Statement of the Problem ......................... 1

Purpose of the Study ............................. 1

Scope of the Study ............................... 2

Preview of the Remainder of the Study ............ 2

2 - REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE ......................... 3

Introduction ..................................... 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

Zuckerman, A. "The High Price of Admission." Appliance Manufacturer 42 (May 1994): 8.

Highly Ineffective 0 1 1

A total of 20 quality standards officer at small-sized and medium-sized manufacturing firms that market their products globally were selected for the research sample for this study. One-half of the firms represented in the sample were among those firms that had already received ISO 9000 certification, while the remaining 10 firms were among those firms that had not yet submitted ISO 9000 certification documentation. The perceptions of representatives of both sample groups were compared to both (1) assess the understandability and ease of use of the ISO 9000 Guidelines Handbook developed as a part of this study and (2) assess the probability that the use of the Guidelines would enhance the likelihood of success of an ISO 9000 certification application.

7. Provide appropriate documentation. This requirements means assessing existing documentation beginning with your quality manual to determine if it satisfies the requirements of the ISO standard that has been selected.

APPENDIX - ISO 9000 REGISTRATION/CERTIFICATION HANDBOOK ... 32

Source of Variation Squares DF Square F Significance

16. Outside assistance can be helpful, especially when a company has not set up a quality-control department. A quality consultant can help interpret the ISO 9000 standards, determine where your company ranks vis-a-vis the standards, conduct pre-assessment audits, train employees in internal auditing, and assist in creating a quality manual that meets ISO 9000 regulations.