International Journal of Applied Engineering Research ISSN 0973-4562 Volume 13, Number 6 (2018) pp. 3939-3947 © Research India Publications. http://www.ripublication.com 3939 The Effect of ISO 9001 to Oman Higher Education Operational Performance: Buraimi University College as a Case Study Dr. Adalia Martin* and Dr. Fawaz Ali Thawabieh # *Oman College of Management & Technology, Muscat, Oman. # Modern College of Business and Science, Muscat, Oman. Abstract This paper examines the relationship between the ISO 9001 Total Quality Management (TQM) factors, that are presented in the Baldrige Education Criteria for Performance Excellence framework (leadership, strategic planning, stakeholder and market focus, measurement and analysis, staff focus and process management), and the seventh element which is the operational performance results. The study, which was conducted at the Buraimi University College of Oman, showed that TQM is applicable to higher education according to the perception of the staff members. The study also showed that leadership, stakeholder and market focus and staff focus have a significant positive influence on operational performance of higher education. The results agreed with the literature findings that the success of TQM appears to be determined by intangible or soft practices rather than tangible or hard practices. Keywords: TQM, Performance Measures, Higher Education, Operational Performance, Baldrige Education Criteria INTRODUCTION The Buraimi University College (BUC) is the first university college in Al-Buraimi governorate, northwest of the Sultanate of Oman, on the border of United Arab Emirates. The institution has started its academic programmes in Academic Year 2003- 2004. Currently, the institution has a total of 100 academic and administrative employees. Within the Sultanate, BUC among with Gulf College, German University of Technology, and Shinas College adopts the ISO 9001:2008 standards as their external accrediting body for their programmes. Having its first institutional audit using ISO standards in 2012. Locally, the Oman Authority for Academic Accreditation (OAAA) is the national authority imposed the institutional accreditation standards. BUC has started adopting the ISO standards on 2015 in partnership with California State University. Among the most rigorous empirical studies that examine how implementation of the ISO 9001 quality management standard affects employers‟ outcomes and practices, mostly were conducted by U.S. manufacturers. Terlaak and King (2006) found that plants which adopt ISO 9001 typically increase their rate of production growth. Others studies on ISO 9001 certification were to be associated with subsequent abnormal returns along a host of financial metrics including stock prices (Corbett et al. 2005; Sharma, 2005). Various studies found benefits strongest among small firms (Docking and Dowen 1999; McGuire and Dilts 2008) and among those with a modest level of technological diversity, and/or early adopters (Benner and Veloso 2008). King and Lenox (2001) found that adopting ISO 9001 leads plants to reduce waste generation and toxic chemical emissions suggests that implementing the quality management standard has positive spillover effects that can improve environmental management practices. Interestingly, few researches examined how the ISO 9001 quality standard affects product or process quality or employees. The increasing pressure of globalization and the dynamism of the sector have resulted in the quality frenzy in the higher education sector since the last decade. Greater mobility of students and staff in paired with increasing demands on comparability and transparency on academic programmes (Holma & Pakalna, 2007) have led to the popular adoption and implementation of QMS such as the ISO 9001 that were originally designed for the industry sector (Pratasavitskaya & Sternsaker, 2010) by many higher education institutions (HEIs) with aims of improving their customer services and securing a competitive edge in the sector. Total quality management (TQM) is an established field of study where academics, consultants, engineers and quality practitioners have contributed their ideas towards its advancement. This group has given many definitions to TQM. TQM is formally defined as both a philosophy and set of guiding principles that represent the foundation of continuous improving organizations (Besterfield et al., 2003). It is the process of changing the fundamental culture of an organization and redirecting it toward superior product or service quality. It is the philosophy that stresses the principles of customer satisfaction, employee involvement and continuous process improvement for achieving high levels of process performance and quality (Krajewski et al., 2007). TQM can be considered as a different approach to management, pioneered by Crosby, Deming, Ichikawa, Juran and others (Brah et al., 2000). In response to government initiatives at standardizing and improving the quality of high education, there has been a trend of uniformity in the choice of QMS being implemented in the HEIs, namely the ISO 9001:2008 (Harvey, 2002). The ISO 9001:2008-based QMS is a process orientated system (Michalska-Ćwiek, 2009) that helps to ensure properly written and documented procedures are created and implemented by the organization. These procedures cover all functions of the operations which include the organization structure, responsibilities, procedures, documentation, division competency, processes and resources of the organization (Michalska-Ćwiek, 2009). Studies have been done throughout the years on the adoption and the implementation of the QMS in HEIs and have yielded both positive and negative reviews