Standardization: A Business Approach to the Role of National Standardization Organizations

This study is the first academic analysis of national standardization organizations. The growing importance of consortia, and the shift from standardization at the national level towards the regional or international level, have prompted a discussion about the importance of national standardization organizations. Against this background, Henk de Vries analyzes the role of these organizations. The book aims to provide both practitioners and scholars with a better understanding of standardization. The introductory general chapters concern the concept of standards and standardization and depict the relevant organizations with special attention to the national standardization organizations and their portfolio of services. The book discusses the needs of users of standards in depth as well as the mechanisms that determine the market success of standards, the methods for standards development and standardization at a company level. The practical chapters, which alternate with the ones with a more theoretical focus, describe the case of standardization of management systems and the case of standardization in service sectors. The book is balanced with a fundamental analysis of how the national standardization organizations can meet the business needs of their customers.