....... 3
ISO 9000 Concept ................................. 3
ISO 9000 System Structure ........................ 5
ISO 9000 Certification Procedures ................ 6
Certification Experiences ........................ 8
Advantages and Disadvantages of Certification .... 9
Sociotechnical Systems ........................... 15
Literature Summary ............................... 18
3 - METHODOLOGY ...................................... 20
Introduction ..................................... 20
Research Design .................................. 20
Research Questions and Hypotheses ................ 20
Population and Sample ............................ 21
Data Collection .................................. 21
Statistical Procedures ........................... 22
4 - FINDINGS ......................................... 24
Introduction ..................................... 24
Readability and Ease of Use of Guidelines ........ 26
5 - SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS .......................... 29
Summary .......................................... 29
Conclusions ...................................... 30
APPENDIX - ISO 9000 REGISTRATION/CERTIFICATION HANDBOOK ... 32
BIBLIOGRAPHY .............................................. 47
ISO 9000 is a quality assurance system that companies can use as a part of a total quality initiative or as a standalone system. ISO 9000 is a voluntary system for which a company must be certified if recognition as an ISO 9000 firm is desired or if ISO recognition for one or more specific products is desired. Certification must be made by an independent registrar who evaluates a company's processes within the context of quality standards established by the International Standards organization.
While the importance of ISO 9000 certification is recognized by most firms operating globally, most of the small-sized a...