ISO 9001:2000 in the Egyptian manufacturing sector: perceptions and perspectives

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to examine management attitudes/perceptions of Egyptian manufacturing organizations toward the implementation of ISO 9001:2000. The implementation of ISO 9001:2000 depends on how the standard is perceived by Egyptian companies themselves. Design/methodology/approach – The present study is exploratory in nature and seeks to collect data about management attitudes/perceptions towards ISO 9001:2000 through a structured mail survey. Mail questionnaires were sent to 200 manufacturing companies throughout Egypt, yielding a response rate of 35 percent. Findings – Survey results indicated that Egyptian manufacturing organizations are aware of ISO 9001:2000 and it is considered to be relevant to their organizations. The main motivators for seeking ISO certification were to improve the efficiency of the quality system and to achieve customer satisfaction. The vital benefits perceived from implementing the certificate were improved documentation and improvement in the efficiency of the quality system. However, the participants perceived top management commitment and the lack of qualified personnel to be major barriers for the effective implementation of ISO 9001:2000. Originality/value – The research adds knowledge in the field of quality management within the context of developing countries and gives a particular focus on Egypt and the manufacturing sector, as it is one of the few papers available within the field of quality management in Egypt.