An effort estimation model for implementing ISO 9001

A major concern for organizations who are seeking registration to ISO 9000, or seeking the implementation of any quality related process, is the ability to estimate the work/effort required for meeting the stated requirements. This is an a priori requirement in corporate decision making, regardless of the maturity level of the organization (W.S. Humphrey, 1989), the current state of the quality system, or the extent to which the organization complies to the requirements of the ISO 9000 standard. The paper presents a statistical regression model that predicts the effort required for meeting the requirements of ISO 9001. We carried out a survey in February 1995, which was sent to 1190 organizations in North America. We had a 38.8% response (462 responses). The effort estimation model we present is for ISO 9001 (all industries), and is based on the 112 responses we had from ISO 9001 registered organizations. Subsequent models for ISO 9001 (software), ISO 9002 and ISO 9003 are being built using the remaining data.