Internal factors influencing institutionalization of ISO 9001:2008 QMS in the management of universities: a case of Maseno university

Abstract

The universities are under pressure to adopt and put in place Quality Management and Quality Management Systems. The study investigated internal factors perceived to be influencing institutionalization of ISO 9001:2008 QMS in the Management of Universities: A case of Maseno University. The objectives of the study were: to establish the influence of university management’s commitment in institutionalization of ISO 9001: 2008 QMS; to determine the contributions of quality procedures towards institutionalization of ISO 9001:2008 QMS; to establish the roles of quality policy on institutionalization of ISO 9001:2008QMS; to identify the challenges the university faces in institutionalization of ISO 9001:2008 QMS. The study was guided by institutional theory which considers the processes by which structures, rules, norms and routines become established. It adopted a case study design. The study targeted Maseno university students and employees totaling 9,500. The sample of 378 students and 344 employees was sampled using random sampling. Two sets of questionnaires were used, one for the employees and the other for the students. Also an interview guide for the management representative was also used to collect data. To determine content validity the questionnaire was ascertained through an approval by the senior academic staff of the department of Educational Administration and Planning, University of Nairobi. A pilot study was carried out to check the clarity and completeness of the data collection instrument. The reliability of the instruments was determined using Pearson moment coefficient and the correlation coefficient of 0.52 for the students, 0.92 for the employees which was considered reliable. Descriptive statistic such as percentages and frequencies were used to analyze data. The findings of the study indicated that 64.34% of the employees and 61.06% of the students agree that the university management commitment has influenced institutionalization of the ISO 9001:2008 QMS. 52.17% of the employees agree that quality procedures are readily accessible at the place of work. The study also revealed that majority of the employees 83.47% indicated that quality policy is in place to define quality. Most of the students 61.06% agreed that quality policy makes staff committed to serving students. 35.65% of the employees agree that ISO based QMS is bureaucratic, 37.39% of the employees perceive ISO based QMS to be time consuming. 39.06% of the employees indicated that it is not relevant to university. The following are the conclusions of the study; the university management commitment is important in the process of institutionalization of ISO 9001:2008 QMS, quality procedures contribute towards institutionalization process, quality policy in the university enhances employees’ commitment towards duty. The management commitment is seen through employee inspiration, support for ISO based QMS activities and practicing ISO requirements. It was also found out that the quality procedures are readily accessible at the university. The findings consequently influencing institutionalization of ISO 9001:2008 QMS. A number of challenges were found out facing the university in institutionalization which include: poor change management, favouritism in selection of employees for ISO training, non involvement of employees and students, poor coordination between departments. Based on the research findings the study recommends that the university management should develop a mechanism of translating the management commitment into individual employees commitment inorder to successfully institutionalize the quality management system: the university should tailor the quality procedures to suit the needs and processes of the different departments: the university should establish difficulties facing the employees in translating quality policy into realizable work related goals: lastly the university should establish a mechanism of detecting the challenges of institutionalization of ISO 9001:2008 QMS.