In the 1990s, ISO9000 (a quality management system) spread through many industries.

FORBES: Business schools suffer from a dangerous lack of evidence based teaching

They concern management practices that at some point emerge and become popular, such as the old Total Quality Management, ISO9000 system or SixSigma.

FORBES: Management myths

ISO9000, in a nutshell, helps firms to identify best practices within their organisation, document them, and make sure that everyone in the firm follows that one standardised best practice.

FORBES: Management myths

However, unexpectedly and unfortunately, as professors Mary Benner from the University of Minnesota and Mike Tushman from Harvard Business School discovered, the firms that adopted ISO9000 several years down the line saw a decrease in their innovativeness, in terms of new technological inventions.

FORBES: Management myths

However, academic research by Professors Mary Benner and Mike Tushman showed that its adoption could actually lead to a decrease in innovation after a few years (because ISO9000 does not allow for deviations from a set standard, which innovation requires), making the adopter worse off.

FORBES: Business schools suffer from a dangerous lack of evidence based teaching