Influence of Quality Control and Certifications on Performance of Manufacturing Firms in Kenya
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Abstract
Quality control is the process of ensuring that the products, services and processes of a company are of an appropriate quality that meets the set standards and subsequently the needs and expectations of the customers. To ensure the companies have a standard framework of quality control, there are quality standardizing organizations such as ISO which carry out certifications to ensure companies conform with key set standards. Embracing quality control and certification has been found to be an essential move for companies to remain competitive and enhance performance. This however needs a backing from the Kenyan perspective particularly among the manufacturing firms, hence the motivation of this study. Using a descriptive approach, 160 respondents were surveyed through a structured questionnaire. The findings revealed that quality control and certification was essential in enhancing firm performance by enabling the companies to meet the quality standards and assure this to customers. The study concluded that failure by most of the companies to embrace quality certification affected their image and this significantly led to decline in their competitiveness and performance. The study recommended the need for management of manufacturing firms to embrace quality control and certification as a way of enhancing their performance through increased quality assurance to their customers.
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References
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Mokadem, M. (2016). ISO 9000 moderation role over supply chain alignment in manufacturing context. Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, 27(3), 338-363.
Nyaga, D. K. & Gakobo, J. (2017). Effect of quality management practices on organizational performance of savings and credit co-operatives in Kirinyaga County, Kenya. International Academic Journal of Human Resource and Business Administration, 2(4), 306-328
Prajogo, D., Huo, B. & Han, Z. (2012). The effects of different aspects of ISO 9000 implementation on key supply chain management practices and operational performance: An International Journal of Supply Chain Management, 17(3), 306-322.
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Rogala, P., & Wawak, S. (2021). Quality of the ISO 9000 series of standards-perceptions of quality management experts. International Journal of Quality and Service Sciences.
Skipworth, H., & Julien, D. (2015). Supply chain alignment for improved business performance: an empirical study. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 20(5), 511-533.
Skipworth, H., Godsell, J., Wong, C. Y., Saghiri, S., & Julien, D. (2015). Supply chain alignment for improved business performance: an empirical study. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal.
Sutherland, I., Sim, Y., & Lee, S. K. (2021). Impacts of quality certification on online reviews and pricing strategies in the hospitality industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 93, 102776.
Tamas, M. (2010). Mismatched strategies: the weak link in the supply chain. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 5(4), 171-185.
Terlaak, A., & King, A. A. (2006). The effect of certification with the ISO 9000 Quality Management Standard: A signaling approach. Journal of economic behavior & organization, 60(4), 579-602.
Theodorakioglou, Y., Gotzamani, K. & Tsiolvas, G. (2016). Supplier management and its relationship to buyer’s quality management. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 11(2), 148-159.
Thompson, K.N. & Coe, B.J. (2012). Gaining sustainable competitive advantage through strategic pricing: selecting a perceived value price. Pricing Strategy and Practice, 5(2), 70-79.
Wagner, S., & Bode, C. (2013). Supplier relationship-specific investments and the role of safeguards for supplier innovation sharing, 12(6), 23-38.
Wong, C., Skipworth, H., & Achimugu, N. (2012). Towards a theory of supply chain alignment enablers: a systematic literature review. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 17(4), 419 – 437.
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Xu, D., Huo, B., & Sun, L. (2014). Relationships between intra-organizational resources, supply chain integration and business performance. Industrial Management & Data Systems, 114(8), 1186 – 1206.
Yang, H.M., Choi, B.S., & Chae, B. (2013). Supply chain management six sigma: a management innovation methodology at the Samsung group. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 12(2), 88-95.
Zahra, A. A. (2020). Study the Impact of Quality Control on Production Processes. Al-Nahrain Journal for Engineering Sciences, 23(1), 12-20.
Zhao, X., & Yeung, J. (2011). The impact of internal integration and relationship commitment on external integration. Journal of Operations Management, 29(2), 17-32.
Antunes, M. G., Mucharreira, P. R., Texeira Fernandes Justino, M. D. R., & Teixera-Quirós, J. (2020). Total quality management and quality certification on services corporations. International Journal for Quality Research, (14), 847-864.
Attia, A. (2015). Testing the effect of marketing strategy alignment and triple-A supply chain on performance in Kenya. Euro Med Journal of Business, 10(2), 163–180.
Auramo, J., Tanskanen, K. & Smaros, J. (2010). Increasing operational efficiency through improved customer service: process maintenance case. International Journal of Logistics: Research and Applications, 7(3), 67-80.
Bagchi, P.K. & Skjoett-Larsen, T. (2013). Integration of information technology and organizations in a supply chain. International Journal of Logistics Management, 14(1), 89-108.
Boiral, O. & Roy, M.J. (2010). ISO 9000: integration rationales and organizational impacts. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 27(2), 226-247.
Buhner, R. (2012). Increasing shareholder value through human asset management. Long Range Planning, 30(5), 710-725.
Buttle, F. (2013). ISO9000: marketing motivations and benefits. International Journal of Quality and Reliability Management, 14(9), 936-947.
Carmignani, G. (2009). Supply chain and quality management. The definition of a standard to implement a process management system in a supply chain. Business Process Management, 15(3), 395-407.
Casadesus, M. & De-Castro, R. (2015). How improving quality improves supply chain management: empirical study. The TQM Magazine, 17(4), 345-357.
Chiarini, A. (2019). Why are manufacturing SMEs cancelling their ISO 9001 certification? Research from Italy. Production Planning & Control, 30(8), 639-649.
Douglas, A., Coleman, S. & Oddy, R. (2013). The case for ISO 9000. The TQM Magazine, 15(5), 316-324.
Doyle, P. (2014). Marketing Management and Strategy. Prentice Hall International (UK), Hemel Hempstead.
Dubey, R., Bryde, D. J., Foropon, C., Tiwari, M., Dwivedi, Y., & Schiffling, S. (2021). An investigation of information alignment and collaboration as complements to supply chain agility in humanitarian supply chain. International Journal of Production Research, 59(5), 1586-1605.
Flynn, B.B., Huo, B. & Zhao, X. (2010). The impact of supply chain integration on performance: a contingency and configuration approach. Journal of Operations Management, 28(1), 58-71.
Franceschini, F., Galetto, M. & Cecconi, P. (2009). A worldwide analysis of ISO 9000 standard diffusion. Consideration and future development. Benchmarking: An International Journal, 13(4), 523-541.
Gattorna, J. (2016). Dynamic supply chain alignment: a new business model for peak performance in enterprise supply chains across all geographies. CRC Press.
Jang, W.Y. & Lin, C.I. (2014). An integrated framework for ISO 9000 motivation, depth of ISO implementation and firm performance, the case of Taiwan. Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, 19(2), 194-216.
Kannan, V.R. & Tan, K.C. (2010). The impact of operational quality: a supply chain view. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 12(1), 14-19.
Kaplan, R.S. & Norton, D.P. (2014). The strategy map: guide to aligning intangible assets. Strategy & Leadership, 32(5), 10-21.
Karapetrovic, S. & Willborn, W. (2012). Self-audit of process performance. The International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 19(1), 24-45.
Kaur, J., Kochhar, T. S., Ganguli, S., & Rajest, S. S. (2021). Evolution of management system certification: an overview. Innovations in Information and Communication Technology Series, 082-092.
Kaynak, H. & Hartley, J.L. (2014). A replication and extension of quality management into the supply chain. Journal of Operations Management, 26(4), 468-489.
Kumar, M. (2013). Production knowledge and its impact on the mechanisms of governance. Journal of Management Governance, 1(7), 261-281.
Lee, H. & Whang, S. (2010). Information sharing in supply chain. International Journal of Technology Management, 20(4), 373-387.
Lee, H. (2014). The triple-a supply chain. Harvard Business Review, 82(10), 102-112.
Lee, P., Yeung, A., & Cheng, T. (2009). Supplier alliances and environmental uncertainty: An empirical study. International Journal of Production Economics, 1(2), 190-204.
Mehrjerdi, Y.Z. (2013). A framework for six sigma driven RFID-enabled supply chain systems. International Journal of Quality and Reliability Management, 30(2), 142-160.
Mellat-Parast, M. (2013). Supply chain quality management. an inter-organizational learning perspective. International Journal of Quality and Reliability Management, 30(5), 511-529.
Melnyk, S.A., Stewart, D.M. & Swink, M. (2014). Metrics and performance measurement in operations management: dealing with the metrics maze. Journal of Operations Management, 22(3), 209-220.
Midor, K., & Wilkowski, G. (2021). Recertification of a Quality Management System based on ISO 9001-is it a must for a modern manufacturing company?. Production Engineering Archives, 27(3), 217-222.
Milošević, I. M., Trajković, A., Rajić, T., Nikolić, Đ., & Arsić, S. (2018). The effects of quality certification in establishing and developing customer-supplier relationships. Serbian Journal of Management, 13(1), 115-131.
Mokadem, M. (2016). ISO 9000 moderation role over supply chain alignment in manufacturing context. Journal of Manufacturing Technology Management, 27(3), 338-363.
Nyaga, D. K. & Gakobo, J. (2017). Effect of quality management practices on organizational performance of savings and credit co-operatives in Kirinyaga County, Kenya. International Academic Journal of Human Resource and Business Administration, 2(4), 306-328
Prajogo, D., Huo, B. & Han, Z. (2012). The effects of different aspects of ISO 9000 implementation on key supply chain management practices and operational performance: An International Journal of Supply Chain Management, 17(3), 306-322.
Robinson, C.J. & Malhotra, M.K. (2015). Defining the concept of supply chain quality management and its relevance to academic and industrial practices. International Journal of Production Economics, 96(3), 315-337.
Rogala, P., & Wawak, S. (2021). Quality of the ISO 9000 series of standards-perceptions of quality management experts. International Journal of Quality and Service Sciences.
Skipworth, H., & Julien, D. (2015). Supply chain alignment for improved business performance: an empirical study. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 20(5), 511-533.
Skipworth, H., Godsell, J., Wong, C. Y., Saghiri, S., & Julien, D. (2015). Supply chain alignment for improved business performance: an empirical study. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal.
Sutherland, I., Sim, Y., & Lee, S. K. (2021). Impacts of quality certification on online reviews and pricing strategies in the hospitality industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 93, 102776.
Tamas, M. (2010). Mismatched strategies: the weak link in the supply chain. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 5(4), 171-185.
Terlaak, A., & King, A. A. (2006). The effect of certification with the ISO 9000 Quality Management Standard: A signaling approach. Journal of economic behavior & organization, 60(4), 579-602.
Theodorakioglou, Y., Gotzamani, K. & Tsiolvas, G. (2016). Supplier management and its relationship to buyer’s quality management. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 11(2), 148-159.
Thompson, K.N. & Coe, B.J. (2012). Gaining sustainable competitive advantage through strategic pricing: selecting a perceived value price. Pricing Strategy and Practice, 5(2), 70-79.
Wagner, S., & Bode, C. (2013). Supplier relationship-specific investments and the role of safeguards for supplier innovation sharing, 12(6), 23-38.
Wong, C., Skipworth, H., & Achimugu, N. (2012). Towards a theory of supply chain alignment enablers: a systematic literature review. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 17(4), 419 – 437.
World Bank. (2013). “Reducing Supply Chain Barriers Could Increase Global GDP Up To 6 Times More Than Removing All Import Tariffs Report”, Switzerland.
Xu, D., Huo, B., & Sun, L. (2014). Relationships between intra-organizational resources, supply chain integration and business performance. Industrial Management & Data Systems, 114(8), 1186 – 1206.
Yang, H.M., Choi, B.S., & Chae, B. (2013). Supply chain management six sigma: a management innovation methodology at the Samsung group. Supply Chain Management: An International Journal, 12(2), 88-95.
Zahra, A. A. (2020). Study the Impact of Quality Control on Production Processes. Al-Nahrain Journal for Engineering Sciences, 23(1), 12-20.
Zhao, X., & Yeung, J. (2011). The impact of internal integration and relationship commitment on external integration. Journal of Operations Management, 29(2), 17-32.