Journal of Quality and Technology Management

Volume X, Issue II, December 2014, Page 01 – 26

EFFECT OF ISO 9000 CERTIFICATION ON TQM

IMPLEMENTATION

M. Shafiq1, K. Mirza2, K. Abid3, M.A. Naeem3

1Institute of Quality & Technology Management
2Institute of Geology
3Department of Electrical Engineering

University of the Punjab Lahore Pakistan

ABSTRACT

ISO 9000 is a widely used quality management standard in the world. However,
the review of literature has shown the contradictory findings about its
relationship with the implementation of TQM. The in-depth review of both ISO
9000 and TQM indicates that both systems share many common principles.
However, still many believes that ISO 9000 implementation contradict the
philosophy of TQM whereas others indicate that implementation of ISO 9000
leads the organisations towards the implementation of higher levels of TQM.
Therefore, the relationship of ISO 9000 certification with implementation of
TQM needs to be explored in further details. In this study, the data was collected
by using self-completion questionnaire from the managers of 306 textile
companies located in Pakistan. The findings of this study provides empirical
evidence that certification to ISO 9000 facilitates the companies in their journey
towards the implementation of TQM. However, duration of ISO 9000
certification does not have the significant effect on the implementation of TQM
philosophy.

Keywords: ISO 9000, Quality Management System, Organisational

Performance, TQM, Quality Management.

1) INTRODUCTION

ISO 9000 is a widely used Quality Management System. Millions of

manufacturing and service organisations are certified to this standard.
According to the survey conducted by International Organisation for
Standardisation (ISO) in December 2011, the number of companies
certified to ISO 9000 in the last few years is increasing in all over the
world (ISO Survey, 2011).
Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on TQM Implementation

It is generally believed that implementation of ISO 9000 helps

organisations to achieve an improved performance and a higher level of
TQM implementation (Gutierrez et al., 2010). However, some studies
indicate that certification to ISO 9000 has no effect on the implementation
of TQM or even contradicts the teachings of TQM (Martinez-Lorente and
Martinez-Costa, 2004; Zhu and Scheuermann, 1999). Martinez-Lorente
and Martinez-Costa (2004) state that the underlying concepts of ISO 9000
are contrary to the basic assumptions of TQM, because, for example, ISO
9000 is too bureaucratic this de-motivates employees. Similarly, TQM
emphasises the development of long-term relations with suppliers
whereas ISO 9000 focuses on the control of products which are being
received from the suppliers.

The above studies indicate that the effect of ISO 9000 certification on
implementation of TQM needs to be explored in further details.
Therefore, in this study it is attempted to provide the empirical evidence
to address the above mentioned gaps in the existing literature.

2) THE ISO 9000 QUALITY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM

ISO 9000 is a family of standards which represents an international

consensus on good quality management practices. It is developed by the
International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) which is established
in 1947. The aim of ISO was to develop international standards in many
areas (ISO, 2011). The first set of standards for the promotion of quality in
goods and services in UK industries was introduced by the British
Standards Institute (BSI) in 1979, whereas ISO released its first ISO 9000
quality standard series in 1987, based on BS 5750 (Sroufe and Curkovic,
2008). The ISO has developed over 18,500 International Standards for
various subjects. In the ISO 9000 family of standards, ISO 9001:2008
provides a set of standardised requirements for a quality management
system. This standard can be implemented regardless of the user
organisation‟s activities, size or type (e.g. private or public sector). This
standard provides a tried and tested framework for the systematic
management of organisational processes, in order to produce products
which accord to the expectations of customers (ISO, 2011).

The ISO periodically review their standards, keeping in view the

experiences of certified organisations, experts and consultants. The first
revision of ISO 9001 was carried out in 1994, then in 2000 and the current

2|
 Journal of Quality and Technology Management

version of this standard was released in 2008. However, no significant

changes were carried out in the latest version ISO 9001:2008 compared to
ISO 9001:2000 (Martinez-Costa, Choi and Martinez, 2009).

The other standards of the ISO 9000 family provide information about
other aspects of quality management system like vocabulary,
fundamental concepts and auditing. For example, ISO 9000:2005 provides
the fundamentals concepts of quality management systems and defines
related terms; whereas ISO 9004:2009 gives guidance to organisations to
help support sustained achievements. However, these two standards are
not used for certification, contractual or regulatory use (ISO, 2011).

ISO 9001:2008 is based on eight principles of quality management. These

principles are leadership, involvement of people, process approach,
system approach to management, continual improvement, and factual
approach to management, mutual beneficial supplier relationship and
customer focus.

The eight principles are integrated in the five clauses of the standard. As
ISO 9001:2008 is based on eight clauses. However, the first three clauses
just indicate the scope, normative references and terms and definitions.
Whereas, the Clause 4 describes the requirements of quality management
system. The general and documentation requirements for this standard
are also contained in this clause. Clauses Five to Eight present the
requirements of the standard related to management responsibility
(Clause 5), resource management (Clause 6), product realisation (Clause
7) and measurement, analysis and improvement (Clause 8) (ISO
9001:2008).

|3
Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on TQM Implementation

Continual improvement of the quality

management system

Management
Responsibility

Customers
Customers

Resource Measurement,
Management analysis and Satisfaction
improvement

Output
Product
Requirements Realisation Product

Key: Value-adding activities

Information Flow

Logical sequence of the standard’s clauses

(Source: ISO 9001:2008, Quality Management Systems-Requirements, p.vi)

Figure 1: A Model of a Process-based Quality Management System

The process approach is considered to be the corner stone to achieve

continual improvement in this standard (ISO, 2011). The “process
approach” refers to

the application of a system of processes within an organisation,

together with the identification and interactions of these
processes, and their management to produce the desired
outcome. (ISO 9001:2008, p. v)

This process approach is depicted in Figure 1.

This model indicates the process links between Clause Four to Eight of
ISO 9001:2008. From this model it is evident that customer satisfaction is

4|
 Journal of Quality and Technology Management

given great importance in this standard. The customers play a vital role in
defining the requirements as inputs. At later stages, organisations have to
determine whether they were able to satisfy their customers or not.

2.1) What is Total Quality Management?

Despite thousands of articles in the business and trade press but still total
quality remains a “hazy” and “ambiguous” concept. The founders of this
philosophy like Deming, Juran and Crosby, have no doubt, contributed to
this confusion (Dean and Bowen, 1994). Many authors still consider it to
be another management fad (Rich, 2008; David and Strang, 2006; Miller,
Hartwick and Breton-Miller 2004; and Boaden, 1996). They argue that the
fundamental values of this management philosophy are part of already
existing organisational change initiatives (Boaden, 1996). However, many
studies indicate that the underlying principles, assumptions, values and
theories of TQM are comparatively different from other improvement
initiatives (Sousa and Voss, 2002; Hackman and Wageman, 1995; Dean
and Bowen, 1994; Grant, Shani and Krishnan, 1994). In order to identify
that whether there is anything like TQM exists or not, Hackman and
Wageman (1995) conducted the discriminate and convergent validity
tests. Discriminate validity refers to the degree to which TQM philosophy
and practices can be reliably distinguished from other strategies for
organizational improvement such as participative management,
management by objectives, and so on. Convergent validity reflects the
degree to which the versions of TQM promulgated by its founders and
observed in organizational practices share a common set of assumptions
and prescriptions. They found that TQM passes the discriminate test
because there is sufficient agreement among the movement‟s founders
about the key assumptions and practices of TQM. These assumptions and
practices are clearly different, both conceptually and operationally, from
the other change management programs.

Several attempts have been made to define TQM but the definitions
provided are “vague”. There is a little agreement on what total quality
management really means. The leading authors and gurus have used
different terms while discussing this topic in the existing literature. For an
instance total quality control (Feigenbaum, 1956), total quality
improvement (Lascelles and Dale, 1991), and strategic quality
management (Garvin, 1988). The difference among these terms, if any and
other concepts is often unclear and creates confusion. Spencer (1994,

|5
Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on TQM Implementation

p.448) describes that TQM “is not a cut-and-dried reality but an

amorphous philosophy that is continuously enacted by managers,
consultants, and researchers who make choices based not only on their
understanding of principles of TQM but also on their own conceptual
frameworks concerning the nature of organizations”. One possible
explanation might be that much of the literature is written by consultants
and the question of what TQM “really is” has not yet interested the
academia to a larger extent (Hellsten and Klefsjo, 2000, p.239).

Some of the authors attempted to define TQM, for example, according to

Oakland (1993, p.22), total quality management is an approach to
improving the competitiveness, effectiveness, flexibility of a whole
organization. It is essentially a way of planning, organizing, and
understanding each activity, and depends on each individual at each
level. Evans and Lindsay (2008, p.10) extended these definitions and
described that people have started to recognize that the “quality of
management is as important as “management of quality”. The term Big Q
is being used to contrast the difference between managing for quality in
all organizational processes as opposed to focusing solely on
manufacturing quality (Little Q). They have extended this term to the
“quality of management” rather than “management of quality”. They
stated that;

“…..Organizations began to integrate quality principles into their management

systems, the notion of Total Quality Management, or TQM, became popular.
Rather than a narrow engineering or production-based technical discipline,
quality took on a new role that permeated every aspect of running an
organization”.

Tari (2005) argues that although the practices of TQM vary from author to
author, common practices can still be identified. These practices include
top management commitment, customer satisfaction, continuous
improvement, involvement of employees and partnership with suppliers.
Many authors agree that these practices are the core elements of TQM
(Martinez-Costa, Choi and Martinez, 2009; Fotopoulos and Psomas, 2009;
Lopez-Mielgo, Montes-Peon and Vazquez-Ordas 2009; Bou-Llusar et al.,
2009; Zu, 2009; Li et al., 2008; 2006 and Sila and Ebrahimpour, 2003).
Furthermore, many studies empirically validate the above-mentioned
TQM practices (Saraph, Benson and Schroeder, 1989; Flynn, Schroeder
and Sakakibara, 1994; Ahire, Golhar and Waller, 1996; Quazi et al. 1998;

6|
 Journal of Quality and Technology Management

Rao, Raghunathan and Solis, 1999, Kaynak, 2003; Fotopoulos and Psomas,
2009).

Bou-Llusar et al. (2009) explain and categorise TQM practices in more

detail; the core practices of TQM can be categorised into two broad
dimensions, social or soft, and technical or hard. The social dimension
includes teamwork, leadership, training and involvement of employees,
whereas the development of standardised and well-defined processes and
procedures comes under the technical dimension. However, they
emphasise that the social and technical dimensions of TQM are
interrelated and mutually support one another.

Hafeez et al. (2006) conducted a comparative study of the ten notable

authors who have really contributed in extending the discipline of TQM.
They have identified 18 elements of TQM which are categorised under
well-established dimensions of operations management like technologies
(and tools), organisation (and systems) and people. The categorisation of
TQM elements in the well-known dimensions of operations management
given by Hafeez et al. (2006) are being used as the framework to explain
the effect of ISO 9000 certification on TQM implementation.

2.2) Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on Implementation of TQM

The literature seems inconclusive about the association between ISO 9000
certification and the achievement of higher levels of TQM. Many studies
indicate that certification to ISO 9000 has no effect on the implementation
of TQM or even contradicts the teachings of TQM (Martinez-Lorente and
Martinez-Costa, 2004; Zhu and Scheuermann, 1999).

Whereas, Magd and Curry (2003) assert that TQM and certification to ISO
9000 have a propensity to support each other. Companies can streamline
their work processes using the implementation of ISO 9000 and then TQM
can help to improve the motivation of employees, efficiency of operations,
and overall performance of the organisation. Similarly, Rao, Ragu-Nathan
and Solis (1997) have revealed that ISO 9000 certification can help
organisations to have higher levels of implementation of quality
management practices. They provided empirical evidence that the
companies which were certified to ISO 9000:1994 had higher levels of
quality leadership, human resource development, strategic quality
planning, supplier relationship, quality assurance, and customer

|7
Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on TQM Implementation

orientation. Terziovski and Power (2007) reported that ISO 9000

certification can facilitate the organisations to develop a quality culture.
This finding is supported by Srivastav (2010). He provides empirical
evidence from the manufacturing companies of India and indicated that
ISO 9000 implementation enhances the collaborative culture, reduces the
stress level and improves problem solving through team work.

Source: Hafeez et al, 2006, p.1214.

Figure 2: Evolution of Total Quality Management

Similarly, Jang and Lin (2008) provide the empirical evidence that the
operational performance of organisations improved after getting the
certification of ISO 9000. Sroufe and Curkovic (2008) also show that
certification to ISO 9000 improves processes and helps to minimise
production losses.

Hafeez et al. (2006) argued that ISO 9000 provide the foundation for
effective implementation of TQM philosophy by fulfilling the
requirements of quality control and quality assurance. Figure 2 explains
in depth how ISO 9000 provide the foundation to implement TQM
elements. Gutierrez et al. (2010) support Hafeez et al. (2006). They also
argue that the implementation of ISO 9000 could be mapped on to the
phases of quality control and quality assurance. They also indicated that

8|
 Journal of Quality and Technology Management

implementation of ISO 9000 could be considered as a mid-way point

towards the adoption of advanced TQM models like the EFQM Excellence
Model and Six Sigma. They argue that the implementation of EFQM
Excellence Model and Six Sigma requires more complexity and
development in most of the quality management elements. Thus,
implementing ISO 9000 could facilitate the organisations in their journey
towards the implementation of these models.

Table 2: Relevance of ISO 9001: 2008 Clauses with TQM Elements

TQM Elements Relevant ISO 9001:2008 Clauses Relationship Between

TQM Elements and ISO
9001:2008
Customer 5.2 ( Customer Focus), 5.1a
Focus 5.6.2b 5.6.3b
7.2 (Customer related processes)
7.2.1 (Determination of
requirements related to the product)
7.2.2 (Review of requirements ☻
related to the product)
7.2.3 (Customer communication)
7.5.4 (Customer property)
8.2.1( Customer satisfaction),
Continuous 5.1 Management commitment, 5.3b,
Improvement 5.6.2g, 5.6.3a &b
8.4 Analysis of data ●
8.5.1 Continual improvement, 8.1c
Benchmarking
◌
Communicatio 5.5 Responsibility, authority and
n communication
5.5.3 Internal communication
7.2.3 Customer communication
●
7.4.2 Purchasing information
Process 0.2 Process Approach
Management 4.1 General Requirements
5.5.2a
5.6.2c
5.6.3a
6.3b ☻
7.1 Planning of Product Realization
7.2 Customer Related Processes
7.4.1 Purchasing Process
7.5.2 Validation of processes for

|9
Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on TQM Implementation

TQM Elements Relevant ISO 9001:2008 Clauses Relationship Between

TQM Elements and ISO
9001:2008
production and service provision
7.6 Control of Monitoring and
Measuring Equipment
8.1
8.2.2 Internal Audit
8.2.3 Monitoring and Measurement
of Processes
8.4c
Partnership 4.1d
and provision
of Resources
5.1e
6.1 Provision of Resources ○
7.1b
Top 5.1 Management Commitment
management
commitment
○
Employees
Involvement ◌
Employees 6.2 Human Resource (6.2.1 , 6.2.2)
Training and
Development
○
Legend: ☻ Very Strong, ●Strong, ○Medium ◌ No/Week
The clauses of auditable standard of ISO 9000 series of quality
management system; ISO 9001:2008 are mapped with the elements of
TQM in Table 2. The elements of TQM which are referred in five or more
than five clauses of ISO 9001:2008 are considered having very strong
relevance with ISO 9000, Quality Management System. Similarly, the
TQM elements which are referred in three or more but less than five
clauses of ISO 9001:2008 directly are considered having strong relevance,
the TQM elements which are referred in one or more than one but less
than three clauses are considered having medium relevance and elements
which are not mentioned anywhere in the standard are considered having
week or no relationship with ISO 9000 Quality Management System. It is
evident from the table that there is a very clear linkage among the
elements of TQM and the clauses of ISO 9001:2000.

Among different elements of TQM, customer focus and process

management have a very strong relevance with the ISO 9000 QMS.
10|
 Journal of Quality and Technology Management

Continuous improvement and communication seem to have strong

relevance whereas partnership and provision of resources, top
management commitment and employees training and development have
medium relevance. The Table 1 indicates that employee involvement and
benchmarking is not given much importance in ISO 9000 QMS.

Overall, it is evident that ISO 9001:2008 clauses have much relevance with
the elements of TQM. Russell (2000) has also done similar mapping of ISO
9001:2000 clauses with the EFQM criteria. He identified that there is a
much correspondence between these two models. Leadership is
considered as the driving force behind the both frameworks. Customers‟
satisfaction is given top priority. Continuous improvement and learning,
people development and involvement, process approach and partnership
development are considered important in both frameworks.

It is the general impression that this standard is bureaucratic in nature

and organisations have to put unnecessary emphasis on documentation,
which makes the processes less efficient. However, in-depth analysis of
the ISO 9001:2008 standard‟s requirements indicate that this standard
only requires six mandatory documented procedures. Apart from these
procedures, this standard does not require any other written procedure.
However, it is up to the organisation whether it wants some more
procedures should be in written form or not. This standard gives much
emphasis that the record of the activities performed within an
organisation must be maintained. These records are evaluated during the
audit of the quality management systems.

Those organisations that have not yet established the fundamental

systems and procedures to perform different functions might consider
such requirements as burdensome; however, these are the normal
documents that every organisation is required to establish for the smooth
running of its activities. Therefore, Magd and Curry (2003) assert that
early implementation of ISO 9000 can provide stability and consistency in
an organisation‟s work. Subsequently, the implementation of TQM
philosophy can enhance an organisation‟s overall performance.

|11
Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on TQM Implementation

Technologies (Tools)
Continuous Improvement
Customer Focus
Benchmarking
ISO 9000 H1a
Certification
H1b

Total Quality Management

H1c
Organisation (Systems)
Communication
Process management
H2a Partnership and provision
Duration of ISO of Resources
H2b
9000
Certification
H2c

People
Top management
commitment
Employees Involvement
Employees Training and
Development

Figure 3: Theoretical Framework of Effect of ISO 9000 Certification

on implementation of TQM

Based upon the above discussion, a theoretical framework is developed

which is given in Figure 3. The elements of TQM are categorised in three
well established dimensions of operations management „Technologies
(and tools)‟, „Organisation (and systems)‟ and „People‟ as given in Hafeez
et al. (2006). Following hypothesis are developed on the basis of this
theoretical framework.

H1: ISO 9000 certification is associated to the implementation of TOP

constructs of TQM.

H1a: ISO 9000 certification is associated to the implementation of

Technologies construct of TQM.

12|
 Journal of Quality and Technology Management

H1b: ISO 9000 certification is associated to the implementation of

Organisation (Systems) construct of TQM.

H1c: ISO 9000 certification is associated to the implementation of People

construct of TQM.

H2: Duration of ISO 9000 certification is associated to the implementation

of TQM.

H2a: Duration of ISO 9000 certification is associated to the

implementation of Technologies construct of TQM.

H2b: Duration of ISO 9000 certification is associated to the

implementation of Organisation (Systems) construct of TQM.

H2c: Duration of ISO 9000 certification is associated to the

implementation of People construct of TQM.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

This study was conducted in the context of textile companies of Pakistan.

The member companies of All Pakistan Textile Mills Association
(APTMA) were taken as population of this study. There are three
hundred and seventy five textile mills are members of this association.
The members list of APTMA is taken as the sampling frame for this study.
These textile companies are located in different provinces of the country.
Among these provinces, Punjab is the largest province. Sixty-five percent
of the total population of Pakistan lives in this province and it is the
largest producer of cotton. Fifty-six percent of APTMA member textile
companies are located in the Punjab. The area and population of the
Punjab is three times bigger than that of the UK. Thus, it was decided that
all the member organisations of APTMA located in the province of Punjab
would be considered as the sample for this study. A total of one thousand
and fifty questionnaires were sent to the sample companies.

The selection of respondents is a critical point in a questionnaire survey,

which is based on many factors like the nature and level of the
information required, and the language and terminologies used in the
questionnaire. The majority of information required for this study can
only be taken from employees working at the managerial level. Therefore,

|13
Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on TQM Implementation

it was decided that the managers would be the respondents in this study.
It is also assumed that multiple responses from each organisation will
minimise the bias in the data. It was therefore decided to collect the
responses from the managers of multiple departments of same company.
Therefore, senior managers from multi-departments including Quality,
Operations, Finance, Sales & Marketing and Human Resources were
selected as the respondents for this study. Similar respondents were
selected by Feng et al. (2006), Prajogo and Sohal (2003); Ho, Duffy and
Shih (2001), Ahire and Dreyfus (2000) and Flynn, Schroeder and
Sakakibara (1994). Other research has collected the data from CEOs/
quality directors/quality managers (e.g. Bou-Llusar et al. 2009; Douglas
and Judge, 2001; Rao, Raghunathan and Solis 1999).

There are many validated instruments already available in the literature

to investigate the extent of TQM implementation (e.g. Saraph, Benson and
Schroeder 1989; Ahire, Golhar and Waller 1996). The majority of the
instruments were validated in the context of the USA and the UK. It is
therefore expected that these instruments may have some validation
issues in a developing country like Pakistan. The items for this
questionnaire were taken from the literature. For the pilot testing of the
instrument, a group of different experts including TQM practitioners,
academics and textile managers was selected from Pakistan. The quality
and textile academics were selected from the National Textile University,
Faisalabad and the Institute of Quality and Technology Management,
University of the Punjab and University of Lahore, Pakistan. The textile
managers were selected from Nishat Textile Lahore, The Crescent Textile
Faisalabad and Style Textile Lahore. The newly developed questionnaire
was sent to the focus group members, along with the details of the study
and the actions they needed to perform. A comprehensive set of
guidelines was sent to facilitate their review of the questionnaire. The
details and suitability of this questionnaire in the context of textile
companies of Pakistan were also discussed with some of the members of
the focus group on the telephone. Feedback was received from fifteen
group members. These included academics and practitioners from textile
and quality management.

14|
 Journal of Quality and Technology Management

4) ANALYSIS OF THE DATA

4.1) Sample Profile

A total of 1,050 questionnaires were sent to 210 companies, which were

members of APTMA and located in the province of Punjab. A total of 75
questionnaires from 15 companies were returned as undelivered and 306
completed questionnaires were returned from 105 companies. Thus, the
response rate was 50.5% company wise and 31.8% respondent wise. Five
questionnaires were excluded from the final analyses because a major
part of the data was missing from these questionnaires.

Table 3, indicates that maximum respondents belong to spinning

companies (59%) followed by weaving (20%), finishing (10%), garments
(6%) and composite (5%). The responses were according to the textile
composition in Pakistan. As the majority of companies in Pakistan are
spinning companies; therefore, the majority of responses came from this
sector. The majority of responses were received from the companies
having employees between 100 to 1000 employees.

Table 3: Profile of the Sample

Type of the Size of Manager and Job designation of the

sample textile company employee respondents
companies n = 299 awareness of n = 301
n = 299 TQM
n = 298
% % % %
Spinning 59 Small 44 Excellent 5 Production 37
(100-500) Manager
Weaving 20 Medium 42 Very good 3 Quality Assurance 27
(500-1000) 1 Managers
Finishing 10 Large 14 Good 6 Financial 5
(Above 1 Managers
Garments 6 1000) Poor 2 Human Resource 8
Managers
Composite 5 Know 1 Sales Managers 9
nothing Any other 13

Only 14% respondents belong to the companies having employees more

than 1000. The majority (37%) of respondents were production managers
followed by Quality Assurance Manager (27%). The majority (61%) of the

|15
Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on TQM Implementation

respondents think that employees and managers of the sample companies

have good awareness of TQM, 31% think very good, and 5% claim
excellent knowledge of TQM. There were only 2% of respondents
answering poor and 1% saying that they know nothing about TQM. The
overall results show that the respondents perceive that both employees
and managers of the companies have awareness of TQM.

The reliability might be referred as the internal consistency of the items,

which used to develop a scale. Therefore, to evaluate the internal
consistency of the constructs, an item inter-correlation matrix was
developed for each construct. All items which had negative correlation
with other items of the construct were deleted. Later on, the value of
Cronbach‟s Alpha (CA) was determined for each construct.

Table 4: A Reliability Analysis of the Questionnaire

Constructs No. of Items1 Cronbach’s Mean Standard

Alpha Deviation
Continuous 3 (V27, V28, V29) 0.70
3.9347 .67644
Improvement
Benchmarking 3 (V9, V10, V12) 0.70 4.0177 .64611
Top management 3 (V2, V5, V6) 0.76
4.0044 .69066
commitment
Employees Involvement 3 (V16, V18, V17) 0.71 3.9457 .72903
Communication 3 (V30, V22, V11) 0.61 3.9280 .65404
Customer Focus 2 (V7, V10) 0.63 3.9668 .74312
Partnership and 3 (V19, V21, V23) 0.61
3.7973 .69061
Provision of Resources
Process management 3 (V24, V25, V26) 0.73 4.0421 .64956
Employees Training 2 (V15, V14) 0.78
3.8505 .83221
and Development
Organisation (Systems) 0.83 3.9225 .57440
Technologies (Tools) 0.85 3.9731 .60111
People 0.80 3.9336 .62337

Generally, 0.7 is considered as the acceptable CA value for any construct

however, Nunnally (1978) indicated that CA value of 0.6 is also acceptable
if the scales are new. Table 4 indicates the values of CA for the individual

1The items in Section II of the questionnaire are represented by “V1, V2 and so on. These items
could be traced from the questionnaire, attached as Appendix A. The notation of “Vr” is used
when the rating for that item is reversed.

16|
 Journal of Quality and Technology Management

constructs. It is evident from Table 6.1 that all the values of CA are more
than 0.6. Therefore, all the constructs with CA value equivalent or more
than 0.6 are accepted. The CA value of Technologies (Tools)‟,
„Organisation (Systems)‟, „and „People‟ (TOP) varies from .80 to 0.85.

Figure 4 indicates comparative mean score of the TQM constructs for ISO
9000 certified and non-certified organisations. It is evident from the mean
values that the construct have higher mean values for ISO 9000 certified
companies.

4
4 3.94
3.93

3.9

3.8

3.7

ISO 9000 Certification Yes

3.6
3.5 ISO 9000 Certification No
3.49 3.49
3.5

3.4

3.3

3.2
Technology Organisation People

Figure 4: Comparative Mean Score of TQM Constructs for

ISO 9000 Certified and Non-Certified Companies.

However, Figure 5 indicates that the mean score for TOP constructs for
different durations of ISO 9000 certifications do not have much difference.

|17
Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on TQM Implementation

44 3.99
4
3.95
3.93 3.93
3.95
3.88 Duration of ISO 9000
3.9 Certification Less than 3
3.85 Years
3.78
3.8 Duration of ISO 9000
3.73 Certification From 3-6 Years
3.75
3.7
Duration of ISO 9000
3.65 Certification Above Six
3.6 Years
3.55
Technology Organisation People

Figure 5: Comparative Mean Score of TQM Constructs for different

durations of ISO 9000 Certified Companies.

Table 5 indicates the relationship between ISO 9000 certification and

implementation of TOP constructs of TQM. Chi-Square was used to
investigate this association. The results indicate that the difference in the
implementation of TOP constructs across the ISO 9000 certified and non-
certified textile companies is statistically significant (for Technologies =
8.925, p=0.012, df =2, for Organisation = 13.473, p = 0.001, df =2, for People
= 12.488, p=0.002, df =2), thus according to the perception of
respondents there is a relationship between the implementation of TOP
constructs of TQM with the certification of ISO 9000, Quality
Management System. Therefore, hypothesis H1a, H1b and H1c are accepted.

Table 5: Relationship of ISO 9000 Certification to TOP Constructs

Pearson Chi-Square df Asymp. Sig. (2-Sided)

Technologies 8.925 2 0.012
Organization 13.473 2 0.001
People 12.488 2 0.002

Table 6 indicates the relationship between duration of ISO 9000

certification and implementation of TOP constructs of TQM. Chi-Square
was used to investigate this association. The results indicate that the

18|
 Journal of Quality and Technology Management

difference in the implementation of TOP constructs across the different

durations of ISO 9000 certification is not statistically significant (for
Technologies = 8.814, p = 0.066, df = 4, for Organisation = 8.160, p =
0.086, df =4) for People =12.488, p = 0.002, df =2), however, this
relationship is significant for people construct ( = 11.564, p = 0.021, df =
4).

Table 6: Relationship of ISO 9000 Certification Duration to TOP Constructs

Pearson Chi-Square df Asymp. Sig. (2-Sided)

Tech 8.814 4 0.066
Organisation 8.160 4 0.086
People 11.564 4 0.021

These results indicate that according to the perception of respondents there

is no relationship between the implementation of Technologies and
Organisation constructs of TOP with the duration of certification of ISO
9000, Quality Management System. However, the construct of „People‟ is
associated with the duration of certification of ISO 9000. Therefore,
hypothesis H2a and H2b are not accepted whereas H2c is accepted.

5) DISCUSSION ON RESULTS

From Figure 4 and Table 5 it is evident that all the constructs of the TOP
are related with certification of ISO 9000, Quality Management System.
Table 5 indicates that the ISO 9000 certified companies have higher levels
of TQM implementation. Many studies support these findings. For
example, The findings of Terziovski and Power (2007) confirm the
findings of the current study by providing empirical evidence that
certification to ISO 9001:2000 facilitates the organisations in the
development of a quality culture. Rao, Ragu-Nathan and Solis (1997) also
confirm the findings of the current study.

Some research does not support the findings of the current study. For
example, Sila (2007) states that there was no difference in the performance
and systems of the ISO 9000 certified and non-certified companies. A
detailed investigation of Sila‟s sample shows that the non-certified
companies which were included were already involved in the
implementation of a range of quality improvement initiatives like Kaizen,

|19
Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on TQM Implementation

5S, lean manufacturing, constraint management, Juran training, as well as

other quality improvement initiatives, without formal names. All of the
above mentioned initiatives are based on some of the principles of TQM.
On the other hand, in the case of the present study, the majority of
sampled textile companies were not using any other quality improvement
initiatives except ISO 9000. Therefore, in the two studies, the non-ISO
9000 certified companies had a different level of introduction to the TQM
principles.

The finding of Martinez-Lorente and Martinez-Costa (2004) seem contrary

to the findings of the current study. They put forward evidence that ISO
9001 certification contradicts the implementation of the TQM philosophy
when these two approaches are implemented together. In the current
study this aspect was not studied explicitly. Thus, the research is unable
to make a real comparison of the two studies.

Another aspect of Martinez-Lorente and Martinez-Costa (2004) is not

comparable with the current study; the majority of companies in their
sample were certified to ISO 9000:1994 whereas the companies in the
current sample are certified to ISO 9001:2008. As ISO 9001:2008 is the
latest version of the ISO 9000 series and has better compatibility with the
TQM philosophy (ISO, 2011), therefore, it was expected that this version
would be more helpful in the implementation of TQM practices.
Furthermore, these two studies were conducted in two different countries
and company sectors. Martinez-Lorente and Martinez-Costa (2004)
conducted their study in the manufacturing and service organisations of
Spain while the current study was conducted using only Pakistani textile
companies. Feng, Terziovski and Samson (2008) indicate that for a
successful implementation of ISO 9000 organisations require higher levels
of employee training, planning and commitment at all levels.

The other findings indicate that duration of ISO 9000 certification do not
have significant effect on the implementation of TOP constructs except
„people‟. According to these findings the companies having certification
for less than three years and more than six years do not have significant
difference especially for Organisation and Technologies construct of TOP.
This aspect could be explained in the context of the explanation given by
Baxter and Hirschhauser (2004, p.208). They consider that the
implementation of the majority of performance improvement initiatives
are intended to highlight the company‟s competence to the outside world,

20|
 Journal of Quality and Technology Management

and the company may never really intend to revolutionize the workplace.
The „pink factories‟ which adopt this approach in their implementation of
TQM can never get success by using this philosophy.

Soltani, Meer and Williams (2005, p. 226) seem agree with this
explanation they assert that, “registration with either the EFQM or one of
its partners, such as the British Quality Foundation (BQF) and Quality
Scotland Foundation (QSF) or MBNQA, does not necessarily make an
organisation a quality-driven one”. In addition, Magd and Curry (2003)
indicate that the majority of companies get ISO 9000 certification because
of customers‟ pressure. They want to show their competence to their
customers and are not really concerned about improving the system by
using the principles of ISO 9000. This could be the reason that in spite of
having ISO 9000 certifications, the majority of companies are unable to
improve continuously.

6) CONCLUSION

This study provides empirical evidence that certification to ISO 9000 is

associated with the perceived implementation of TQM philosophy. The
companies having ISO 9000 certification can perform better in comparison
to non-certified companies. Therefore, ISO 9000 implementation facilitates
the companies in their journey towards the implementation of TQM
(Srivastav, 2010; Jang and Lin, 2008; Sroufe and Curkovic; 2008;
Gotzamani et al. 2007; Terziovski and Power, 2007; Gotzamani et al. 2007;
and Magd and Curry, 2003). The companies having certification to ISO
9000 can perform in the areas of customer focus and process management
and continuous improvement however; they might not perform well in
involvement of people and benchmarking activities. Furthermore, the
documentation for ISO 9000 facilitates employees having better work
instructions and procedures which consequently improve the
organisational processes (Chow-Chua, Goh and Wan, 2003). However, the
duration of certification to ISO 9000 does has much effect on the
implementation of TQM philosophy. It seems that sample companies
have not well understood the concept of continuous improvement which
is the main component of process approach model of ISO 9000. This also
indicate that companies do not give much emphasis on the
implementation of spirit of ISO 9000 quality management system after
having the certification of this standard.

|21
Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on TQM Implementation

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Ahire, S.L. and Dreyfus, P. (2000). The impact of design management and
process management on quality: an empirical investigation.
Journal of Operations Management, 18, 549-575.
Ahire, S.L., Golhar, D.Y. and Waller, M.A. (1996). Development and
validation of TQM implementation constructs. Decision Science.
27(1), 23-31.
Baxter, L.F. and Hirschhauser, C. (2004). Reification and representation in
the implementation of quality improvement programmes.
International Journal of Operations & Production Management,
24(2), 207-224.
Boaden, R.J. (1996). Is Total Quality Management really unique? Total
Quality Management, 7(5), 553-570.
Bou-Llusar, J.C., Ana B, E.T., Vicete, R.P. and Beltrain-Martin, I. (2009).
An empirical assessment of the EFQM excellence model:
Evaluation as a TQM framework relative to the MBNQA Model.
Journal of Operations Management, 27, 1-22.
Choi, T.Y. and Eboch, K. (1998). The TQM paradox: Relations among
TQM practices, plant performance, and customer satisfaction.
Journal of Operations Management, 17, 59-75.
Chow-Chua, C., Goh, M. and Wan, T.B. (2003). Does ISO 9000 certification
improve business performance? International Journal of Quality &
Reliability Management, 20(6), 936-953.
Curkovic, S. and Pagell, M. (1999). A Critical Examination of the Ability of
ISO 9000 Certification to Lead to a Competitive Advantage."
Journal of Quality Management, 4(1), 51-67.
David, R.J. and Strang, D. (2006). When fashion is fleeting: Transitory
collective beliefs and the dynamics of TQM consulting. Academy
of Management Journal, 49(2), 215-233.
Dean, J.W. and Bowen, D.E. (1994). Management theory and Total
Quality: Improving research and practice through theory
development. Academy of Management Review, 19(3), 392-418.
Evans, J.R. and Lindsay, W.M. (2008). Managing for quality and
performance excellence. Seventh Edition. Mason: Thomson
Corporation.
Feigenbaum, A.V. (1956). Total quality control. Third Edition. New York:
McGraw-Hill, Inc.

22|
 Journal of Quality and Technology Management

Feng, J., Prajogo, D.I., Tan, K.C. and Sohal, A.S. (2006). The impact of
TQM practices on performance: A comparative study between
Australian and Singaporean Organisations. European Journal of
Innovation Management, 9(3), 269-278.
Flynn, B.B., Schroeder, R.G. and Sakakibara, S. (1994). A framework for
quality management research and an associated measurement
instrument. Journal of Operations Management, 11, 339-366.
Fotopoulos, C.B. and Psomas, E.L. (2009). The impact of “soft” and “hard”
TQM elements on quality management results. International
Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 26(2), 150-163.
GARVIN D. A., (1988), MANAGING QUALITY: THE STRATEGIC AND
COMPETITIVE EDGE. FREE PRESS; 1ST EDITION
Gotzamani, K. D., Tsiotras, G. D., Nicolaou, M., Nicolaides, A. &
Hadjiadamou, V. (2007). The contribution to excellence of ISO
9001: the case of certified organisations in Cyprus. The TQM
Magazine, 19, 388-402.
Grant, R.M., Shani, R. and Krishnan, R. (1994). TQM's challenge to
management theory and practice. Sloan Management Review,
35(2). P.25-35.
Gutierrez, L.J.G., Torres, I.T. and Molina, V.B. (2010). Quality
management initiatives in Europe: An empirical analysis
according to their structural elements. Total Quality Management,
21(6), 577-601.
Hackman, J.R. and Wageman, R. (1995). Total quality management:
empirical, conceptual, and practical issues. Administrative Science
Quarterly, 40, 309-342.
Hafeez, K., Malik, N. and Abdel Meguid, H. (2006). A framework for
TQM to achieve business excellence. Total Quality Management,
17(9), 1213-1229.
Han, S.B., Chen, S.K. and Ebrahimpour, M. (2007). The impact of ISO 9000
on TQM and business performance. Journal of Business and
Economic Studies, 13(2), 1-23.
Hellsten, U. and Klefsjo, B. (2000). TQM as a management system
consisting of values, techniques and tools. The TQM Magazine,
12(4), 238-244.
Ho, C.C.K., Duffy, V.G. and Shih, H.M. (2001). Total quality management:
an empirical test for mediation effect. International Journal of
Production Research, 39(3), 529-548.

|23
Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on TQM Implementation

International Organisation for Standardisation. The ISO survey of

certification, 2009. Geneva, Switzerland. 2011. Available at
http://www.iso.org/iso/pressrelease.htm?refid=Ref1363
[Accessed 15 January 2011].
ISO (2000). ISO 9001:2000, Quality management systems: Requirements.
Geneva, Switzerland.
ISO (2000).ISO 9001:2000, vocabulary. Geneva, Switzerland.
ISO (2008). ISO 9001:2008, Quality management systems: Requirements.
Geneva, Switzerland.
Jang, W.-Y. and Lin, C.-I. (2008). An integrated framework for ISO 9000
motivation, depth of ISO implementation and firm performance.
Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, 19(2), 194-216.
Karapetrovic, S., Fa, M.C. and Saizarbitoria, I.H. (2010). What happened
to the ISO 9000 lustre? An eight-year study. Total quality
management 21(3), 245-267.
Kaynak. (2003). The relationship between total quality management
practices and their effects on firm performance. Journal of
Operations Management, 21(4), 405-435.
Lascelles, D., Dale, B., 1986. How change agents can effect quality
improvement. In: Proceedings of the Second National Conference
on Production Research, UK, pp. 132–145.
Li, L., Markowski, C., Xu, L. and Markowski, E. (2008). TQM: A
predecessor of ERP implementation. Int. J. Production Economics,
115, 569-580
Lin, C.-I. & Jang, W.-Y. (2008). Successful ISO 9000 implementation in
Taiwan: How can we achieve it, and what does it mean?
International Journal of Productivity and Performance
Management, 57, 600-622.
Lopez-Mielgo, N., Montes-Peon, J.M. and Vazquez-Ordas, C.J. (2009). Are
quality and innovation management conflicting activities?
Technovation, 29, 537-545.
Magd, H. and Curry, A. (2003). ISO 9000 and TQM: are they
complementary or contradictory to each other? The TQM
Magazine, 15(4), 244-256.
Martinez-Costa, M., Choi, T.Y. and Martinez, J.A. (2009). ISO 9000/1994,
ISO 9001/2000 and TQM: The performance debate revisited.
Journal of Operations Management, 27, 495-511.

24|
 Journal of Quality and Technology Management

Martinez-Lorente, A.R. and Martinez-Costa, M. (2004). ISO 9000 and

TQM: substitutes or complementaries? An empirical study in
industrial companies.International Journal of Quality and
Reliability Management, 21(3), 260-276.
Masakure, O., Henson, S. and Cranfield, J. (2009). Standards and export
performance in developing countries: Evidence from Pakistan. The
Journal of International Trade & Economic Development, 18(3),
395-419.
Miller, D., Hartwick, J. and Breton-Miller, I.L. (2004). How to detect a
management fad and distinguish it from a classic.Business
Horizons, 47(4), 7-16.
Oakland, J.S. (1993). Total Quality Management: The route to improving
performance. 2nd ed. Edition. Oxford Butterworth-Heinemann
Prajogo, D.I. and Sohal, A.S. (2003). The relationship between TQM
practices, quality performance, and innovation performance: An
empirical examination. International Journal of Quality and
Reliability Management, 20(8), 901-918
Quazi, H.A., Jemangin, J., Kit, L.W. and Klan, C.L. (1998). Critical factors
in quality management and guidelines for self-assessment: The
case of Singapore. Total Quality Management, 9(1), 35-55.
Rao, S.S., Raghunathan, T.S. and Solis, L.E. (1999). The best commonly
followed practices in the human resource dimension of quality
management in new industrializing countries: The case of China,
India and Mexico. International Journal of Quality & Reliability
Management, 16(3), 215-226.
Rao, S.S., Ragu-Nathan, T.S. and Solis, L.E. (1997). Does ISO 9000 have an
effect on quality management practices? An international
empirical study. Total Quality Management, 8(6), 335-346.
Reeves, C.A. and Bednar, D.A. (1994). Defining quality: Alternatives and
implications. The Academy of Management Review, 19(3), 19-445.
Rich, E. (2008). Management fads and information delays: An exploratory
simulation study. Journal of Business Research, 61, 1143-1151.
Russell, S. (2000). ISO 9000:2000 and the EFQM excellence model:
competition or co-operation? Total Quality Management &
Business Excellence, 11(4), 657-665.
Samson, D. and Terziovski, M. (1999). The relationship between total
quality management practices and operational performance.
Journal of Operations Management, 17(4), 393-409.

|25
Effect of ISO 9000 Certification on TQM Implementation

Saraph, J.V., Benson, G.P. and Schroeder, R.G. (1989). An instrument for
measuring the critical factors of Quality Management. Decision
Sciences, 20, 810-829.
Sila, I. (2007). Examining the effects of contextual factors on TQM and
performance through the lens of organisational theories: An
empirical study. Journal of Operations Management, 25, 83-109.
Sila, I. and Ebrahimpour, M. (2003). Examination and comparison of the
critical factors of Total Quality Management (TQM) across
countries. International Journal of Production Research, 41(2), 235-
268.
Soltani, E., Meer, R.V.D. and Williams, T.M. (2005). A contrast of HRM
and TQM approaches to performance management: Some
evidence. British Journal of Management, 16, 211-230.
Sousa, R. and Voss, C.A. (2002). Quality management re-visited: a
reflective review and agenda for future research. Journal of
Operations Management, 20, 91-109.
Spencer, B.A. (1994). Models of organisation and Total Quality
Management: A comparison and critical evaluation. The Academy
of Management Review, 19(3), 446-471.
Srivastav, A.K. (2010). Impact of ISO 9000 implementation on the
organisation. International Journal of Quality & Reliability
Management, 27(4), 438-450.
Sroufe, R. & Curkovic, S. (2008). An examination of ISO 9000:2000 and
supply chain quality assurance. Journal of Operations
Management, 26, 503-520.
Tari, J.J. (2005). Components of successful total quality management. The
TQM Magazine, 17(2), 182-194.
Terziovski, M. and Power, D. (2007). Increasing ISO 9000 certification
benefits: a continuous improvement approach. International
Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 24(2), 141-163.
Terziovski, M. and Samson, D. (2000). The effect of company size on the
relationship between TQM strategy and organisational
performance. The TQM Magazine, 12(2), 144-148
Zhu, Z. and Scheuermann, L. (1999). A comparison of quality
programmes: Total Quality Management and ISO 9000. Total
Quality Manage
Zu, X. (2009). Infrastructure and core quality management practices: how
do they affect quality? International Journal of Quality &
Reliability Management, 26(2), 129-149.

26|