Selective integration of management systems: a case study in the construction industry

Purpose Despite the widely recognized benefits of integrating management systems, many multi-certified organizations continue to implement two or more systems separately. This can happen either through ignorance or by deliberate intent. Focusing on the second reason, the purpose of this paper is to examine a number of factors that can lead an organization to consciously choose not to integrate all of its management systems. Design/methodology/approach The paper presents a case study of a construction company that has integrated the environmental management system and the occupational health and safety management system – which implies that the company is familiar with the practice of integration – while choosing to implement the quality management system separately from the other two. Findings The findings of this study show that the reasons that led the company not to integrate all of its systems are not so much related to the compatibility of these systems, but are much deeper and have implications that touch upon its basic principles and values. Despite the occurrence of some organizational and operational problems (such as complexity of administrative issues and bureaucracy), the separate implementation of the systems allowed the company to preserve both the balance between the powers of its executives and the ability to attach special importance to each area: quality, environment, health and safety. Originality/value This study will be useful in order to understand that selective integration of management systems is based on the belief that integration is not a de facto desirable goal, especially when the estimated cost-benefit ratio of non-integration is better than that of integration.