Profiles and Motivations of Standardization Players

Abstract

This study profiles the characteristics and motivations of participants from Luxembourg in national and international formal standardization activities. The study considers both experts and the organizations to which the experts belong. By adopting a qualitative approach, data have been mainly collected through 24 semi-structured interviews with experts and public available register data on the organization. The main result is that participants in standardization can be classified into two main groups. The first group consists of large and international firms which are active in product standardization aiming to promote the interest of the firm. The second group are mainly small and local firms active in management standardization for which knowledge sharing is an important part of the standardization process. The classification is useful in interpreting the difficulties faced during the standardization process and in designing appropriate supporting policies.