Evangelos L. Psomas

Critical factors for effective implementation of ISO 9001 in SME service companies

Purpose – The purpose of this study is to investigate the critical factors for the effective implementation of the ISO 9001 standard in small and medium enterprises (SMEs) operating in the services sector.Design/methodology/approach – An empirical study is conducted with a sample of 93 ISO 9001:2000‐certified Greek service companies. Data are obtained by a questionnaire survey of the managers responsible for quality in each of the sample firms. Individual critical factors for ISO 9001:2000 implementation are assessed for importance by simple descriptive statistics. Exploratory factor analysis is then applied to refine these individual critical factors into five latent constructs.Findings – All of the individual critical factors examined in the study are assessed as being of some importance with regard to their contribution to ISO 9001 effectiveness. The five latent constructs of the underlying structure of these critical factors are (in descending order of importance): “internal motivation of company”; “a...

Motives, difficulties and benefits in implementing the ISO 14001 Environmental Management System

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine the motives for implementing the ISO 14001 standard, the difficulties in meeting the standards requirements and the benefits derived, and to determine the most significant latent constructs (unobserved variables) of these.Design/methodology/approach – A research project was carried out in 53 ISO 14001‐certified Greek companies. Exploratory Factor Analyses were applied in order to refine the latent constructs of the ISO 14001 motives, difficulties and benefits.Findings – Obtaining a competitive advantage, the social requirement and the environmentally‐friendly policy were the extracted latent constructs of the ISO 14001 motives. The decision of the companies to be ISO 14001‐certified was mostly influenced by internal motives. The ISO 14001 requirements and the determination of environmental performance issues were the extracted latent constructs of the difficulties faced during the implementation of the standard. However, according to the findings, the lev...

Core process management practices, quality tools and quality improvement in ISO 9001 certified manufacturing companies

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to determine, first, the level to which ISO 9001 certified manufacturing companies adopt process management and improve quality, second, the latent factors of process management and quality improvement, and finally, the relationships between the latent factors extracted.Design/methodology/approach – A research project was carried out in 196 ISO 9001 certified manufacturing companies operating in Greece. A structured questionnaire was designed and pilot tested and then addressed to management representatives of the companies. Descriptive statistics were used in order to determine the level of process management adoption and the level of quality improvement. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were also applied to extract the latent factors of process management and quality improvement and to assess their reliability and validity. The relationships between the latent factors were determined through structural equation modelling.Findings – Two latent factors we...

ISO 9001:2000 implementation in the Greek food sector

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine perceptions of the implementation of the ISO 9001:2000 standard in the food sector in Greece.Design/methodology/approach – Research was conducted in 97 Greek food companies certified to ISO 9001:2000, using the questionnaire method and aimed at examining the reasons for certification, the difficulties in implementing the standard, the benefits of certification and their relationships. Exploratory Factor Analysis and Multiple Linear Regression Analysis was applied to define the main constructs of reasons‐benefits‐difficulties and to explore their relationships.Findings – Results showed that the major reasons for certification, unlike benefits, concern firstly the internal business environment and then the external one and no particular difficulties were observed during the standard implementation. Achieving internal (external) benefits is positively affected by the existence of internal (external) reasons and negatively affected by the difficulties to meet ...

Total quality management practices and results in food companies

Purpose - The paper seeks to focus on the concept of total quality management (TQM) in a specific sector: the food sector. The purpose of this paper is to factorize the TQM concept by analyzing the TQM practices implemented and the results achieved from implementing such practices. It also aims to determine the means by which the quality management results are optimized. Design/methodology/approach - A research project was carried out in 92 Greek food companies that were certified to ISO 9001:2000 and ELOT 1416 standard (hazard analysis critical control points, HACCP system certification). The data collection method used in this study was that of the questionnaire. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were applied to assess the reliability and validity of the latent constructs/factors (unobserved variables) of the TQM practices implemented and the respective results. The latent constructs/factors that had significant impact on the results achieved were determined through multiple linear regression analyses. Findings - The analysis revealed four latent constructs/factors regarding the TQM practices and three latent constructs/factors regarding the results achieved through implementing such practices. According to the findings, a companys quality improvement is equally influenced by the adoption of quality practices by the top management as well as process and data quality management. A companys quality improvement was found to be the factor that primarily contributes to customer satisfaction, while the customer focus is proved to be of secondary significance. Finally, the findings showed that market benefits are derived from customer satisfaction and a companys internal quality improvement. Research limitations/implications - The small sample size of the food companies participating in this study, the observed variables that were removed from the analysis for the benefit of the measurement model validity (convergent and discriminant) and finally the subjective character of the data collected are the limitations of the present study. However, these limitations suggest future research orientations. Practical implications - The determination of reliable and valid latent constructs/factors of the TQM practices implemented may help food companies to focus their efforts in specific directions, in order to build and implement a robust TQM model. Furthermore, detecting reliable and valid latent constructs/factors of the results achieved through TQM practices implementation may motivate the food companies to strengthen their efforts in broadening their management system towards the TQM philosophy and business excellence. This may help food companies withstand the current business downturn. Originality/value - The paper describes in a reliable and valid manner a framework that consists of the main pillars of the TQM practices implemented and the results achieved in a specific sector: the food sector.

A meta analysis of ISO 9001:2000 research – findings and future research proposals

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to review and classify the main findings of the studies undertaken on ISO 9001:2000 certified companies and to present future research proposals.Design/methodology/approach – A comprehensive literature review is carried out focusing on research papers published in academic literature. Both, the most recently published papers as well as those concerned only with the 2000 version of the ISO 9001 standard are chosen. The findings from the research papers are classified according to the issues examined.Findings – The many studies undertaken regarding the ISO 9001:2000 implementation show that although there are signs that the initial results are not so positive, the general conclusion is that the standard has positive impact on the companys operational as well as business performance and on the companys effort to move towards total quality management. However, many research proposals have been expressed in order to fully determine the long‐term results as well as to sp...

The impact of ISO 9001 effectiveness on the performance of service companies

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to define and subjectively measure ISO 9001 effectiveness as the achievement of the standards objectives and determine its impact on the performance dimensions of service companies related to product/service quality, operational and financial performance.Design/methodology/approach – An empirical study was carried out using a sample of 100 ISO 9001:2008 certified service companies. Data were obtained from the quality managers of the companies through a structured questionnaire. Exploratory factor analyses are applied to extract the latent factors of the indicators of ISO 9001 objectives and performance dimensions. Multiple linear regression analyses are also applied in order to determine the impact of ISO 9001 effectiveness on the performance dimensions of service companies.Findings – The findings of the present study confirm the dimensionality of the ISO 9001 effectiveness (evaluated by the degree of achievement of the standards objectives, namely prevention of no...

Investigating total quality management practice's inter-relationships in ISO 9001:2000 certified organisations

The aim of this paper is to examine the inter-relationships of TQM practices in ISO 9000 certified organisations in Greek organisations. The sample comprised Greek companies that have been implementing a quality management system in accordance with the ISO 9001:2000 standard. The reliability and validity of the quality management practices was examined through confirmatory factor analysis, while their relationships were examined through structural equation modelling. The study revealed that practices such as process quality management and employee involvement are mainly influenced by practices such as quality management and customer focus and secondarily by quality improvement tools and techniques. The participation of companies from all sectors in the research does not offer the possibility to include some special characteristics of each individual sector in the shaping of the management framework.

Developing and validating a measurement instrument of ISO 9001 effectiveness in food manufacturing SMEs

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to develop an instrument that measures the effectiveness of the ISO 9001 Quality Management System (QMS), based on its components, meaning the ISO 9001 objectives; and to validate this instrument in the food manufacturing sector.Design/methodology/approach – Bearing in mind the definition of “ISO 9001 effectiveness”, the ISO 9001 objectives and their indicators are identified in the literature. Based on these indicators, a measurement instrument is developed and then empirically validated through collecting preliminary data from 335 Greek food manufacturing small and medium‐sized enterprises (SMEs). After testing the assumptions of multivariate analysis, exploratory factor analysis as well as first and second order confirmatory factor analysis are applied.Findings – The data collected reveal, as identified in the literature, the three‐dimensional nature of the ISO 9001 objectives (continuous improvement, prevention of nonconformities and customer satisfaction focus)....

Quality systems and competitive performance of food companies

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of the effective implementation of both ISO 9001 and ISO 22000 systems on the competitive performance of certified food manufacturing companies.Design/methodology/approach – A survey instrument was used for quantitative data collection. All items were measured on a seven‐point modified Likert scale. The data were analysed statistically by means of Statistical Package for Social Scientists. Factor analysis and multiple regression analysis were conducted to test the research hypotheses. Both validity and reliability of the measures were checked in order to reduce the measurement error.Findings – The results show a positive and significant relationship between the combined effective implementation of ISO 9001 and ISO 22000 standards and competitive performance of certified food companies, explaining a significant proportion of variance in their performance.Practical implications – The results of this study help managers of food companies realize th...