As yourself this question – Is the implementation of a Business Management System (BMS) a requirement for ISO 9001 certified organisations?
In my experience of consulting and working with many organisations, I have seen a wide range of QMS designs, some quite innovative, partially and completely integrated within the business whilst also being technology enabled and high performing from a business and a quality perspective. This sounds great but is often viewed by Top Management in such organisations as being a voluntary business/QMS improvement initiative rather than a requirement of modern day ISO 9001:2015 management systems to achieve certification.
The other side of the coin is that I have also experienced many organisations with QMS’s that were very much more minimalist often with the sole purpose to attain certification by focusing only upon achieving a reasonably acceptable level of direct customer satisfaction and doing the bare minimum in terms of procedural documentation, internal audits and management reviews for example. These minimalist, tired systems tend to have little or no actual connection nor relevance to the running of the organisation from a business perspective and hence in the majority of cases, deliver little or no internal value to the business with the exception of being able to tender for certain contracts perhaps.
The informed view would be a QMS that is equally aimed at managing business change, business performance and delivering successful ROI’s, financial performance results and internal efficiencies for the organisation itself, as well as delivering and enhancing external customer and stakeholder satisfaction, surely has to be a leadership initiative worthy of serious and thorough consideration.
Moreover, unaligned strategic and operational goals will almost certainly lead to worse outcomes.
So maybe the question Leadership should ask themselves is, “whether it is a requirement or not, are you delivering a Business and Quality aligned system and if not, why not?”.
David White, Senior Consultant
About the Author
For many years, David has earned a reputation for innovation within the Management Systems Certification and Learning & Development sectors. At SAI Global, David is responsible for the delivery of bespoke Customised Assurance and Training Solutions assisting organisations to develop their management systems and people capabilities to support strategic direction.
