Interest in environmental management has been growing strongly in the corporate world over the recent years. It has been boosted by theorists and practitioners who promised huge win- win opportunities in this area, with ecologically conscious management practices benefiting the natural environment and at the same time advancing the competitiveness of companies or even national economies (e.g., PORTER 1991). Even though this win-win rhetoric has been criticized sharply (e.g., WALLEY/WHITEHEAD 1994), environmental management remained an important part of many businesses’ agenda for different motives - be it in order to exploit win-win potentials or to ensure legal compliance (AN- DREWS etal. 2001), or be it intrinsically motivated, in order to avoid doing harm to the natural environment.
One way of implementing and maintaining environmental management is by institutionalizing an environmental management system (EMS). Such an EMS constitutes a structured and systematic approach for “articulating goals, making choices, gathering information, measuring progress, and improving performance” in the environmental field (FLOR- IDA/DAVISON 2001:64). There is a wide array of different types of EMS’s, reaching from company specific solutions to standardized national (like the British BS 7750), multinational (like the European Union’s EMAS), or even global approaches (like the International Organization for Standardization’s ISO 14001) (KRUT/GLECKMAN 1998). The ISO 14001 standard achieved particular prominence as an EMS: In July 2003, more than 53,000 organizations all over the world had an EMS which was certified according to ISO 14001 guide lines (PEGLAU 2003; see also chapter 2.2 of this paper). Its proponents promise huge environmental and financial/operational benefits. They assume that by implementing an ISO 14001 certified EMS, a company can improve both its natural environment and its bottom- line.
Table of Contents
1 Introduction
2 Environmental Management Systems and ISO 14001
2.1 Introducing Environmental Managements Systems and ISO 14001
2.2 Global Dissemination of ISO 14001
2.3 Potential Impacts of ISO 14001
3 Review of the Empirical Literature on ISO 14001’s Impacts
3.1 Financial Impacts
3.1.1 Qualitative Studies
3.1.2 Quantitative Studies
3.2 Environmental Impacts
3.2.1 Qualitative Studies
3.2.2 Quantitative Studies
4 Assessment of the Empirical Literature on ISO 14001’s Impacts
4.1 Criticism of Existing Empirical Literature
4.2 Suggestions for Further Research
5 Conclusion
Objectives and Themes
This paper examines the actual financial and environmental consequences of ISO 14001 certification within organizations by critically reviewing existing empirical literature to determine if the standard fulfills the benefits promised by its proponents.
- Theoretical and practical motivations for environmental management systems (EMS).
- Evaluation of qualitative case study evidence regarding financial and environmental performance.
- Review of quantitative survey data on the impacts of ISO 14001.
- Methodological critique of existing research, including biases and cross-sectional limitations.
- Recommendations for future longitudinal and data-driven empirical research.
Excerpt from the Book
3.1.1 Qualitative Studies
Several qualitative case studies on ISO 14001 certification and its impacts have been conducted. All of these studies rely heavily on more or less structured interviews or other methods in which key employees of a company are asked for their opinions about the impacts of a recent ISO 14001 certification. Often, environmental staff is interviewed. The organizations under study vary widely, including U.S. manufacturing facilities from 100 to 8,000 employees, German energy and gas companies, small and medium enterprises in Sweden, and an American municipality with around 1,000 employees.
This research offers a first impression whether the effects expected by ISO 14001’s proponents can actually be found in reality. In terms of the financial impacts of ISO 14001 certification, the picture that emerges from the qualitative case studies is mixed. Both MORROW/RONDINELLI (2002) and AMMENBERG/HJELM (2003) report no significant cost savings. In contrast to that, RONDINELLI/VASTAG (2003) claim that for the aluminum plant they studied, waste costs per ton of production dropped by 22 percent following ISO 14001 certification. In line with that, most of the studies considered here agree that there are positive effects on internal efficiency.
Also, the studies agree that documentation improved substantially due to ISO 14001 certification, advancing the consistency and efficiency of environmental activities and thus reducing the associated costs. Even though the companies studied see improved documentation as one of the major strengths of ISO 14001, some of them also acknowledge that the standard’s documentation requirements constitute a burden and increase their workload.
Chapter Summary
1 Introduction: Provides an overview of the growing interest in environmental management and the emergence of ISO 14001 as a prominent standard for addressing environmental and business goals.
2 Environmental Management Systems and ISO 14001: Defines EMS and ISO 14001, outlines the standard's global dissemination, and summarizes the potential benefits articulated by proponents.
3 Review of the Empirical Literature on ISO 14001’s Impacts: Analyzes both qualitative and quantitative empirical studies concerning the financial and environmental performance outcomes of certified organizations.
4 Assessment of the Empirical Literature on ISO 14001’s Impacts: Critically evaluates the methodologies used in existing research, identifying issues such as self-selection bias and the reliance on perceptual data.
5 Conclusion: Synthesizes the findings, noting the ambiguity of current evidence, and highlights the necessity for more rigorous, longitudinal research.
Keywords
ISO 14001, Environmental Management Systems, EMS, empirical literature, financial impacts, environmental performance, certification, qualitative studies, quantitative research, sustainability, corporate environmental management, cost savings, stakeholder involvement, methodological critique.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the fundamental focus of this paper?
The paper provides a critical literature review of empirical studies to evaluate whether ISO 14001 certification actually delivers the financial and environmental benefits promised by its proponents.
What are the central thematic fields covered?
The study covers environmental management systems (EMS), the global dissemination of ISO 14001, the distinction between financial and ecological impacts, and the methodological challenges of measuring these effects.
What is the primary research goal?
The goal is to determine if existing empirical evidence supports the claim that ISO 14001 implementation leads to tangible improvements in a company's bottom-line and its environmental performance.
Which scientific methodology is utilized?
The work employs a literature review methodology, synthesizing and critically analyzing existing qualitative case studies and quantitative survey-based research to identify trends and methodological gaps.
What topics are discussed in the main section?
The main section investigates financial impacts (cost savings, efficiency) and environmental impacts (pollution prevention, resource efficiency), supported by evidence from case studies and large-scale surveys.
Which keywords characterize the work?
Key terms include ISO 14001, EMS, financial impacts, environmental performance, empirical literature, and corporate sustainability.
How does the author view the reliability of current surveys?
The author expresses skepticism, noting that most studies rely on "perceptions" rather than hard data and suffer from biases like self-selection and social desirability.
What does the author suggest for future research?
The author strongly advocates for moving beyond cross-sectional perception-based surveys toward longitudinal studies that utilize objective, measurable performance data.
- Citar trabajo
- Frank Walter (Autor), 2004, Financial and Environmental Impacts of ISO 14001 Certification, Múnich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/24603
