Certification; a helpful tool or a necessary evil? - A study of the external pressures on the implementation of the ISO 9000 certification and its effects on collaboration

Abstract

Background and problem: As trade has become more globalized, the need for good affiliates has grown. As a reference point, large organizations therefore have started to require their suppliers to implement quality management standards. One of the standards most frequently used today is ISO 9000, leading to the problem formulation: “Why do buyers require that their suppliers to be certified with ISO 9001 and how does this standard affect the collaboration between the parties?” Aim: The aim of this study is to gain deeper knowledge and understanding of why businesses choose to require their suppliers to be certified with ISO 9001 and how this certification affects the collaboration between the parties involved. Delimitations: The empirical studies were limited to two organizations, one supplier and one buyer. Furthermore the organizations were to have ISO 9000 implemented where one had implemented ISO 9000 due to customer requirements and one required their affiliates to be certified with the quality management standards. Method: A qualitative study was made, using an abductive and hermeneutic approach, investigating the questions of the problem formulation. Interviews with two companies on each end of the collaboration process were found most suitable. Conclusion: There is no evidence that ISO 9000 guarantees an affiliate to be a better collaborator, since the result of the implementation is dependent upon the attitude in the implementing organization, which cannot be controlled. However, when implemented the right way, ISO 9000 is useful due to a mutual platform and mutual language that facilitates communication, enhancing the collaboration process which might be reason enough to require the standard. Suggestions for future research: This question should be investigated with more participating companies, in order to receive a broader and more generalizable answer. It would be interesting to compare ISO 9000 with other quality management standards, such as Six Sigma, to see differences and understand how other standards affect the collaboration.