2008), Tangand Kam (1999), Yahya and Goh (2001)

Involvement ofeveryone

Participation and commitment ofemployees, competent qualitymanagers, and internal auditors.Specificity of everyone’s responsibility.Management of employee resistance tothe ISO adoption.

Balzarova et al. (2004), Briscoe et al.(2005), Chin and Choi (2003), Feng et al.(2008), Fuentes et al. (2000), Heras et al.(2008), Magd (2008), Mo and Chan(1997), Park et al. (2007), Poksinska et al.(2006b), Rohitratana and Boonitt(2001), Tang and Kam (1999), Williams(2004), Yahya and Goh (2001)

Organizationalresource

Allocation of sufficient time and effortto implement and maintain thestandard. Provision of financialresources to precede theimplementation plan

Balzarova et al. (2004), Bhuiyan andAlam (2005a, b), Briscoe et al. (2005),Carlsson and Carlsson (1996), Chin et al.(2000), Heras et al. (2008), Magd (2008),Mo and Chan (1997), Poksinska et al.(2006b), Simmons and White (1999),Yahya and Goh (2001)

Quality-orientedculture

Development of dynamic environmentto lead quality consciousness.Establishment of the ISO practices as apart of organizational routine.Facilitation of the continual efforts toimprove the quality system

Briscoe et al. (2005), Chin and Choi(2003), Poksinska et al. (2006b), Tangand Kam (1999)

Customer-basedapproach

Identification and review of the needsof customers. Adoption of measuringand monitoring processes to enhancecustomer satisfaction. Management ofprocesses for customers’ complaints

Carlsson and Carlsson (1996), Heraset al. (2008), Park et al. (2007), Singh(2008)

(continued )

Table AII.A set of critical successfactors of ISO 9000implementation

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Critical factor Description Supporting literature

Process-centeredapproach

Identification and standardization oforganizational working processes.Development of documentationprocesses and systems. Use ofequipment to test processes andprocedures. Measurement and periodicfeedback of organizationalperformance

Balzarova et al. (2004), Bhuiyan andAlam (2005b), Briscoe et al. (2005),Feng et al.(2008), Poksinska et al.(2006b), Singh (2008)

Communicationand teamwork

Provision of official or unofficialcommunication routes. Encouragementof teamwork to align individual goalswith organizational goals.Measurement of the team performancewith individual contribution

Balzarova et al. (2004), Chin and Choi(2003), Fuentes et al. (2000), Tang andKam (1999)

Customizing theISO requirements

Specification of detailed requirementsto apply to an organization. Decision ofthe scope and rules to efficiently applyfor the documentation system.Encouragement of a readiness analysisto tailor the requirements

Bhuiyan and Alam (2005b), Briscoeet al. (2005), Park et al. (2007), Singh(2008), Tang and Kam (1999), Yahyaand Goh (2001), Zeng et al. (2007)

Quality audit Implementation of value-added andconsistent quality audits. Commitmentand support from the certificationagency. Operation of supervisionsystems on the certifying bodies.Emphasis of certification agency’sprofessional ethics

Chin et al. (2000), Fuentes et al. (2000),Park et al. (2007), Poksinska et al.(2006a), Tang and Kam (1999), Yahyaand Goh (2001), Zeng et al. (2007)

Table AII.


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and

corr

ecti

ve

acti

ons!

reg

istr

arin

itia

lv

isit!

fin

alas

sess

men

t!

reg

istr

atio

n

Ste

pap

pro

ach

No

spec

ific

bas

isN

od

etai

led

info

rmat

ion

Yes

(e.g

.m

anag

emen

tco

mm

itm

ent)

No

det

aile

din

form

atio

n

Lee

and

Lam

(199

7)T

rain

ing!

doc

um

enta

tion

!im

ple

men

tati

on,

aud

it,

and

rev

iew!

pre

lim

inar

yas

sess

men

tan

dsy

stem

rev

iew!

dry

run

and

form

alas

sess

men

tS

yst

emap

pro

ach

No

spec

ific

bas

isN

od

etai

led

info

rmat

ion

Yes

(e.g

.tr

ain

ing

)N

od

etai

led

info

rmat

ion

Sar

kar

(199

8)T

opm

anag

emen

t!

trai

nin

gp

rog

ram

s!

doc

um

enta

tion

!co

nti

nu

ous

rev

iew!

un

ion

inv

olv

emen

t!

awar

enes

s!

inte

rnal

qu

alit

yau

dit!

qu

alit

yim

pro

vem

ent

stu

die

s!

cert

ific

atio

nau

dit!

foll

ow-u

p

Ste

pap

pro

ach

No

spec

ific

bas

isN

od

etai

led

info

rmat

ion

Yes

(e.g

.to

pm

anag

emen

tin

vol

vem

ent)

No

det

aile

din

form

atio

n

Fu

ente

set

al.

(200

0)D

iag

nos

e!

pla

nn

ing!

doc

um

enta

tion

!im

ple

men

tati

on!

con

trol

and

mai

nte

nan

ceS

yst

emap

pro

ach

No

spec

ific

bas

isN

od

etai

led

info

rmat

ion

Yes

(e.g

.tr

ain

ing

)N

od

etai

led

info

rmat

ion

Yan

g(2

001)

Est

abli

shfu

llco

mm

itm

ent!

def

ine

and

doc

um

ent

ah

igh

-lev

elq

ual

ity

syst

emst

ruct

ure

,an

dw

rite

aq

ual

ity

man

ual!

def

ine

the

fou

nd

atio

nel

emen

tsof

qu

alit

ysy

stem

s!

def

ine

maj

orsu

pp

orti

ng

elem

ents!

def

ine

rem

ain

ing

sup

por

tin

gel

emen

ts!

per

form

ap

re-a

sses

smen

tau

dit

and

corr

ect

defi

cien

cies

fou

nd

du

rin

gth

ep

re-a

sses

smen

tau

dit!

un

der

go

are

gis

trat

ion

aud

it

Sy

stem

app

roac

hN

osp

ecifi

cb

asis

No

det

aile

din

form

atio

nY

es(e

.g.

man

agem

ent

and

emp

loy

eeco

mm

itm

ent)

No

det

aile

din

form

atio

n

Bh

uiy

anan

dA

lam

(200

5a,

b)

Gap

anal

ysi

s!

un

der

stan

din

gth

eq

ual

ity

syst

em!

form

ing

ap

roje

ctte

am!

des

ign

atin

ga

man

agem

ent

rep

rese

nta

tiv

e!

dev

elop

ing

aq

ual

ity

pol

icy

and

anob

ject

ive!

sett

ing

up

the

doc

um

enta

tion

ofp

roce

du

res!

trai

nin

gsh

opfl

oor

per

son

nel!

con

du

ctin

gin

tern

alau

dit

s

Sy

stem

app

roac

hN

osp

ecifi

cb

asis

Yes

(e.g

.h

and

lin

gcu

stom

erco

mp

lain

ts)

Yes

(e.g

.tr

ain

ing

)N

od

etai

led

info

rmat

ion

Ald

owai

san

and

You

ssef

(200

6)

Dev

elop

aQ

MS

arou

nd

asi

ng

lep

rod

uct

real

izat

ion

pro

cess

!d

evel

opth

eIS

O90

00sy

stem

pro

cess

esco

mp

lete

ly!

incl

ud

em

ore

pro

du

ctre

aliz

atio

np

roce

sses

and

man

ager

ial

pro

cess

es

Sy

stem

app

roac

hN

osp

ecifi

cb

asis

No

det

aile

din

form

atio

nY

es(e

.g.

reso

urc

es)

No

det

aile

din

form

atio

n

Has

hem

and

Tan

n(2

007)

Aw

aren

ess=

kn

owle

dg

e!

atti

tud

efo

rmat

ion!

eval

uat

ion!

adop

tion

!co

nti

nu

edu

se/r

ejec

tion

Sy

stem

app

roac

hY

es–

Rog

ers’

(199

5)in

nov

atio

nad

opti

onm

odel

No

det

aile

din

form

atio

nY

es(e

.g.

man

ager

s’ro

le)

No

det

aile

din

form

atio

n

Table AIII.Comparison of existingframeworks of ISO 9000implementation

IJQRM28,4

404

A Performance

Documents

Transcript of A Performance