The scope of this research is to evaluate whether ISO 14001 certification could be used as a strategic vehicle for achieving objectives that are not strictly linked to a technical and operative perspective, and to determine what these objectives are. In order to find these objectives, a review of the literature was first conducted to determine what they were and seven hypotheses emerged. The hypotheses concerned the possibility of using ISO 14001 as a strategy for achieving objectives related to finance and turnover, customer satisfaction, community satisfaction, employee satisfaction, health and safety in the workplace, and growth and skills of employees. The validity of each hypothesis was tested via a survey of 164 managers of European manufacturing companies. This research produced interesting findings, some of which contradicted the findings of other research, in particular for financial and turnover objectives. In addition, the research revealed interesting relationships between employees' skills and issues such as Design for the Environment and Sustainability. Furthermore, some limitations of ISO 14001 with respect to the Eco‐Management and Audit Scheme regulation emerged. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment