Formalization and ISO 9000 - Changes in the German Machine Building Industry

According to Neo-Instituionalists the formal structure of organizations is often less a means of coordinating and controlling the relationship between organization and environment, and of coordinating and controlling work-activities. Rather the elements of the formal structure are manifestations of institutionalized rules and expectations within the environment of organizations which become binding or obligatory. According to institutional theory, therefore, the goal system and the formal structure of organizations must be able to accommodate different purposes and means. The type of formal structure, that is, which process is used to achieve which goals of the organization for example, is not determined by work and exchange processes alone, but is to a great extent laid down by the institutional environment of organizations. Subsequently, as new rationalized rules, techniques, procedures or goals arise in different domains of modern societies, formal organizations form and expand by incorporating them as structural elements.However, there are a few empirical studies which have detected differences in the degree to which organizations adopt rationalized and institutionalized elements of formal structure. In this study, we want to explore the conditions which lead to the adoption and change of institutionalized elements of formal structure in the German machine building industry, namely elements that are connected with quality management.