Quality management and innovation: a review of quantitative studies

Despite the large body of literature on quality management, the relationship between quality management and innovation is relatively under‐researched, and the quantitative literature is scattered. Aiming to offer a solid basis for future developments, this paper critically reviews the large quantitative literature about quality management (i.e., TQM and ISO 9000) and innovation. Some studies found that quality management provides valuable organisational benefits that can support innovation process. Other studies found evidence for a negative impact, emphasising that quality management can reduce the 'exploration' of new technological and business opportunities. As previous studies have focused mainly on manufacturing large firms, quality and innovation in services is a promising field of research. Finally, to reconcile the identified mixed results, this paper calls for common guidelines for collecting (and possibly sharing) data and panel data analysis to detect unobserved heterogeneity.