Corruption influence in the implementation of ISO 9001

Over the last two decades, the number of ISO 9001 certified companies has been growing constantly and by the end of 2011 reached more than 1,100,000 [1] worldwide. However, the distribution of certificates between countries does not match the weight that each one has on the global economy. This paper begins with a brief review of the literature. This analysis of literature shows that many companies get the certificate only as a way of improving their image. Therefore, the temptation of getting the certificate at minimum cost, without any real change in the quality management system of the company, may exist. In this sense, it could happen that getting an ISO 9001 certificate could be achieved by tricking or bribing auditors. That is why in this study the relationship between the degree of corruption in a country and the degree of implementation of ISO 9001 in each country has been analyzed. The results indicate that the level of corruption has a low but statistically significant influence on the national diffusion of ISO 9001, relationship that becomes stronger for developed countries. This suggests that confidence in the standard as a way of having more confidence in the quality of products and services could be damaged if our results are confirmed by future studies.