ISO 9000 & INVENTORY MANAGEMENT

ISO 9000 & Inventory Management

Abstract

ISO 9000 is the most popular and widely adopted meta-standard for quality and operational improvements in manufacturing supply chains. However, few studies have quantitatively examined its impact on supply chain efficiency. This paper is directed towards finding the impact of ISO 9000 on retailers. In this paper,, we have clearly identified the benefits and disadvantages of ISO 9000 for retailers and other sectors and have found that this has a great impact on retailers. Further, we have found the impact on control and management of inventory in relation to ISO 9000.

Table of Contents

ABSTRACT1

LITERATURE REVIEW3

I. INTRODUCTION6

A. Definition of ISO 90006

B. Background/History of ISO 90008

II. PRESENT REQUIREMENTS8

A. Knowledge9

B. Skills10

C. Abilities11

III. APPLICATION OF ISO 900011

A. Retailers12

IV. INVENTORY MANAGEMENT14

B. Define better inventory management15

IV. Implementation of ISO 9000 in Retail A. Benefits16

B. Disadvantages16

IV. FUTURE REQUIREMENTS/BENEFITS OF ISO 900017

V. CONCLUSIONS19

A. Effect upon retailers19

B. Impacts upon future growth of retailers20

REFERENCES22

LITERATURE REVIEW

Due to globalization of the world economy, organizations are looking for international standards that foster easier trade and reduce trade barriers linked to national standards (Boiral, 2003). ISO 9000, a meta-standard for quality management (QM), has become such an international standard that serves as a key selection criterion for supplier selection (Curkovic and Handfield, 1996; Goffin et al., 1997). Since its introduction, ISO 9000 has become the passport to global business (Uzumeri, 1997) and a basic requirement for government tenders in many countries. It diffuses along the supply chain due to customer pressure or government policies (Corbett, 2003; Corbett and Kirsch, 2001; Guler et al., 2002). Most practitioners believe that ISO 9000 certified companies provide timely responses and high quality supplies, rendering them more competitive in their supply chains. Moreover, previous research has found that there is a direct relationship between QM practices and supply chain performance (Flynn and Flynn, 2005).

Although much research has been conducted on the organizational impacts of ISO 9000, most of them were survey-based studies with subjective data, producing few conclusive results. Some previous empirical works suggested that ISO certification has little benefit for operational efficiency (Corbett and Kirsch, 2001; Terziovski et al., 1997) and mixed impacts on financial performance (Corbett et al., 2005; Terziovski et al., 2003; McGuire and Dilts, 2008). These findings are at odds with the global phenomenon of rapid diffusion of business certifications. The number of ISO 9000 certified companies has been rising over time, sustaining an annual growth rate of about 20%. Other industry specific QM standards, such as QS 9000, TL 9000 and ISO 13485, have been developed to meet growing demands for meta-standards in the automobile, telecommunications and medical devices industry sectors. Suppliers of raw materials and components in these sectors need to pursue the corresponding certifications to attain competitive advantages.

Through standardization and systemization as a result of ISO 9000 adoption, the operational procedures of the adopting company should be more efficient. Many companies perceive that implementing ISO 9000 can improve operational performance. Despite the perceived benefits of operational efficiency improvement, a number of critics argue that ...