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The purpose of the paper is to pay homage to Dorothy E. Smith (1926–2022), and her lifelong significance for organizational ethnography. Building on Smith, the empirical purpose…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of the paper is to pay homage to Dorothy E. Smith (1926–2022), and her lifelong significance for organizational ethnography. Building on Smith, the empirical purpose of the paper is to analyze professional boundary setting on behalf of innovation management as it occurred in the recent International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Technical Committees (TC) 279 committee on innovation management.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper is an ethnographic study of the drafting and publication of a novel international management standard on innovation management, the ISO 56000-series published in 2019. It is based on fieldwork from the ISO committee and integrates relevant standardization documents, observations and interviews.
Findings
The paper analyzes four occasions for textual professional boundary work ranging from negotiations of content and choice of ISO standard formats to the unprecedented high-level liaison agreements across international organizations. In each instance, the analysis depicts distinct textual features related to ISO standardization. The analysis shows how the standard becomes positioned as extending and complementing the ISO 9001, not as a radical, freestanding alternative to quality management.
Originality/value
The paper presents original data from the ISO standardization committee. It develops Smith's general textual ontology into a theoretical framework for analyzing how professional boundary setting occurs in the textually structured context of ISO standardization. It gives attention to the implications of questions of objectification and standardization as these apply to contemporary research into innovation and organization.
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Emil Georgiev and Svetoslav Georgiev
The authors extend the literature on decoupling by analyzing the microlevel effects of institutionalized practices within the framework of international standards. This study…
Abstract
Purpose
The authors extend the literature on decoupling by analyzing the microlevel effects of institutionalized practices within the framework of international standards. This study investigates the specific informal management practices that decision-makers embrace in order for organizations to achieve ISO 9001 certification without all regulations being adopted and followed according to the standard's original design and purpose.
Design/methodology/approach
As the basis for its research framework, this paper adopts the neo-institutional theory. The research employs the comparative case study method and draws its data from a sample of 21 ISO 9001:2008 certified organizations in Bulgaria.
Findings
The results show ambivalent behavior toward the ISO 9001 standard's formal requirements. This behavior is expressed through targeted noncompliance with (certain) regulations and procedures regarding top management commitment, as well as documented information which are formally adopted within the organization and certified as complying with the standard.
Research limitations/implications
The study has implications for future research into decoupling, organizational learning, and standardization. In terms of limitations, the authors examined the process of decoupling from a micro perspective in Bulgaria only. Noncompliance with international standards such as the ISO 9000 may exhibit specific regional or national characteristics.
Practical implications
Findings from this research encourage the International Standards Organization to respond to previous calls for revising the formal structure of ISO 9000 and other international management standards by considering a more flexible and liberal point of view.
Originality/value
As opposed to previous studies which have explored decoupling from a macro perspective, this study focuses on how the internal constraints imposed by the standard's universal requirements are being mitigated at a micro level. That is, the authors provide a detailed account of the specific informal management practices which managers (deliberately) adopt in order to achieve certification without fully integrating the formal criteria imposed by international standards (e.g. ISO 9001).
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Why standardize in documentation?
Lars Moratis and Alice Tatang Widjaja
This article aims to report on original empirical research on the comprehensive corporate social responsibility (CSR) standards International Organization for Standardization (ISO…
Abstract
Purpose
This article aims to report on original empirical research on the comprehensive corporate social responsibility (CSR) standards International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 26000 and the CSR Performance Ladder and identifies determinants for the adoption of CSR standards. In addition, it reviews and adds to literature on CSR standards adoption.
Design/methodology/approach
The empirical data were derived from interviews with CSR experts in The Netherlands.
Findings
The findings of our research show that the demands and wishes of customers, the attitude of a company’s management, the market position of the standard-developing organization and several tangible and intangible characteristics of the standard itself are particularly relevant for the adoption of CSR standards.
Research limitations/implications
The article aimed at reaching analytical generalization instead of statistical generalization and was focused on The Netherlands. Differences across industries and sectors were not taken into account in this exploratory study. Having said this, we still think the article provides valuable insights.
Practical implications
Our research identifies “buttons” for policymakers trying to stimulate business to engage with CSR. It may help predict which CSR standards may surface as dominant and can also be used to inform the design and development of new CSR standards. Finally, it may also serve as input for (marketing) strategies by standardization organizations worldwide and other organizations that have taken CSR standardization initiatives as well as non-governmental organizations and even consultancies to spur the adoption of CSR standards as a means of CSR implementation.
Originality/value
The article presents original empirical material on CSR standards adoption and contributes to the literature on this topic with insights on determinants’ CSR standards adoption.
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Natália Marinho do Nascimento, María Manuela Moro Cabero and Marta Lígia Pomim Valentim
The use of standards is currently characterized by International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as essential for the efficient development of products, processes, services…
Abstract
Purpose
The use of standards is currently characterized by International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as essential for the efficient development of products, processes, services and systems in organizations; that is the norm-profit-measuring methodology Toolkit. From an impact-analysis perspective, the purpose of this paper is to compare the existing published standards in the area of archival science and documentation in Brazil, by the hand of the Brazilian Association of Technical Standards (ABNT); Portugal (NP), by the Portuguese Institution of Quality (IPQ); and in Spain (UNE), by the Spanish Association for Standardization and Certification (AENOR). Finally, this paper aims to observe the convergences and divergences among these countries with respect to the first country standards organization, United Kingdom (UK), by the British Standards Institution (BSI). This paper is an extract of a deeper investigation about behaviors, uses and impact of ISO’s standards.
Design/methodology/approach
The methodology consists in a qualitative and quantitative comparative study, carried out through the analysis of the technical contents of the standards present in the catalogs available on the ABNT, IPQ, AENOR and BSI websites. It compares the main existing divergences in adoption, collaboration, elaboration, volume, working-group dynamism, editing schedules, costs and groups of standards.
Findings
The analysis allowed to observe the relevance of the technical standards in the studied countries and the advantages of the adoption of ISO for the dissemination of contents. For instance, the use and application of these standards for the development of archival and records management activities is considered to benefit the professionals to decrease the time of implementation and execution of the archival activities and allow continuous assessment. Besides ensuring quality in the archival processes, standardization evidences the complexity within organizational environments inherent to the metamorphosis of each’s functional context.
Originality/value
This paper contributes with an original analysis of how the technical standards of the Archival and Records Management area are published and used in Brazil, Iberian Peninsula and the UK.
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On November 1, 2010, the Geneva‐based International Organization for Standardization (ISO) launched ISO 26000:2010, Guidance on Social Responsibility (hereafter ISO SR…
Abstract
Purpose
On November 1, 2010, the Geneva‐based International Organization for Standardization (ISO) launched ISO 26000:2010, Guidance on Social Responsibility (hereafter ISO SR international standard), a document that integrates international expertise on the concept of the social responsibility of organizations in society. The purpose of this paper is to identify and critically analyze the reasons for and against business enterprises implementing the ISO 26000 SR international standard.
Design/methodology/approach
This analysis identifies the following reasons for business enterprises to implement the ISO SR international standard: first, the positive image of ISO as a globally reputable and credible organization for establishing international technical standards; second, the development of an international consensus among stakeholders regarding the definition and objectives of social responsibility as it pertains to the economic, environmental, and social impacts of business enterprises on society and the natural environment; and third, as a holistic reference for a management team interested in integrating social responsibility principles into enterprise operations.
Findings
From a general business governance perspective, the ISO 26000 SR international standard is handicapped by it being too broad in scope to be useful in the context of specific industries and sectors, too costly and time‐consuming for many small and medium‐sized enterprises to implement, and, unlike most other ISO international standards, it is not a certifiable management system – therefore leading to weaknesses in assessing its efficacy.
Originality/value
This article provides a comprehensive and thorough analysis of the “strengths and weaknesses” of the recently published ISO 26000 SR international standard as a viable business governance document.
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An attempt is made to give a general picture of standardization and standards in documentation and related fields during the post‐war years: what standards are and how they are…
Abstract
An attempt is made to give a general picture of standardization and standards in documentation and related fields during the post‐war years: what standards are and how they are prepared nationally and internationally; what has been done and is being done by the national standardizing bodies and Technical Committee 46 (Documentation) of the International Organization for Standardization [ISO]; and finally a brief note on the extent of their adoption, and future work to be done.
Pavel Castka and Michaela A. Balzarova
The purpose of this paper is to map the key challenges that quality management faces in order to meet the demands of CSR. The paper focuses on ISO 26000 – a newly emerging…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to map the key challenges that quality management faces in order to meet the demands of CSR. The paper focuses on ISO 26000 – a newly emerging international standard for social responsibility – and discusses synergies (and divergences) between quality management (and ISO quality management and environmental management standards) and CSR as they emerged during the process of ISO 26000 development.
Design/methodology/approach
This paper draws conclusions from the resolutions and working materials produced by ISO Committee on Consumer Policy, the Strategic Advisory Group on Social Responsibility and ISO/TMB/WG SR – a working group in charge of the development of ISO 26000. To add the quality management dimension to the discussion, the evidence is further expanded from the ISO documents by revealing the arguments posited by nominated experts during the development of ISO 26000.
Findings
The paper finds that the quality field can significantly contribute to the deployment and uptake of the corporate social responsibility agenda yet needs to reinvent and rejuvenate in key areas such as management systems; integration of strategy, operations, technology, CSR and quality; incorporation of corporate governance; and improvements in third‐party certification and internal auditing practices.
Research limitations/implications
The research in the paper is limited to the linkages between quality management and CSR stemming from the development of ISO 26000. Other CSR standards and tools are not included. However, as ISO 26000 is a global initiative, this paper provides a view from the perspective of one of the most significant initiatives in recent years.
Practical implications
The paper informs quality practitioners about the recent developments in international standardization of social responsibility and draws the linkages between quality management and corporate social responsibility that will enable them to adopt the CSR agenda and ISO 26000 in the future.
Originality/value
This is one of the first papers that deals with the linkages and synergies between ISO 26000 and quality management. By doing so, key areas are also offered that practitioners and academics should further explore in order to demonstrate the contribution of quality management to CSR.
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Pavel Castka and Michaela A. Balzarova
The paper's aims are: to scrutinize International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 26000 international guidance standard for social responsibility; to discuss the role of…
Abstract
Purpose
The paper's aims are: to scrutinize International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 26000 international guidance standard for social responsibility; to discuss the role of this standard in the adoption of social responsibility in organisations with existing quality management systems in line with ISO 9000.
Design/methodology/approach
Building on academic literature and recent resolutions and working documents from ISO, the paper discusses ISO 9000 and ISO 26000 in five areas: general description; scope; approach to supply chain management; principles and content.
Findings
Provides a comparison between ISO 9000 and ISO 26000 in each area listed above. Argues for ISO 9000 to provide a structural and infrastructural platform for organisations to develop and adopt corporate social responsibility (CSR) and for ISO 26000 to facilitate a shift from customer focus to stakeholder focus hence creating a business‐to‐society orientation in organisations.
Practical implications
A very useful source for those who work in the arena of CSR and those wanting to stay at the cutting edge of the latest developments in CSR and international standardization. Advocates an approach for managers to utilize ISO 26000 to review strategy and management systems in organisations.
Originality/value
Provides an analysis of future trends in CSR and ISO standards. Sets areas for future research.
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