Quality Certification and Business Performance: The Portuguese Large Firms’ Case

Objective: Observe the existence of a relationship between quality certification, financial performance and bankruptcy prediction, as well as the supposed superiority of the quality certified Portuguese large companies. Theoretical Reference: In the continuous pursuit for quality, as well as its certification, the International Standard Organization (ISO), suggests, from a theoretical perspective, a possible relationship of the last one with the going concern, contributing to the companies’ economic and financial sustainability. Method: We selected Portuguese large companies (according to recommendation 2003/361/EC) with Economic Activity Codes (NACE) D and G, certified with ISO 9000 or 9001, totalling 91 companies, along with computed average company from each of these sectors. We used univariate and multivariate techniques (MDA), models of business failure prediction, considered in previous studies as the most effective for the Iberian economy (Peres and Antão, 2018; Peres and Antão, 2019), aiming to assess the companies’ performance, as well as the supposed superiority of those quality certified companies. Results and Discussion: In neither of the analysis, univariate and multivariate, was observed a superior performance of the certified companies compared to others, indicating that quality certification is not effectively related to the companies’ economic and financial performance optimization. Implications of the Research: Uncover the influence of quality certification on the economic-financial position of companies, allowing for deeper investigation into bankruptcy, sustainability and value creation. Originality/Value: The specificities of the sectors and business size, crises and the increasing of business closures make it vital to identify what will influence performance and sustainability, as no studies have been identified on this topic, focusing on Portuguese Large companies, certified via ISO 9000 or 9001.