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ISO 9001 is a document that defines the framework and the criteria for an organisations “quality management system”.
As part of the year 2000 revisions the ISO 9001 standard adopted a number of principles, one of which is called the “process approach”. The process approach means the systems should be developed around your existing processes and activities, we would say, they should reflect the way your work works.
Additionally, the standard never says “this is what you must do” it simply says “these are the things you need to consider”. How, and to what degree they are implemented, would depend on the risks (and opportunities) relevant to your business or organisation.
The full list of principles now include:
In essence, ISO 9001 seeks to help an organisation define its aims and ambitions and then ensure its processes and practises deliver on those aims and ambitions.
Just so you know, you’re in good company, there are now over one million companies and organisations in over 170 countries certified to ISO 9001.
The duration for obtaining ISO 9001 is likely to depend on a number of factors which might typically include:
However, as a general rule a medium size company of say 30 to 50 people, operating from one office might take in the region of six to nine months. Smaller companies could be quicker, larger more complex companies are likely to take longer.
Effectively you are seeking to create a “book of best practise” that seeks to provide the recipe for what you do and how you do it. At the core of this “book of best practise” is the codification of the way in which you deliver your products and services to your clients.
At a level above these core processes would be the planning processes which should define how will you go about setting the companies objectives and targets.
At a level below these core processes are the processes that define supporting activities; for instance; supplier approval and management, training and development, warehousing and logistics to name but a few.
It has been said that the process of obtaining ISO 9000 is simply one of:
Once the “book of best practise” has been written by either yourselves, or a consultant, you will need to:
You will then be ready for certification.
Again, this is going to depend on the scale and complexity of the organisation but is likely to include representatives from the following:
In order to understand the organisations objectives and targets.
In order to understand how products and services are delivered to the client base
In order to understand how supporting activities assist in delivering company objectives and targets
Hopefully, following certification, you’ll get access to new customers, contracts and tenders, so, your business will develop and flourish. This means your “book of best practise” should adapt and change in response to changing company and customer requirements. In short, this means:
These are the internal activities that you would need to embark upon. In addition to which the accredited certification body would usually be back at least once a year, more frequently with larger organisations, to check that you are implementing the system effectively.
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