Both successful and under-performing companies are “ISO
certified”. Please note, unfortunately, the “ISO certified” mentality also applies
to parts of the merchant marine industry seeking only to be “ISM certified” and
“ISPS certified.”
ISO
Certification does not guarantee superior performance. It only means that an organization’s
management system meets the requirements of a standard that represents generally
accepted good management practice.
Every organization is unique though, even today, some people believe that all systems
are the same. Your system (including its business processes) is what differentiates
your company from your competitors and either prevents or enables you to add value.
By focusing on the management system people use everyday to do their jobs instead
of an
ISO
standard, organizations can manage their business processes for creating satisfied
customers, differentiating their products, preventing pollution, improving security
and creating superior value.
When developing your management system for certification, avoid these common pitfalls:
Under-performing But Still Certified
Systems:
- Use purchased or recycled system documents (e.g. Quality Manual, procedures)
- Are closely managed by a small group instead of the entire organization
- Refer to a “management system” and “system documentation” as one in the same
- Cannot define “System Performance” or cannot define it outside of management review,
corrective and preventive action and internal audit
- Call it the “ISO
System” – sometimes even stored on the “I” drive on the server!
- Do not have an established process for driving continual improvement
- Rely upon internal audit and the system manager to drive corrective action
- Close the open corrective actions weeks or days before the registrar audits
- Do not reflect the entire business cycle from customer needs to cash in the bank
- Cannot demonstrate the financial benefits of using the developed management system.
If any of the items above describe your “ISO
Certified” system, congratulations on identifying the problem before it is too late!
Either study this part of
our website or contact us
to help you and your colleagues turn your “ISO
System” into the management system that is used by your organization to improve
performance.
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