Tips for Organisations Planning on Implementing or Transitioning to ISO 9001:2015
Companies that have made use of ISO 9001 consulting services when they planned, developed, and implemented ISO 9001:2008-compliant quality management systems (QMSs), have reported that they have experienced several benefits from compliance, including improved customer service, a reduction in complaints, improved delivery time, reduced wastage, improvement in the product cycle time, and international recognition. With ISO 9001:2015 now in full operation, many companies have to make the transition and will once again benefit from using professional ISO 9001 consulting services to help them make the necessary changes. To get the companies started, tips for best practice in the ISO 9001:2015 QMS implementation are provided below.
Have an ISO 9001 Consulting Firm Conduct a GAP Analysis
The organisation cannot improve on issues if it does not know where it falls short from compliance. In order to avoid delays in getting ISO 9001:2015 certification, it is essential that the organisation must have a GAP analysis performed. This is best done by an objective consulting firm, experienced in ISO 9001. The company can do an internal GAP audit first and make improvements, but it is essential to accurately identify the non-conformances to limit wastage of time in transitioning from the old ISO 9001 to the new version. In this way, the organisation can create a structure for closing the gaps to attain readiness for certification. It is also recommended to identify opportunities to reduce expenses and to improve on the company’s profitability. The quality management system can thus add value to the company, even during the implementation stage.
Documenting the Processes
In order to conduct the audit, it is important to have documented reports on the organisation’s critical processes. This can be used as a basis for the description of the organisation’s current standing and provide the foundation for improvement and changes to attain ISO 9001:2015 compliance. Companies will also benefit from expert ISO consulting services in the above regard. Detailed documentation regarding policies, procedures and processes should always be in place if the organisation wants to ensure the success of their quality management system. Though it is not a direct requirement of the 2015 version, it is still good practice to structure the quality manual to clearly show the organisation’s policy, in addition to listing the correct operating procedures for managing the quality management system. In this regard, collection of data is critical, but it is also important that the organisation use the data correctly in managing quality. Just knowing that X number of customers indicated satisfaction is useless if the organisation does not use the data to improve its QMS.
Call Suppliers to Accountability
With the entire supply chain being important for compliance with ISO 9001:2015, the organisation will also benefit from conducting third-party audits to measure their supplier performance regarding quality management. Such audits can be handled by ISO 9001 consulting firms.
Training and Conducting a Readiness Audit
Top-level management, supervisors, departmental managers, and all other employees must undergo training in their respective job roles, in addition to ISO 9001:2015, and improvements be made. Only if the entire staff supports the transitioning and can see the benefits, will the organisation’s QMS be successful. Organisations need to conduct mock audits to help them establish how they would fare in a certification audit. Full internal auditing must be done and reported for management review of the progress, goals, metrics, and performance of the QMS throughout the organisation.
Before Implementation or Transitioning to ISO 9001:2015
The first step is to identify the organisational quality goals. This is where management must decide why they want to implement or transition to the new standard. The next step is to involve the entire leadership of the organisation because a top-down approach to implementation is needed. Involvement by management will also encourage involvement by employees. Everyone in the organisation must support the objectives and the implementation. Here, the help of ISO consulting firms such as WWISE will be important. The third step is to identify the core processes to ensure the client’s requirements are met. It is essential that the organisation understands what clients want and expect. They must then ensure that the expectations are met or exceeded all the time.
Where to get Help
Organisations will benefit from our ISO consulting experience in helping them seamlessly implement or transition to ISO 9001:2015.