Abstract
Purpose- This study seeks to investigate barriers that affect the implementation and practice of integrated quality management system (QMS) models in the context of South African (SA) civil engineering consulting organizations by using Interpretive Structural Modelling (ISM) and MICMAC analysis. When implementing and practicing an integrated QMS model regardless of its intentions, there are several obstacles, or rather barriers, which an organization will face and ultimately must deal with to assure a successful implementation and practice of the model. Although there are general barriers for implementing and practicing an integrated QMS model, there are also specific barriers for every industry. It is significant that organizations become aware of those areas of which they need to pay the most attention to when implementing and practicing integrated QMS model.
Methodology- A total of ten (10) barriers identified from literature and expert verified as the most applicable to consulting civil engineering firms of SA were analyzed using ISM to check the transitivity between barriers and determine the driving and dependence power to input into MICMAC analysis and determine the potential for each barrier to be driving, linking, dependent or autonomous to the rest of the barriers and itself. The data was qualitatively collected using surveys (questionnaire and interviews) of samples size between 11 – 50 and input into a relational mathematics-based process (ISM) to clarify the poorly articulated barriers into a clear and interrelated structured set of system elements. The barriers were further interpreted using MICMAC analysis and a conceptual framework was developed.
Findings- The results suggest that the application of ISM and MICMAC proved that integrated QMS model implementation and practicing in SA consulting civil engineering firms is vastly affected by a series of barriers that are interlinked. The top barriers in the use of integrated QMS models is the lack of top management support and lack of continuous improvement as indicated by the ISM model and verified by the high dependence and driving power in the MICMAC analysis. The lack of progress monitoring in implementing and practicing of integrated QMS model resulted in a high driving ability to the rest of the barriers in the MICMAC analysis while socio-economic challenges is more dependent on other barriers to be alleviated in the implementation and practicing of integrated QMS model of SA consulting civil engineering organizations. The results are aligned with existing theoretical predictions from literature reviewed. The conceptual framework developed identified the driving, mediating and dependent barriers which creates a scope for further investigation.
University of Johannesburg: Minor Dissertation iii | P a g e
Unique contributions- Integrated QMS model under investigation can be applicable in any organization as the analysis have aligned the theoretical framework of barriers that can affect the implementation and practice of integrated QMS model in SA consulting civil engineering firms to the practical and more realistic model. This is one of the first study which used alternate methods for theory building in the QMS area in context to SA consulting civil engineering firms. The combination of literature review and experts input into identifying the barriers makes the study more reliable and stakeholders interactive. Based on the conceptual framework developed outcome, a further research gap for future research is opened.