Business improvement through quality management systems

This paper focuses on the use of the ISO 9000 series certification and the use of self‐assessment against an excellence model, as two examples of management fads which have survived for a long period of time. The literature suggests that two variables are related to the perceived success of the implementation of a fad. First, the degree of intrinsic as opposed to extrinsic motivation which is present, and second, the depth of organisational change which is demanded by the implementation. The two fads described in this paper differ in relation to these two variables.