Why firms seek ISO 9000 certification: Regulatory compliance or competitive advantage?

The research in ‘Why firms seek ISO 9000 certification: Regulatory compliance or competitive advantage?’ (Anderson, Daly, Johnson, 1999), involved examining North American manufacturing companies, 514 certified and a control sample of 1965 uncertified companies between 1990 & 1996. The aim, to test the hypothesis that firms obtain certification to comply with government and consumer demands.

The report’s conclusion is, ‘certification is not sought primarily in response to regulatory requirements. We find strong evidence to support proponents’ claims that managers are obtaining ISO 9000 certification as a credible public signal of effective quality management practices’.

‘Compliance with regulatory and customer requirements are significant explanatory variables in ISO 9000 certification. Specifically, firms that sell in industries regulated by the EC and for which ISO 9000 can serve as one means of compliance are more likely to seek certification’.

‘Managers obtain certification as a means of providing credible signals of quality assurance to external parties and ISO 9000 complements rather than substitutes for more developed quality management efforts’.

Reference

• Anderson, Shannon W., Daly, J. Daniel and Johnson, Marilyn, F., (1999), ‘Why firms seek ISO 9000 certification: Regulatory compliance or competitive advantage?’, Production and Operations Management; Volume 8, Number 1, pp 28-43.

University of Michigan Business School, Ann Arbor, Michigan (Anderson, Johnson); Boston College (Daly)