Influence of iso 9001:2008 quality management system on academic staffs’ service delivery in provision of quality teaching/learning facilities in public universities in Kenya

The implementation of International Organization for Standardization (ISO) 9001:2008 Quality Management System (QMS) in education is a matter highly debated on whether or not the certification is appropriate for the education sector. Some scholars consider its adoption as a strategic decision by educational institutions to ensure delivery of quality service therein while others do not. Complaints by some academic staff and students in public universities in Kenya on the impact of ISO 9001:2008 QMS casts doubt on their level of satisfaction with it based on non conformities. For instance between 2012 and 2015 one university recorded 5310 non-conformities and another one recorded 5340 non-conformities which were higher than the other 12 Universities that recorded below 3940 non-conformities in provision of quality service delivery in public universities. In terms of the impact of ISO 9001:2008 QMS on academic staff’s service delivery in provision of quality teaching/learning facilities in public universities, the non conformities recorded in one of the universities were 1100 and the other 1200 being higher than the non conformities recorded in the rest of the other universities for the period 2012 to 2015 in Kenya. The objective of the study was to determine the influence of ISO 9001:2008 QMS on provision of quality teaching/ learning facilities in public Universities. The study established that ISO 9001:2008 QMS had significant influence on provision of quality teaching /learning facilities such that for every one unit increase in ISO 9001:2008 QMS conformities in provision of quality teaching /learning facilities in public universities improved academic staff’s service delivery by .617 units. In effect ISO 9001:2008 QMS accounted for 10.3% of the improvement in the provision of quality teaching /learning facilities in public universities as was signified by the Adjusted R square coefficient .103. The other 89.7% was due to other factors that were not subject to this study. This means that when non conformities decline there is improvement in academic staff’s service delivery in public universities. ISO 9001:2008 QMS was a significant predictor of academic staff’s service delivery in provision of quality teaching/learning facilities (F (1,252) = 24.976, P<.05). The study concluded that ISO 9001:2008 QMS improved service delivery in the public universities. The study recommended that public universities should strive to minimize non conformities for excellent service delivery. This study provides information to lecturers, Kenya Bureau of Standards and university management on the way forward in improving the provision of quality of teaching/learning facilities in public universities.