Quality Engineer and holder of a Masters in Project Management, Ziegnoungo dit Vali Ouattara began his career in 2000 in production at the IPS group on the Ivory Coast, then in management control, support for ISO 9001 certification and also held responsibilities on the commercial level for several organisations in charge of countries in West Africa and Central Africa. He has been a magazine founder and consultant since 2016.
In September 2021, he defended his Executive Doctorate in Business Administration (Executive DBA) on the topic of ‘The challenges of ISO 9001 certification and the low level of commitment of Ivory Coast companies’ under the supervision of Professor Pierre-Jean Benghozi, Professor at Paris école Polytechnique and CNRS Research Director.
Thesis Direction
Pr Marielle-Audrey Payaud and Pr Pierre-Jean Benghozi
Thesis Title
The challenges of ISO 9001 certification and the weak commitment of Ivorian companies
Abstract
Quality and certification procedures are spreading everywhere and have many advantages in terms of performance, yet Ivorian companies have a low rate of certification. Does this observation call for an overall review of the role of certification in building performance or does it shed light on the importance and specificities of national ecosystems, in this case that of the Ivory Coast?
So, through a qualitative approach, we conducted semi-structured interviews with a sample of 21 certified and non-certified companies in order to understand managers of Ivorian companies’ perception of the ISO 9001 certification. The data collected was processed using Sphinx quali software.
Thus, from the results of our research, it emerges that: both certified and non-certified companies mention access to new markets or the development of market share and also compliance with international standards as reasons for ISO 9001 certification. in addition to these motivations, the certified add the improvement of financial profitability, and the willingness of top management and staffs.
Customer satisfaction, training and qualification of personnel and also the quality of products and service are perceived by both types as being the main challenges of certification. Only the certified companies add customer loyalty, continuous improvement and corrective actions in addition to common challenges to both types of companies.
Competitive pressure and pressure on prices are, according to the both types of companies, the main market requirements in Côte d’Ivoire. Unanimously, the certified as well as non-certified companies denounce the high cost of certification in Côte d’Ivoire.
They also indicate the lack of financial assistance and the lack of internal competence which requires support from consulting firms, and a very lengthy certification process.
There is also a lack of awareness of certification by the vast majority of managers and business leaders.
In view of the results of our work, we have made recommendations to businesses, employers and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry and to the country of Côte d’Ivoire. These recommendations involve, training staff and managers to adopt the culture of change in business, to optimize time management; to seek efficiency at work; to set up a quality culture within companies. It is up to the managers to create trust with the employees. The total and objective commitment of the Ivorian employers (CGECI) and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCI-CI) to the certification of companies through the establishment of a financial support, training and awareness plan of member companies.
As such, we recommend strengthening the institutional framework to maximize ISO 9001 certifications in Côte d’Ivoire. The implementation of these recommendations will further strengthen the competitiveness of businesses and therefore the economy of the country.
We believe that this research has made a major contribution to the managers of Ivorian and African companies’ perception of ISO 9001 certification and to the identification of the major obstacles to this certification, which is so important for the economies of southern countries.