ISO 9001 Standard and Organization's Performance: A Literature Review

Nowadays, ISO 9001 has been adopted by different organizations in all over the world. This standard was first introduced in 1978 by International Organization for Standardization (ISO). Several empirical studies revealed the importance of this quality managementtool for improving continuously performance within the organizations, in order to satisfy customer's needs and promote competitiveness in the market. Although ISO 9001 standard has shown its usefulness to the companies from different sectors, but there isno consensus among practitioners and scholars whether ISO 9001 considerably enables to improve firms' performance. Thus, this study was performed to review the findings of the empirical studies, which tested the hypothesized relationship between ISO 9001standard and the different perspectives of organization's performance, in order to present an aggregate overview of the role of ISO standard in improving performance in the organizations from different sectors. So, the research was designed to identify, select, and review the empirical studies that were relevant to the objectives of the research, and likewise published between 2002 and 2017. From literature review, the only 19 empirical studies selected that were relevant and fitted to the criteria of thestudy with the aim of obtaining the results and conclusions. Finally, the analysis of the results of the empirical studies uncovered that ISO 9001 significantly affected internal business process, while this standard was not correlated with the indicators of innovation and learning perspective at significant level. Furthermore, the systematic review of the existing literature provided enough evidence that the effectiveness of ISO 9001 on customer's results and financial performance were unclear and contradictory

Impact of ISO 9001 Standard on the Quality Cost of Construction Projects in the Philippines

Since past two decades, ISO 9001 standard has shown its capabilities to lower cost, increase productivity, and satisfy stakeholders (customers) in the organizations. Although ISO 9001 standard has proven its benefits to different sectors in all over the world. But there is still debate among researchers and practitioners concerning the usefulness of applying ISO 9001 in construction projects. However, it seems that among different methods, quality cost analysis is an excellent technique to indicate how much ISO 9001 is able to improve effectively quality performance, and reduce costs in the projects. Thus, the main purpose of this study is to assess the effects of ISO 9001 implementation on quality cost in construction projects. For this aim, a literature review was conducted to design a structured questionnaire in a sample of the 67 respondents from ISO 9001:2008-certified projects of large-scale (AAA) construction companies in Metro Manila, Philippine. As a quantitative research, the inferential statistics analysis used to test the hypotheses of this study. Lastly, the results reported that ISO 9001 standard significantly affects the reduction of quality cost within construction projects in Metro Manila

Effects of ISO 9001 Standard on Critical Factors of Project Management in Construction Industry

This paper provides a significant contribution to the knowledge by identifying the impact of ISO 9001 implementation on the most vital factors of project management within large scale (AAA) construction firms in Metro Manila, Philippines. Thus, the study was accomplished an extensive literature review for identifying the main factors of project management, ISO 9001 standard, and other concepts, for developing an appropriate survey instrument. Then the questionnaires were distributed randomly among selected ISO 9001:2008-certified projects of large-scale (AAA) construction firms. For data analysis, the study adopted the descriptive and inferential statistics analysis, in order to find the results and conclusions. Lastly, the findings indicated that ISO 9001 certification can statistically affect the two main factors of project management, except time length of projects in Metro Manila, Philippines

Identification of A Set of Appropriate Critical Success Factors (CSFs) for Successful TQM Implementation in Construction, and Other Industries

Total quality management (TQM) is a management philosophy that emphasizes on non-stop quality improvement within all aspects of the organizations. Its main aims are to satisfy customers and survive in the market. Thus, it is very vital to specify the factors that cause implementing TQM successfully. Specially, the identification of the TQM critical success factors (CSFs) is more important in the construction firms than other industries, because the majority of construction organizations are confusing related to TQM CSFs, and often they do not develop a proper framework with right and essential factors for TQM implementation. Numerous studies showed construction companies usually fail to implement TQM and achieve performance excellence at project and enterprise levels. The main purpose of this study is to determine these factors as critical success factors of TQM implementation in construction industry. For this aim, the study carried out an extensive literature review to specify the most frequently used CSFs from TQM frameworks of 37 empirical studies in different industries, in order to propose a set of appropriate TQM CSFs. So, Pareto analysis was employed to analyze comprehensively the 37 TQM frameworks. Finally, the findings of this study revealed the seven CSFs, which are as most vital elements in developing an effective model for successful TQM implementation in construction industry

Baseline glucocorticoids are drivers of body mass gain in a diving seabird

Life-history trade-offs are influenced by variation in individual state, with individuals in better condition often completing life-history stages with greater success. Although resource accrual significantly impacts key life-history decisions such as the timing of reproduction, little is known about the underlying mechanisms driving resource accumulation. Baseline corticosterone (CORT, the primary avian glucocorticoid) mediates daily and seasonal energetics, responds to changes in food availability, and has been linked to foraging behavior, making it a strong potential driver of individual variation in resource accrual and deposition. Working with a captive colony of white-winged scoters (Melanitta fusca deglandi), we aimed to causally determine whether variation in baseline CORT drives individual body mass gains mediated through fattening rate (plasma triglycerides corrected for body mass). We implanted individuals with each of three treatment pellets to elevate CORT within a baseline range in a randomized order: control, low dose of CORT, high dose of CORT, then blood sampled and recorded body mass over a two-week period to track changes in baseline CORT, body mass, and fattening rates. The high CORT treatment significantly elevated levels of plasma hormone for a short period of time within the biologically relevant, baseline range for this species, but importantly did not inhibit the function of the HPA (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal) axis. Furthermore, an elevation in baseline CORT resulted in a consistent increase in body mass throughout the trial period compared to controls. This is some of the first empirical evidence demonstrating that elevations of baseline CORT within a biologically relevant range have a causal, direct, and positive influence on changes in body mass

Baseline glucocorticoids are drivers of body mass gain in a diving seabird

Life‐history trade‐offs are influenced by variation in individual state, with individuals in better condition often completing life‐history stages with greater success. Although resource accrual significantly impacts key life‐history decisions such as the timing of reproduction, little is known about the underlying mechanisms driving resource accumulation. Baseline corticosterone (CORT, the primary avian glucocorticoid) mediates daily and seasonal energetics, responds to changes in food availability, and has been linked to foraging behavior, making it a strong potential driver of individual variation in resource accrual and deposition. Working with a captive colony of white‐winged scoters (Melanitta fusca deglandi), we aimed to causally determine whether variation in baseline CORT drives individual body mass gains mediated through fattening rate (plasma triglycerides corrected for body mass). We implanted individuals with each of three treatment pellets to elevate CORT within a baseline range in a randomized order: control, low dose of CORT, high dose of CORT, then blood sampled and recorded body mass over a two‐week period to track changes in baseline CORT, body mass, and fattening rates. The high CORT treatment significantly elevated levels of plasma hormone for a short period of time within the biologically relevant, baseline range for this species, but importantly did not inhibit the function of the HPA (hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal) axis. Furthermore, an elevation in baseline CORT resulted in a consistent increase in body mass throughout the trial period compared to controls. This is some of the first empirical evidence demonstrating that elevations of baseline CORT within a biologically relevant range have a causal, direct, and positive influence on changes in body mass

Reluctance of general practice staff to register patients without documentation: a qualitative study in North East London.

BACKGROUND: Lack of access to documentation is a key barrier to GP registration, despite NHS England guidance stating that documents are not required. Staff attitudes and practice regarding registration of those without documentation are under- researched. AIM: To understand the processes through which registration might be refused for those without documents, and the factors operating to influence this. DESIGN AND SETTING: Qualitative study conducted in general practice across three clinical commissioning groups in North East London. METHOD: In total, 33 participants (GP staff involved in registering new patients) were recruited through email invitation. Semi-structured interviews and focus groups were conducted. Data were analysed using Braun and Clarke's reflexive thematic analysis. Two social theories informed this analysis: Lipsky's street-level bureaucracy and Bourdieu's theory of practice. RESULTS: Despite good knowledge of guidance, most participants expressed reluctance to register those without documentation, often introducing additional hurdles or requirements in their everyday practice. Two explanatory themes were generated: that those without documents were perceived as burdensome, and/or that moral judgements were made about their deservedness to finite resources. Participants described a context of high workload and insufficient funding. Some felt that GP services should be restricted by immigration status, as is widespread in secondary care. CONCLUSION: Improving inclusive registration practice requires addressing staff concerns, supporting navigation of high workloads, tackling financial disincentives to registering transient groups, and challenging narratives that undocumented migrants represent a 'threat' to NHS resources. Furthermore, it is imperative to acknowledge and address upstream drivers, in this instance the Hostile Environment

Recent sex chromosome divergence despite ancient dioecy in the willow Salix viminalis.

Sex chromosomes can evolve when recombination is halted between a pair of chromosomes, and this can lead to degeneration of the sex-limited chromosome. In the early stages of differentiation sex chromosomes are homomorphic, and even though homomorphic sex chromosomes are very common throughout animals and plants, we know little about the evolutionary forces shaping these types of sex chromosomes. We used DNA- and RNA-Seq data from females and males to explore the sex chromosomes in the female heterogametic willow, Salix viminalis, a species with ancient dioecy but with homomorphic sex chromosomes. We detected no major sex differences in read coverage in the SD region, indicating that the W region has not significantly degenerated. However, SNP densities in the SD region are higher in females compared to males, indicating very recent recombination suppression, followed by the accumulation of sex-specific SNPs. Interestingly, we identified two female-specific scaffolds that likely represent W-chromosome-specific sequence. We show that genes located in the SD region display a mild excess of male-biased expression in sex-specific tissue, and we use allele-specific gene expression analysis to show that this is the result of masculinization of expression on the Z chromosome rather than degeneration of female-expression on the W chromosome. Together, our results demonstrate that insertion of small DNA fragments and accumulation of sex-biased gene expression can occur before the detectable decay of the sex-limited chromosome