Is ISO 9000 Good for Business? A Review of Large Quantitative Studies

Despite the large body of literature, researchers have not achieved consensus on the effect of ISO 9000. Reviewing recent contributions, this paper aims to properly describe the state-of-the-art of current academic research on the impact of ISO 9000 certification. On this basis, the paper provides research-driven advice to managers facing a decision whether to implement ISO 9000 or not. Papers from academic journals containing appropriate key words (e.g., ISO 900*) in the title or the abstract and published between 2005 and 2011 were eligible for the review. The final sample includes the papers investigating the impact of certification on a longitudinal and representative dataset. The main result is that, according the recent research employing sophisticated econometric methods (e.g., counterfactual analysis), there is more support for a positive relationship between ISO 9000 and firm performance than for a negative relationship. The paper documents, too, that the diffusion of certification is not homogeneous among countries and economic sectors and that third-party certification fees are only a part of the total costs of certification. Another result is that larger firms have higher total costs than small firms, but the average cost per employee decreases with the size of the firm. Managers in companies of any size and sector should seriously consider the appropriate implementation of ISO 9000 as an efficient tool for improving firm performance. This study is the first comprehensive literature review focusing on recent large quantitative studies which investigate the impact of ISO 9000 certification