Angel R. Martínez-Lorente

The effect of supplier development initiatives on purchasing performance: a structural model

Purpose – Supply chain management is an increasingly important organizational concern, and proper management of supplier relationships constitutes one essential element of supply chain success. However, there is little empirical research that has tested the effect of supplier development on performance. The main objective is to analyze the effect of supplier development practices with different levels of implementation complexity on the firms purchasing performance.Design/methodology/approach – Three supplier development constructs were defined: basic supplier development, moderate supplier development, and advanced supplier development. Three structural models were hypothesized and tested using structural equation modeling through field research on a sample of 306 manufacturing companies in Spain.Findings – Identified important interrelationships among the various supplier development practices, basic, moderate, and advanced. Also indicated that the implementation of supplier development practices signi...

ISO 9000 and TQM: substitutes or complementaries?

After analysing a sample of 442 of the Spanish biggest manufacturing companies, some evidence about the influence of total quality management (TQM) on the companies’ operating performance has been obtained. However, companies applying TQM together with the ISO 9000 standards did not show positive results. This fact leads to the consideration that, despite the beliefs about ISO 9000 as a good first step in the way of implementing TQM, once implemented, some of the ISO 9000 principles are contradictory with TQM philosophy. These not congruent systems applied together would drive the company to obtain less benefits than the use of only one of them. The study concludes that when ISO 9000 and TQM are applied simultaneously, the resultant benefits to the company are not better than those experienced if either system were applied in isolation.

A triple analysis of ISO 9000 effects on company performance

Purpose – ISO 9000 certification has a growing importance for companies, mainly in Europe but also in other countries. Several papers have analysed the effects of ISO 9000 certification on company results, with contradictory conclusions. The purpose of this work is to clarify these possible effects.Design/methodology/approach – This paper reports new findings on the topic following a study using data from 713 companies and using the two methodologies that have been applied in the scientific literature: the comparison of certified and non‐certified companies and a longitudinal study of the results of certification.Findings – The data suggest that not only is ISO 9000 positive for companies but also it can actually reduce benefits and profitability.Practical implications – Several reasons for these results can be suggested and constitute a critique of the almost compulsory character of ISO 9000 as a norm for performance in some markets. Companies should be aware that implementing ISO 9000 just for complianc...

Quality management practices in the purchasing function

The topic of this research focuses on firms perceived implementation of quality management practices in the purchasing function. More specifically, this paper describes an exploratory research effort to analyze and classify quality management practices in purchasing and assesses the relationships of these practices with measurements of a firm purchasings operational performance (POP), internal customer satisfaction and business performance. The results reported in this study are based on a field survey consisting of responses gathered from 306 purchasing managers within the Spanish manufacturing industry. The assessment of the relationships among quality management practices in purchasing, POP, internal customer satisfaction and business performance is carried out using bivariate correlation analysis.

An initial assessment of the influence of IT on TQM: a multiple case study

Information technology (IT) and total quality management (TQM) have significantly impacted on most organizations and each has been widely researched. However, there is little well‐founded empirical research on the relationship between the two, particularly on the way in which TQM is influenced by IT. This paper presents an initial investigation of such relationships through an interview survey of 14 companies based in Spain. The cases indicate that there is a framework underpinning this relationship. The paper concludes with a proposal for this framework and an instrument for testing the conjectured linkages within the framework.

Effects of ISO 9000 certification on firms' performance: A vision from the market

As the number of ISO 9000-registered companies increases over time, it seems that the certification constitutes a prerequisite for success in business. Companies could interpret the registration as the way to obtain sustainable competitive advantages, but is it true? How is the registration interpreted by the market? Do markets assume that certified companies will get more benefits than non-certified? Some papers have tried to answer these questions by studying the pros and cons of the registration and by analysing the impact the certification has had over some financial results. However, few works have tried to analyse the effects from the point of view of the market. If investors think the ISO 9000 series will allow the company to get more benefits, then assuming the market is efficient, at the date that the company gets the certification, the information will be rapidly expanded and incorporated into the price of its stocks, which will presumably rise. This paper documents the stock price performance of a sample of Spanish companies certified by AENOR. The methodology of Event studies is applied to investigate whether the market interprets the registration of a company as a signal of its better future performance. After applying parametric and non-parametric tests, we do not find clear evidence to affirm that the market values positively ISO 9000 registration.

IT use in supporting TQM initiatives: an empirical investigation

Purpose – To provide insights into current IT and total quality management (TQM) theory and practice on operational and quality performance, in particular the use of IT in supporting TQM policies and practices.Design/methodology/approach – Hypotheses derived from the key features of TQM and IT presented by previous authors are tested using structural equation modelling through field research on a sample of 234 manufacturing companies in Spain.Findings – The results indicate that the sampled firms make considerable use of IT to support their TQM initiatives and that overall such efforts generate significant positive gains on operational and quality performance. The few exceptions to this are noted and discussed.Research limitations/implications – The implications and limitations of the survey together with suggestions for further research are fully discussed.Practical implications – A survey of IT in support of TQM initiatives on operational and quality performance in manufacturing suggests how firms and o...

Effect of IT and quality management on performance

Purpose – The present study aims to draw on operations management and information technology literature to examine the effect of three information technology resources (electronic data interchange (EDI), computer‐aided design and manufacturing (CAD/CAM), and enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems) and three related quality management capabilities (customer and supplier relations, product and process management, and quality data and workforce management) and their effect on a firms quality performance.Design/methodology/approach – Hypotheses derived from the key features of quality management and information technology presented by previous authors are tested using structural equation modeling through field research on a sample of 229 manufacturing companies in Spain.Findings – Findings from this study indicate that there is significant evidence to support the hypothesized model in which information technology resources (EDI, ERP systems, and CAD/CAM systems) have a direct impact on related quality ma...

An empirical study on the impact of standardization of materials and purchasing procedures on purchasing and business performance

Purpose – Standardization of materials (i.e. replacement of several materials/components by a single component that has all the functionalities of the materials/components it replaces) is one important purchasing department decision. The primary objective of this study is to examine empirically the impact of standardization of materials and purchasing procedures (standardization in purchasing) on purchasing and business performance.Design/methodology/approach – To address our research problem, a survey instrument was developed and a structural model was hypothesized and tested using structural equation modeling. Data were collected from a field research on a sample of 306 manufacturing companies in Spain.Findings – The results of this research indicate that standardization in purchasing has a significant positive effect on both purchasing and business performance. Thus, standardizing materials and purchasing procedures is important and may help firms to meet their materials expenditure targets, and increa...

An analysis of the degree of small companies' dissatisfaction with ISO 9000 certification

Abstract The aim of this research is to analyse the dissatisfaction that ISO 9000 has created in small companies. Certification is only a guarantee that the company is using a quality management system according to a list of requisites and procedures. However, the benefits that have been attributed to ISO 9000 have often been overstated, so that companies tend to generate high expectations that are difficult to realize completely. This idea is tested over a sample of 131 small certified companies in Spain. The effect of time on the achievement of advantages and the satisfaction of expectations from ISO 9000 is also tested.