iso 9001 Archives - Blackmores

One of the biggest contributors to a stagnating ISO Management System is a failure to communicate.

This has certainly been true in our experience with implementing ISO Standards for over 18 years, and as a result, we make sure to highlight awareness and communication as an integral step of the Implementation process.

It’s a wasted effort only to have your management system gathering dust in a rarely visited folder on your server. If you want to reap the benefits of ISO implementation, it’s in your best interest to make everyone aware of their role in relation to your management system and its continual improvement.

Today Ian Battersby explains what ISO Standards mean by awareness and communication, why they are so integral to a successful management system and how you can effectively communicate your management system.

You’ll learn

What does awareness and communication mean in relation to ISO Standards?
Why should you communicate your management system?
The benefits of management system awareness
How can you effectively communicate your ISO management system?

Resources

Isologyhub

In this episode, we talk about:

[00:30] Join the isologyhub – To get access to a suite of ISO related tools, training and templates. Simply head on over to isologyhub.com to either sign-up or book a demo.

[02:05] Episode summary: Ian Battersby will be explaining what ISO Standards mean by awareness and communication, and why they are so integral to a successful Management System.

[02:30] What is awareness and communication so important?– The success and failure of a management system depends on it’s existence being known and understood within an organisation.

Staff have a key part to play, and they need to know their part in the Management System and how it aligns with the organisations direction.

[03:20] Extra guidance available for awareness and communication – There is a Standard that accompanies ISO 9001, called ISO 9004:2018 – Quality of an Organisation: Guidance to achieve sustained success.

This is a great companion to any Standard, as it provides general guidance on how to properly embed a management system within your business.

It talks at length about people and the need to ensure that they are competent, engaged, empowered and motivated. These are crucial as:

Engagement of people enhances the organisations ability to create value for interested parties.

Empowerment motivates people to take responsibility for their work and the results of their work.

These can be achieved by providing people with necessary information with authority and the freedom to make decisions related to their own work.

People should understand the significance and importance of their role, specifically in creating that value to meet and exceed customer expectations.

[05:30] What should be communicating according to ISO Standards? – Taking ISO 9001 as the example, because it is the basis for most ISO Standards, it has a specifies the following:

5.2.2 Quality Policy – The policy should be available and maintained as documented information, so must be issued somewhere so that people can see it. But it also, quite importantly, must be communicated, understood and deployed within the organisation. It also needs to be made available to other relevant and trusted parties.

5.3 Organisational roles, responsibilities and authorities – Top management have a responsibility here. They must ensure that responsibilities and authorities for relevant rules are assigned, communicated and understood within the organisation. There’s a lot to consider here as this will also take into account for ensuring processes are delivering expected outputs, the reporting of system performance and improvement and the promotion of customer focus throughout the organisation.

6.2 Objectives – The organisation should establish objectives. These will be targeted at relevant functions, levels and processes and should be communicated to the relevant people affected by those objectives.

7.3 Awareness – Includes the specification that anyone working under the organisations control, so this could include indirect workers, must be aware of your quality policy. Also included is the awareness of objectives and staff’s contribution to the effectiveness of the management system. People aslo have to be aware of the implications of not conforming to the requirements of the management system or standard.

[09:30] The implications of not following requirements – You need to consider what happens if someone doesn’t follow a process. For Standards such as ISO 45001 Health & Safety management, following processes could be a matter of someone getting hurt or breaking the law.

[10:00] Clause 7.4 Communication – The organisation shall determine the internal and external communications relevant to the system, and that includes what should be communicated when and to who.

[10:30] When should you deliver ISO Management System awareness and communication training? – If you’re just starting out on your ISO Implementation journey, it’s crucial to communicate at the outset the importance of the process of achieving certification.

The level of awareness will vary depending on people’s roles, i.e:

Top Management: Top management must understand the role of the management system in relation to the strategic direction of the organisation as part of context, they must understand what the management system contributes to the overall business outcomes. While top management don’t need to know standards inside out, they must be aware and must have understanding of the overall purpose of the standard and the benefits that standard will bring to the organisation.

To gauge the level of awareness top management need, ask yourself, would you be happy to let them be interviewed in private by a third-party assessor in regards to all of their responsibilities in relation to the management system?

[13:20] General awareness for the workforce– While leadership require a greater level of awareness, there is still a need for general staff to have a certain level of management system awareness.

For those on their first implementation journey, you should bring people in from the very beginning, this includes all staff and those working indirectly under your organisation.

You will want to make them aware of the following:

What is a quality management system? – Define what it is and what it means

What’s important about the Standard? – People don’t need to know the intricacies of standard subclauses, so just select important aspects such as the Plan Do Check Act (PDCA) cycle

If you’re integrating Standards, what are some common requirements? – If you’re integrating a new standard, what requirements specific to that new standard need to communicated?

[15:15] Join the isologyhub and get access to limitless ISO resources – From as little as £99 a month, you can have unlimited access to hundreds of online training courses and achieve certification for completion of courses along the way, which will take you from learner to practitioner to leader in no time. Simply head on over to the isologyhub to sign-up or book a demo.

[17:20] General awareness for the workforce continued – You will also need to make sure people are aware of:

What do they need to know in relation to certification? – This can include the date you’re working towards, what might be expected of them during an ISO assessment, what does the certification actually mean for the business?

Accessing the Management system – How can people find your management system? What documents does it hold? How do you use it? And how does this impact on staff’s day to day activities?

Staff’s role in relation to the Management system – How do staff contribute to the management system on a daily basis? How do they contribute to business objectives?

How does the management system benefit them? – Your management system will include tools and guidance on how to carry out certain activities. It explains how improvements can be suggested and made and how audits work. Ultimately it provides a structured approach to ensure everyone is singing from the same song sheet.

The importance of complying with policies, processes and procedures – including the consequences of not complying with them.

Raising issues relating to non-conformity, the effectiveness of the management system and any potential improvements – You can’t have eyes everywhere, and the people working in alignment with your processes can better highlight where something may not be working. This also increases engagement as people will have a real impact on how your business operates.

[20:15] Specific standard considerations for communication – The focus of elements of your communication will be tied to the specific ISO Standard you’re implementing.

I.e. A Health & Safety management system will include communication of key risks and hazards, how to report safety issues and abiding by Health & Safety law

Environmental management systems may include awareness of the need to protect the world we live in, how each person can help lessen their impact on an individual scale ect.

[21:00] Other key roles and related communication – There are other key roles within the organisation which will have specific communication requirements.

These will be people like operational functional managers with key roles in processes they may be involved in, i.e. sales, design, purchasing, calibration ect.

If they’ve got specific functions in the organisation with respect to the management system, they need to understand them as much as top management needs to know theirs and the general workforce need to know theirs.

[21:50] Communicating key changes to the Management system – You need to continually communicate to the workforce when changes occur to the management system. That communication doesn’t stop as soon as you’re certified!

For first time implementation, you’ll want to communicate when you’ve achieved certification.

[22:30] The importance of communication within a Management System – If people are aware of their role and importance to a management system, they will be more engaged with its operation.

This can include reporting on objectives progress during team briefs, raising potential issues and non-conformities or opportunities for improvement, highlighting customer complaints, monitoring number of incidents at work ect

All of these contribute to the success of the business and need to be reported on continually.

These can turn into lessons learned, which could lead to major system changes where documentation or processes need to be updated and communicated.

[24:30] What’s the best way to communicate your ISO management system? – Not all organisations are the same, so there is no right or wrong way to do so. A few suggestions include:

SharePoint
Teams Channel
E-mail / internal newsletters
Bulletins
In-person training
Videos

For any of the above you may need to consider how to record who has completed set awareness training.

[25:30] A final thought – If an auditor stops and asks a worker about your quality policy, what will that person say to that auditor?

We understand that the quality policy must be communicated, but how does each person understand it?

Your awareness raising needs to capture methods of ensuring that that happens, which is a tricky task!

They do not need to know a Standard verbatim, but they should know the importance of complying with it, what a non-conformity within that system means, and what are the consequences are if they don’t follow the rules.

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A crucial part of Implementing any ISO Standard is addressing your risks and opportunities.

This is a key part of Clause 4 Context of the organisation, which expresses and explicit need to review and assess what internal and external factors could help and hinder in achieving your business goals.

While ISO Standards don’t define a definitive method of doing so, many have adopted the practice of carrying out a SWOT and PESTLE analysis.

Today Ian Battersby explains what a SWOT and PESTLE analysis is, the key questions you should be asking and the importance of continually reviewing and updating the results as your management system matures.

You’ll learn

What is a SWOT analysis?
What is a PESTLE analysis?
Examples of questions you should be asking during a SWOT and PESTLE
How often should a SWOT and PESTLE be conducted?
Examples of SWOT and PESTLE in practice

Resources

Isologyhub

In this episode, we talk about:

[00:30] Join the isologyhub – To get access to a suite of ISO related tools, training and templates. Simply head on over to isologyhub.com to either sign-up or book a demo.

[02:05] Episode summary: Ian Battersby will be explaining what a SWOT and PESTLE exercise is, it’s role in fufilling key requirements in Clause 4 of any ISO Standard, and the key questions you should be asking during the exercise.

[02:30] What is a SWOT and PESTLE analysis? – This is one is the tools you can use to look at various factors that affect your organisation.

SWOT standards for:

Strengths
Weaknesses
Opportunities
Threats

PESTLE standards for:

Political
Economical
Social
Technological
Legal
Environmental

And in recent years, people have added ethical into PESTLE too. Whether that’s on its own or integrated within the other elements is up to the organisation and how they want to run the exercise.

Both analysis are fundamental in helping organisations understand the benefits and pitfalls of a project, management system implementation included.

[05:05] Where in the Standard is there a need for a SWOT and PESTLE? – Clause 4 in all ISO Standards is known as ‘Context of the organisation’, which you need to establish early on in order to set the foundations for building your management system.

Context is the world in which an organisation works, it is the considerations of the internal and external factors that affect what you do.

SWOT and PESTLE, while not specifically referenced in the Standard, is a highly recommended tool as it directly assesses multiple internal and external factors and can fulfil the requirements of any ISO Standard.

[06:20] Addressing Context of the Organisation – Clause 4, Context of the organisation states:

“The organisation shall determine external and internal issues that are relevant to its purpose and its strategic direction, and that affects its ability to achieve the intended results of its management system.

The organisation shall monitor and review information about these external issues.”

There are also 3 additional notes:

#1: Issues can include positive and negative factors or conditions

#2: Understanding the external context can be facilitated by considering issues arriving from legal, technological, competitive, market, cultural, ect

3#: Understanding the internal context can be facilitated by considering Issues related to values, culture, knowledge and performance of the organisation.

So, there’s a lot to consider!

[08:10] How SWOT and PESTLE address Context of the Organisation – Taking a look at SWOT, strengths and weaknesses would refer to factors internal to your organisation, while the opportunities and threats would be external.

Depending on the focus of your management system, you may also want to complete this exercise through a certain lens. That could be information security, health & safety or environmental.

The Standard requires you to align your management system with the strategic direction of the organisation, so even if you are viewing this exercise through a certain lens, don’t do so in complete isolation.

[09:55] How to conduct a SWOT and PESTLE – The people involved in completing this exercise are important, not just the questions you ask.

Senior management should be included as they will have key insight to the strategic direction of the business.

You should also include operational managers or other functional managers as they will have more context for how things actually work in practice.

The point of a SWOT and PESTLE is to ascertain where you stand in terms of your risks and opportunities, and issues relating to resources, people, information, process, technology, equipment, laws, markets, environment, finance, economy ect from both an internal and external lens.

This will give you a solid foundation to build your management system on, which will ultimately help you achieve your intended outcomes and lead to a cycle of continual improvement.

[11:55] Considerations for Strengths – Strengths is an internal factor. Questions you could ask include:

What do we control through good processes?
What are we known for?
What does our marketplace and competitors say about us?
What are we good at?
What assets do we have?
What resources and knowledge do we have readily available?
What’s the strength in our products and in the processes for delivering those products and the people that run those processes and deliver those products, their skills, their knowledge, their strengths, their weaknesses and their expertise?
What areas in our organisation are already at a high standard and don’t necessarily need improvement?

Do we have objectives and targets that we measure against, i.e. KPIs, metrics, success factors and service level agreements, that demonstrate we’re good?

[13:10] Considerations for Weaknesses – Weakness is another internal factor, one that you have to be brutally honest conducting. Questions you could ask include:

What could you improve?
Where is money being spent poorly, or being lost?
What do your competitors do better than you?
What resources / knowledge / people / expertise do you lack?
What processes do you lack?
Where can your products or services be improved?
What are the constraints on your ability to meet changes in market need or demand?
What does your customer feedback look like?
Do your suppliers meet your requirements or the requirements of your clients?

[14:45] Considerations for Opportunities – Opportunities are considered an external factor. Questions you could ask include:

What new opportunities are available in your market?
What data do you have available on market trends, and how can you leverage that?
How changes in compliance requirements in your specific industry or your locality might provide you with opportunity to gain an edge?
What are past identified opportunities that we’ve not acted on?
What is the competition not taking advantage of that you could?
How can you increase customer satisfaction based on both positive and negative feedback received?

[16:00] Considerations for Threats – Threats are also considered an external factor, they are obstacles for you achieving your goals. Questions you could ask include:

What new environmental effects may affect you? Note: there is a new climate change amendment added to many commonly adopted ISO Standards, so this is something you will need to address.
What competitors are a threat to you?
Are other competitors taking advantage of markets that you have not accessed?
Why might competitors be getting ahead?
Are the habits of customers changing, and if so, how?
Are there other interested parties other than customers who present obstacles to you?
Are there any foreseeable resource issues? i.e. loss of experienced staff, lack of relevant talent in the pool of available people ect
Are you adapting to changes in the world?

[16:00] PESTLE: Addressing political factors – When you’re looking at political factors affecting your intended outcomes, consider the following:

What is happening politically in your environment? – That could be international or local on scale
What is the impact of policy or tax?
What is the impacts of employment trends / trade restrictions / tariffs?
What is the impact of unemployment rates on your organisation?
What is the impact of workforce shortages that may affect you?
Is there any form of Government intervention in your specific market?
Would this government intervention be considered an opportunity or threat? i.e. offering grants

[19:20] Join the isologyhub and get access to limitless ISO resources – From as little as £99 a month, you can have unlimited access to hundreds of online training courses and achieve certification for completion of courses along the way, which will take you from learner to practitioner to leader in no time. Simply head on over to the isologyhub to sign-up or book a demo.

[21:25] PESTLE: Addressing economic factors – When you’re looking at economic factors affecting your intended outcomes, consider the following:

What is the impact of interest rates / exchange rates / inflation?
What is economic policy doing to you and your industry and your clients?
What are the impacts on wage rates / minimum wage changes /affordable living cost of living?

[21:50] PESTLE: Addressing social factors – When you’re looking at social factors affecting your intended outcomes, consider the following:

What’s the impact of changes in the cultural landscape?
What’s the impact of the expectation of people?
What’s the impact on working people’s lives and what their expectations are for working life in general? i.e. working hours and career aspirations
What is the and the emphasis on ethics, safety, Environmental Protection and data privacy for your clients / workforce / suppliers?

[22:50] PESTLE: Addressing technology factors – When you’re looking at technological factors affecting your intended outcomes, consider the following:

What is happening technology wise which impacts on what you do?
How does this affect the equipment you use? i.e. automation, the age of your equipment ect
What’s the impact of emerging technology?
How you decide on the costs and benefits of investing in new technology?
How do you use your website / blogs / social media to interact with your marketplace?
Have you got intellectual property you need to protect? i.e copyright pins that need consideration.

[23:40] PESTLE: Addressing legal factors – When you’re looking at legal factors affecting your intended outcomes, consider the following:

How does the law affect how you do business? i.e company law, health & safety law, HR law, trade law?
What changes in legislation have occurred recently that you need to have considered?
How do you horizon scan for changes in legislation that affect you in your market?
What’s the impact on employment on imports, exports, labour departments?
Have you considered other compliance obligations, such as certification to certain standards?

[24:50] PESTLE: Addressing environmental factors – When you’re looking at environmental factors affecting your intended outcomes, consider the following:

How do environmental aspects impact you, and how does the way you operate affect the environment? This includes consideration for air, water, land, natural resources, flora, fauna.
How do changes in the energy and utilities markets affect you?
How does your organisation fit in with any carbon reduction targets that your Government may have in place?
Are you required to create a carbon reduction plan?
Do you need to comply with certain environmental reporting requirements? i.e. here in the UK we have schemes like ESOS and SECR

[24:50] PESTLE: Addressing ethical factors – This one is optional, but many are choosing to include it as part of their PESTLE now.When you’re looking at ethical factors affecting your intended outcomes, consider the following:

How do you stay on the right side of the law with respect to the use of money?
Have you considered human rights / labour / children in the workforce / slavery / health & safety and well-being of local populations?
What charitable contributions do you make as an organisation?

[27:15] Assigning significance – The next part of a SWOT and PESTLE requires you to assign significance to the various factors affecting your organisation.

So, make sure you document every factor and how those factors affect your ability to achieve what you intend. Ensure that this all remains in alignment with the strategic direction of the business, as ultimately, you want your Management System to help drive those goals forward.

[30:25] Frequency of a SWOT and PESTLE: This isn’t just a one-off exercise. You should be continually monitoring these internal and external factors, and only updating the exercise during a management review meeting will do you a disservice.

This is an ever-changing world, it’s the one in which you operate, and you need to ensure you’re keeping up with it.

You could look at various factors in monthly or even weekly meeting with the appropriate parties, and see if circumstances have changed.

[31:25] Examples of why you should continually update your SWOT and PESTLE: Ian recounts an experience he had with a client where they had failed to disclose where they had switched to a digital system for competence related documentation, but it had not met their needs and so they needed to return to manual documentation.

This switch made finding the required documentation for internal audits difficult. None of this was recorded in their SWOT and PESTLE.

If you’d like to book a demo for the isologyhub, simply contact us and we’d be happy to give you a tour.

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ISO Standards provide a framework to help businesses manage various aspects of their activities. Whether that’s quality, risk, environmental or Information Security management, they provide invaluable guidance to establish an effective Management System.

One element that is key, no matter the Standard or subject area, is Leadership. Without this driving force, your Management System will not get the momentum it needs to truly benefit your way of working.

Today Ian Battersby will explain the integral role of leadership within the Implementation and maintenance of an ISO Management System, and how their active participation benefits the whole business.

You’ll learn

What is Leadership?
Where is Leadership referenced in ISO Standards?
How do Leadership get involved with the Implementation and Management of ISO Standards?
How does Leadership participation benefit the business?

Resources

Isologyhub

In this episode, we talk about:

[00:30] Join the isologyhub – To get access to a suite of ISO related tools, training and templates. Simply head on over to isologyhub.com to either sign-up or book a demo.

[02:05] Episode summary: Ian will be discussing the role of Leadership within ISO Management Systems and how their active participation can benefit the business as a whole.

[02:30] What is Leadership? – Leadership is central to success in achieving any goal in business. It involves motivating a group of people toward a common pursuit, and it certainly isn’t straightforward without leadership believing in what it’s doing.

Without showing that belief, why would the workforce sit up and take note: ‘If it’s not important to you, why should it be to me?’

[03:30] Why should Leadership get involved? – The need for leadership has been recognised by Standards bodies, hence why it’s been made central to all Management System Standards.

For many years, Management Systems were separate from the day-to-day activities of running a business, often boiled down to just a person in a room with manuals, getting through certifications and earning a nice shiny badge.But this had little to no impact on the bottom line (be honest)!

But, a well-run Management System can have huge impacts and benefits on all types of organisation, and updated ISO standards aim to deliver that impact more readily, so leadership gets its own clause (Clause 5 – Leadership)

[05:25] Clause 5.1 Top management shall demonstrate leadership & commitment – This boils down to taking accountability for effectiveness of the system, but how do you do this?

Firstly, the system can only be effective if it is designed correctly, so leadership must ensure it fits with its context of the organisation, which is required in Clause 4.

There are ways of doing this, but we favour a SWOT and PESTLE. This is simply to ensure that those establishing context don’t do it in a vacuum, opening up the floor to get input from everyone effected by the Management System.

This is key because Senior Managers need active involvement to understand how the system works, its resource needs and its performance.

[07:25] Ensuring quality policy and objectives are established and compatible with context and strategic direction – The quality objectives must contribute to the business, so there’s a role for senior managers to ensure that they are aligned and have a measurable contribution to the business.

What measures are included in your objectives which can demonstrably show that they affect the business in some way in a good way?

That’s what senior management have to do to link quality objectives with strategic organisational business objectives.

[08:20] Ensuring integration into the organisation’s business processes – The quality objectives must contribute to the business, so there’s a role for senior managers to ensure that they are aligned and have a measurable contribution to the business.

They must ensure integration into the organisations’ business processes, which in turn must be aligned with the context. They must also be relevant to the way the organisation runs and senior management needs to oversee a system which allows processes to do that.

[05:20] Promoting use of the process approach and risk-based thinking – This requires senior management to actually do some promotion – which is stipulated as ‘Shall Promote’. For those that don’t know, whenever the word ‘Shall’ is used in an ISO Standard, that essentially means you MUST do it.

In this instance, that means actually contributing the communications and raising of Management System Awareness.

Senior Management have to be involved in the process of describing to people what’s important, why the standards are important and that risk and process are central to the organisations operations.

[09:35] Providing resources for the system – There’s a number of resources that Senior Management need to consider, including:

People – Need to be enlisted to run a system and to operate the system throughout the organisation.
Competence – You may need to invest in training if required.
Expertise in the standard – Do you have expertise in-house on the Standard you’re certifying to? If not, you will have to invest in training or additional help from a third-party.
Systems / Access and Documented Information – Do you have a place for hosting of documentation, workflows, forms? Further considerations are needed for required authorization and controlled access.
Time – Implementing and maintaining a Management System is a big task, whether done by an individual or a team, they will need time to complete necessary Management System activities.

[10:30] Communicating the importance of an effective system and conforming to its requirements – Everyone looks up to Senior Management in regard to what their priorities are. It’s up to them to effectively communicate the importance of the Management System, it’s processes, their role in relation to the Management System and how to confirm with it’s requirements.

Key points to get across:

How this system makes your workplace a better place.
How it contributes to success of the organisation – I.e. happier customers, safer working conditions, ect
How it can make their daily routine more fulfilling – i.e. having a complete picture of their place in the business, how they contribute to its success.
What could nonconformity bring if people choose to step outside a management system? – I.e. With ISO 45001, nonconformance could risk someone getting injured.

[13:50] Engaging/directing/supporting persons to contribute to effectiveness of the system – Team managers should be harnessing the people at all levels to be able to fulfil the requirements of the Management System.

They should do that by providing clear expectations, which can be done via so communications and objective setting.

[14:30] Promoting improvement – Continual Improvement is absolutely key to every management system.

When something does go wrong, senior management must provide the resources for actively asking why things may have underperformed, so you can get to the cause of why it’s underperforming and put it right.

It’s also an opportunity to highlight when things have improved and celebrate those that contributed to that success.

[15:30] Join the isologyhub and get access to limitless ISO resources – From as little as £99 a month, you can have unlimited access to hundreds of online training courses and achieve certification for completion of courses along the way, which will take you from learner to practitioner to leader in no time. Simply head on over to the isologyhub to sign-up or book a demo.

[17:40] Supporting other management to demonstrate leadership in their areas – Leadership drives top to bottom. Everybody can have a role in leadership.

Roles and responsibilities are assigned by senior management, and this offers the opportunity for individuals to provide their own leadership in their specific areas.

[18:15] 5.2 Policy – The definition of Policy in ISO Standards is:

The overall intentions and direction of the organisation, expressed by senior management. A policy exists to govern the behaviour of an organisation and its employees in order to provide the best outcomes. It also provides the basis for the establishment of objectives. It does not explain how the policy is to be delivered through individual tasks. This may not be a detail for top management.

What’s the requirement?:

Top management must ensure its appropriate to the purpose and context of the organization and supports its strategic direction

It’s not simply just a piece of paper to sign once a year.

[19:25] 5.3 Organizational roles, responsibilities and authorities – What does the Standard say:

‘Top management shall ensure that responsibilities and authorities for relevant roles are assigned, communicated and understood within the organization’

What does this actually mean?:

Ensuring the Management system conforms to your ISO Standard(s)
Ensuring processes deliver desired results
Performance reporting including opportunities for improvement
Promotion of customer focus
Ensuring integrity of the management system through change and continual improvement

[21:30] Leadership in practice – Ian recounts an experience where senior management did regular safety checks in an organisation he worked with previously.

Senior Management took an hour out each month to do a floor walk and actually talk to those on the ground floor to ask them about risk, equipment and just generally get a feel for how everything really worked.

In turn, they were challenged by their staff on safe working systems and this proper conversation led to better understanding on both parts. The staff got to see their Senior Management genuinely care about their work and well-being, and Senior Management got much needed insight into the actual day-to-day activities and see first hand where improvements could be made.

Those familiar with ISO 45001 will know that worker participation is a requirement of the Standard, but there’s no reason why you can’t apply this to other Standards.

If you’d like to book a demo for the isologyhub, simply contact us and we’d be happy to give you a tour.

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However, for those who are new to ISO Standards, the Standards themselves can seem rather intimidating to interpret.

Back in 2015, the Annex SL format was introduced to provide a common high-level structure for Management Systems. With 10 clauses now common in most widely adopted ISO Standards, it can still be a bit difficult to understand exactly how these all work together.

Today Ian Battersby will explain how ISO Standard clauses interconnect to create a cohesive cycle, from context of the organisation through to Improvement.

You’ll learn

What is the high-level structure?
What are ISO Standards structured this way?
How do ISO Standard clauses interconnect?
How does this apply to Quality Management?

Resources

Isologyhub

In this episode, we talk about:

[00:30] Join the isologyhub – To get access to a suite of ISO related tools, training and templates. Simply head on over to isologyhub.com to either sign-up or book a demo.

[02:05] Episode summary: Ian will be discussing the interconnectedness of clauses, which basically just means explaining the key links between the clauses and how that applies to your management system.

[02:40] High level structure – 10 years ago, Annex SL was introduced to create a common framework for ISO Standards. Today, Ian will focus on ISO 9001 as that really is the grandfather of all Management System Standards. ISO 9001 includes elements which are applied to most commonly adopted ISO Standards, and sets the scene in terms of how the clauses link together.

[03:20] Why are ISO Standards structured this way? – On their surface, ISO Standards can seem very repetitive in the way that they’re written, but there is a good reason for that.

There are all based around the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle.

[04:10] What is the Plan Do Check Act cycle? – This is a simple process that all Management System Standards adhere to.

So you start with a ‘Plan’ to establish objectives, the resources which you need to deliver results, you identify risks and opportunities. From that point you fulfil the ‘Do’ part through Implementation and using the Management System.

From there you ‘Check’ so you monitor against the policies, objectives and any other requirements. Basically monitor against what you said you’d do and then you ‘Act’ if you find anything that needs to change, you make that change and you improve as an organisation and you improve that management system.

[05:00] A logical path – Management System Standards are designed in such a way that they flow from one clause to the other. One cannot exist without the other.

[05:20] How does Clause 4 Context of the Organisation link with Clause 6 Planning? – As clause 4 Context of the Organisation states:

‘external and internal issues relevant to your purpose and strategic direction…

…and that affect your ability to achieve intended results’

The scope of your management system depends entirely on this.

The world in which you operate – what you buy, the people you employ, what you make, who you sell to, the laws you follow…

Clause 4 also requires us to identify all interested parties (which we’ll address later!).

With careful planning, you can align documentation you develop for one clause with other clauses.

Clause 4 doesn’t tell us how we should work out our context, but it provides some very good clues

NOTE 1 Issues can include positive and negative factors
NOTE 2 Understand the external context by considering issues arising from legal, technological, competitive, market, cultural, social and economic environments

So they’re not saying how to do it, but they’ve said what you can consider

This sounds a lot like a traditional SWOT/PESTLE analysis…

If we skip to Clause 6, Planning, the first thing we must do when we plan is to identify actions to address risks and opps

A SWOT will mean you’ve covered these elements, consider the following =

Weakness = Risk
Threat = Risk
Opportunity = Opportunity

We can similarly view the PESTLE in the same light.

So you can see that with careful planning, as mentioned you can align documentation for one clause with other clauses.

[10:00] How does Clause 6 link with Clauses 7 & 8? – Skipping from Clause 6.1

If you’ve identified what might go wrong (aka – risk), you need to plan to ensure it doesn’t happen again. That may involve a single improvement action, which is linked to clause 10 (funnily enough, Improvement)

It may be that you need something bigger, involving many steps, over a period of time, say an objective (clause 6.2)?

So, the planning of objectives links directly to the context of the organisation, the world in which you operate. It may be that you need an operational control to mitigate risk, a process or procedure that helps to manage the situation as a business as usual situation (clause 7 documented info and clause 8, operation)

So the planning of processes and procedures links directly to the context of the organisation, the world in which you operate. In all these circumstances, it’s the same for opportunities, except you’re putting in place measures to take advantage of the opportunities.

[13:05] Join the isologyhub and get access to limitless ISO resources – From as little as £99 a month, you can have unlimited access to hundreds of online training courses and achieve certification for completion of courses along the way, which will take you from learner to practitioner to leader in no time. Simply head on over to the isologyhub to sign-up or book a demo.

[15:10] Clause 7 Support and related links – Moving through the standard, clause 7.4 relates to Communications.

You need to determine internal and external communications relevant to the QMS (for 9001). In clause 4, you would have looked at interested parties (i.e. stakeholders). You need to determine who affects the way in which you operate and what they need/expect from you. Parties to consider include:

Customers
Employees
Shareholders
Suppliers
Regulators
Neighbours
Media

So, by Clause 7 you will have already identified who’s interested and what interests them, so it’s only a small step to add to this the communications plan. ISO 9001 doesn’t ask for one specifically, but it’s a good way to fulfil the requirements of clause 7.3.

Clause 7 also mentions Monitoring and measuring resources (7.1.5). This is a very brief clause, but central to establishing the means for demonstrating performance.

We need reliable results when monitoring or measuring is used to verify the conformity of products and services to requirements, i.e. do we do what we say we do?

Clause 7.5 requires us to document how we do things. Again it’s very brief in its requirements (leaves it up to you to decide), but clause 8 is all about operation – which is the way you do things.

It’s much more specific about understanding what the customer wants, designing it correctly, controlling changes, making it, delivery and addressing issues.

This is what you measure: 7.1.5 requires you to ensure you can measure, 7.5 requires you to document how you do things, 8 requires you to do things according to the way you’ve said you will.

[20:10] Clause 9 Performance Evaluation and related links – Moving onto Clause 9, Performance Evaluation, again risk appears. We’ve already assessed risk right at the start, now we evaluate whether we’ve successfully controlled risk.

We decide what to audit based on the level of risk attached to certain controls (policies, procedures, processes…). We’ve set objectives based on risks and opportunities and now we must measure performance.

We’ve put in place operational controls to mitigate risk (clause 8) and now we measure whether those controls work.

[21:30] Clause 10 Improvement and related links – This one is fairly self-evident. If something goes wrong, find out why and put it right and make sure it doesn’t happen again. Look at your system and continually improve based on your evaluations in Clause 9.

If you’d like to book a demo for the isologyhub, simply contact us and we’d be happy to give you a tour.

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Quality and environmental management are top priorities for many organisations, backed up by the increasing number of ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certificates being issued every year.

Aside from being a popular requirement on tenders, ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 provide a robust framework for businesses to ensure they follow Best Practice, enhance their businesses performance and put measures in place to reduce their environmental impact. We often see these two Standards being implemented in tandem, as is the case with todays’ guest, Asynt.

Asynt is a global provider of world leading technologies and services for scientific research, developed by chemists for chemists, their laboratory equipment responds to the real demands of industry and academia across the globe.

Today we welcome Siobhan Ellwood, Sales Support at Asynt, as she explains their journey towards ISO 9001 Implementation, and how they embedded ISO 14001 along the way using our online learning platform – the isologyhub.

You’ll learn

Who are Asynt?
How did Siobhan get involved with ISO Standards?
What was Asynt’s main driver for obtaining ISO 9001 and ISO 14001?
What did Asynt learn while implementing ISO 9001 and ISO 14001?
Siobhan’s experience using the isologyhub to implement ISO 14001

Resources

In this episode, we talk about:

[00:55] An Introduction to Asynt – A global provider of world leading technologies and services for scientific research. Based just outside of Ely in Cambridgeshire, they just celebrated 20 years in business!

[02:10] Siobhan’s role and how she got involved with ISO Standards: Siobhan is the Sales Support Manager for Asynt, she assist with raising quotations, managing sales orders and providing support for the warehouse.

In January 2023, 3 members of the Asynt Team were tasked with researching and obtaining ISO 9001, with a view to adopt ISO 14001 later on. Siobhan had experience working with Quality Standards thanks to her previous work in aviation and automotive companies, and had even previously implemented the Standard. Naturally, she was a perfect fit to head the ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 project at Asynt.

[05:40] What did Siobhan enjoy most about Implementing ISO Standards? Initially, realising that she had a lot more knowledge about ISO than she gave herself credit for. Also, making use of the 5 Why’s to identify where something has gone wrong, implement a solution and preventing it from recurring.

[06:40] What were the main drivers behind Implementing ISO 9001 and ISO 14001?: For ISO 9001 – Top Management saw the need to have proper procedures in place, to ensure that everything was written down and could be communicated and conducted by other staff if needed. Ultimately, they wanted a cohesive system where everything, included roles and responsibilities, were documented and managed.

For ISO 14001 – Customers often ask for ISO 9001, but ISO 14001 was also starting to pop up in conversation more. Top Management at Asynt wanted to get ahead of the curve and make the move towards becoming more environmentally friendly. It was also seen as a stepping stone towards being in a position to calculate their Carbon Footprint and make further improvements.

[09:50] The ISO 14001 Coaching Programme – Asynt were one of the first companies to go through our ISO Coaching Programme, hosted via the isologyhub. This programme combined the DIY digital platform with group coaching sessions, allowing all participants to work collaboratively towards creating their own Environmental Management System.

[10:20] Siobhan’s experience with the ISO 14001 Coaching Programme: Overall Siobhan had a very positive experience in the coaching programme, a few highlights include:

Sharing ideas: Other participants come from a wide range of industries, and each brought their own unique ideas to the table, encouraging others to look at things from many different points of view.

Support: If another participant is struggling with something, there is a group of people to support and provide possible solutions. Siobhan gave an example of where she provided an Excel guide to another member who was looking for a solution.

Resources: Siobhan had previous experience with implementing ISO Standards, so she was aware of what type of documentation was required. She found the resources on the hub useful to refer to outside of coaching sessions, to enhance Asynt’s own ISO Standard Implementation.

[12:20] What was the biggest Gap identified during Asynt’s Gap Analysis? Mostly it was the lack of documentation, which required a lot of work to get everything written down in cohesive processes and procedures.

For ISO 14001, Asynt are fortunate enough to own the buildings that they operate in. So, gathering the initial information required where potential energy and environmental improvements could be made was fairly easy.

[15:00] What differences did Asynt see after addressing the identified gaps? For ISO 14001 – Some elements were already in place (recycling waste ect), but weren’t being monitored in any meaningful way. Now Siobhan has got processes in place to ensure the recycling is being separated correctly and weighed so they can properly gauge their impact.

For ISO 9001 – It was the introduction of the 5 Why’s, which Asynt have used to great effect to identify problems and implement solutions. An example of this can be found in their warehouse, lanes and shelves weren’t labelled, causing confusion. It was a quick fix that could have been implemented years ago, but the 5 Why’s forced a much needed change.

[18:00] What did Siobhan learn from the experience of Implementing ISO 9001 and ISO 14001? Integrating a Management System can save on a lot of paperwork! Initially the plan was to have just an ISO 9001 System, with ISO 14001 implemented at a later date. Going through the process of Implementing them as the same time highlighted how much easier it would be to combine them, thanks in part to how many elements overlap between the two.

It also makes the system a lot easier to interact with, having everything in one place rather than spread between two separate systems means staff don’t have to waste time digging for policies and Procedures.

[20:00] Certification plans: Asynt are well on their way towards ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 certification with their Stage 1 in October and Stage 2 in November 2023. With just under 2 months before the Stage 1, Siobhan plans to continue working through some opportunities for Improvement, raised by Blackmores in some recent Internal Audits.

[21:41] Siobhan’s top tip: Trust in the process and make sure that you have the right person in your business to lead the ISO project.

Also being open to change, being honest with yourself about where the gaps are and trying to get those closed but also manage expectations within the business.

[23:50] Siobhan’s book recommendation: Salt path by Raynor Winn.

[26:05] Siobhan’s favorite quote: “Personal growth is not a matter of learning new information, but unlearning old limits” – Alan Cohen

If you’d like to learn more about Asynt check out their website!

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There are a lot of tedious tasks that we put off or would rather just not do! Often, these types of tasks don’t take too long, but can cause delays if not completed. If you find yourself battling with this, it may be time to ask:

Where could you save 10 minutes a day?

That’s the exact question Lorna Leonard, Managing Director of Leonard Business Services, asked her team at the start of 2023. Focusing on tasks that were being put off for various reasons, Lorna found a potential time saving of 54 hours a month!

Today Lorna joins us to share her story of how saving just 10 minutes a day can potentially lead to 8 days’ worth of time saved, in addition to the pitfalls and solutions she found along the way.

You’ll learn

Who are Leonard Business Services
Why did the 10 minute initiative start?
The power of saving 10 minutes a day
What challenges did they face?

Resources

In this episode, we talk about:

[01:25] An Introduction to Lorna Leonard and Leonard Business Services – a virtual finance department who are certified to ISO 9001. Lorna also joined us on a previous episode, Chaos to Calm, to talk about their experience working during the COVID pandemic.

[03:25] The challenge: Lorna started off with only 1 other member of staff, over the years they’ve grown to 7, with an increasing number of associates. With the organisation growing, Lorna was unable to be as hands on as she was before, so some things started to slip through the cracks. She wanted to ensure that was nipped in the bud early on.

The nature of her business needs very specific qualities in individuals, ones that are hard to come by. So, she was seeking to save as much wasted time with her current team as possible.

[04:50] Nothing is ever down to human error, it always comes down to a process – Some words of wisdom from Rachel Churchman, a Blackmores Managing Consultant who works with Lorna with on-going support. Processes change, they need regular review and updates to ensure they work well for you. Lorna found that a number of their processes created bubbles of inefficiency, which resulted in various 10-15 minute tasks that others found frustrating to complete.

[05:50] Saving 10 minutes a day: As a result of the process review, Lorna decided to focus on just saving 10 minutes a day – taking baby steps to tackle a bigger problem. She asked all of her staff to think of any tasks they found frustrating, and added them to a log. She kept that log going until May, to capture a snapshot of the issues before tackling them. This is just so she could measure the results more accurately later on.

[08:15] What tasks did Lorna’s staff highlight as frustrating?: A lot of problems were a result of software systems not talking to each other, meaning a lot of basic merging / collating of data had to be done manually between 2 systems.

[09:25] How they calculated the potential time-savings: Using the log, they estimated the time taken for each task, including consideration for which other members of staff may be affected by the same issues. At the end of the May, they found that there was a potential time-saving of 54 hours, which amounts to a full 8 days of work!

[11:25] Taking principles of ISO 9001 to heart: Lorna has truly embraced one of the key elements of ISO 9001 – addressing non-conformities through looking at your risks and weaknesses. By taking a step back and shining a spotlight on the negative, you can work towards making a positive change, and continually improving your way of working.

[13:30] How did Lorna’s team feel about the iniative: At the start, it was like pulling teeth. Many felt as if the wasted time was a reflection on their performance rather than a failure of processes and systems which weren’t working as efficiently as they could. Once improvements were starting to be implemented, the team could see just how valuable this exercise was. Lorna even received kudos (through an internal perk system) from the Team!

[16:45] A part of the exercise involved accepting some things that you can’t change.

[17:00] The tip of the iceberg: One issue can lead down a deeper path. For example, Lorna found that their expenses app wasn’t integrating with their accounting app – resulting in a manual exchange of data. By talking to app support, they were able to find a solution. 2 weeks later Lorna found that, that solution resulted in fixing a problem elsewhere that she wasn’t even aware of!

[18:30] For the things that can’t be changed, there is always a possibility to look at more long-term solutions that may require a roadmap to get to. The key takeaway is that you’re making worthwhile improvements, no matter how quickly or long they may take to achieve.

[19:30] Other types of solutions found: Most of the solutions came down to outsourcing. For example, Lorna is not a software expert, so resolving the software system issues would have taken a long time. Luckily, she found an associate in Michigan who specialised in API development, who could create ways to make the systems talk to each other using Zapier. It wasn’t always possible as some apps don’t allow for custom triggers, but there was a lot of issues he could help resolve. Lorna now thinks of him as an extension of the team.

[22:00] Another example of time-saving: Lorna’s team often have to fill out P11D’s and submit them to HMRC on behalf of clients. The format that is provided made it difficult for staff to fill out, meaning it caused a lot of headache and wasted a lot of time just trying to reformat them in an easily editable way. They managed to source a system that does this for them, at a small cost per year. It was definitely worth it – saving the whole team 3 days’ worth of time a year!

[26:00] Leonard Business Services is a perfect example of how taking a proactive approach can lead to great success. They have won a number of awards over the years, and will no doubt win many more in the future.

If you’d like to learn more about Leonard Business Services, check out their website! Also take a look at Lorna’s LinkedIn, where she shares a lot of insightful business tips.

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With a growing number of threats and risks facing businesses every day, it’s never been more crucial to have a proper system in place to mitigate and manage issues when they crop up.

A variety of ISO Standards can help businesses to do just that! And we’re seeing an ever-increasing trend of requests for Integrated Management Systems, which combine multiple ISO certifications to cover every aspect of their business. Such is the case with today’s guest, Todd Research.

Todd Research have been in the business of designing, manufacturing and supplying X-ray scanners for 70 years. They have since expanded their product range to include other solutions, all designed to detect suspect devices.

We’re joined by Caroline Banks, Support Manager at Todd Research, to learn about why they decided to implement ISO 9001 (Quality Management) and ISO 27001 (Information Security), including an insight into their experience with our ISO 14001 coaching programme, hosted on the isologyhub.

You’ll learn

Who are Todd Research?
Why did they choose to Implement ISO 9001 and ISO 27001?
What challenges did they face?
The benefits of ISO 9001 and ISO 27001
Their experience with our ISO 14001 coaching Programme

Resources

In this episode, we talk about:

[00:37] An introduction to Todd Research and Caroline Banks’ role as Support Manager there.

[01:20] What is something not many people know about Caroline? She’s taken up running and started with the couch to 5K. She later completed a half-marathon in the same year, and has since gone on to finish 21 more half-marathons and 2 full ones!

[02:27] Who are Todd Research? They were founded in 1950, designing, manufacturing and supplying X-ray scanning equipment. They also provide service and maintenance for their devices worldwide.

[03:11] What Standards are they certified to? ISO 9001 (Quality Management, inherited from a previous company) and ISO 27001 (Information Security Management)

[03:48] What was the main driver for achieving ISO 9001 and ISO 27001? – For ISO 9001 – As a manufacturing company, they want to ensure that they can provide the best quality in terms of product and service. For ISO 27001 – This was more sales driven and was being requested in a lot of tenders, particularly Government tenders.

[04:35] How did Caroline manage an inherited Quality Management System? – Caroline completely revamped the inherited Management System, making it their own and adapting it to suit how they currently run their business. It involved a lot of review and removal of unnecessary documentation, with the end result of streamlining the whole system. They also appreciated a 3^rd party coming into review and assist with the process. After moving to a new premises, they are still continually Improving system year on year.

[06:25] How long did it take to achieve certification to ISO 27001? – They started in April 2021 with a Gap Analysis and gained certification in September 2021 (6 months in total). As they already held ISO 9001, they made the decision early on to integrate the two Standards into a Business Management System.

[07:50] What was the biggest gap found after the initial ISO 27001 Gap Analysis? – The biggest challenge for Todd Research was carrying out the Risks Assessments. Getting Directors involved in the review of Standards and agreeing what risks applied to them took the most time in the early stages.

[09:00] Caroline’s experience with ISO 27001 – While she had experience with ISO 9001, ISO 27001 was a whole new ball game. There are a lot of risks associated with Information Security including, phishing, malware, risks to hardware ect. This was all new territory for Caroline, but she adapted and learned a lot along the way.

[09:50] What difference has the Management System made to the business? – It’s unique to them and their way of working, especially as a result of integrating the two Standards into a single Management System. The whole process gave them a chance to look at the business with a new perspective, which in turn helped them to streamline a lot of processes.

[10:20] What lessons have they learned from Implementing ISO 9001 and ISO 27001? – Caroline now has a better understanding of how the business works from all angles, from manufacturing to finance. Her experience with having Blackmore assist with Internal Audits highlighted the need and importance of impartiality.

[11:20] What are the main benefits? – For them, it’s having an Integrated Management System, as a lot of aspects of various ISO Standards share similarities, and it just makes sense to combine them to save on doubling up on documented information. Caroline also highlights the Corrective Actions Log as her key tool for managing actions following on from Internal Audits, allowing for a proactive approach for business improvement on a weekly basis.

[12:50] What is the ENE / ISO 14001 Coaching programme? – Blackmores secured some European funding to support 7 businesses in the East of England to raise awareness of environmental issues and implement some practical tools for Environmental Management. We opted for an ISO 14001 focus and utilized our online membership portal, the isologyhub, as the host with additional coaching from one of our experienced consultants.

[13:25] What was Caroline’s experience with the isologyhub and the ISO 14001 coaching programme – Todd Research made the decision early on not to go for ISO 14001 certification. The experience gave Caroline a good insight into what the requirements are for the Environmental Management Standard in preparation for potentially certifying in future.

Caroline highlights the wealth of information available in the hub, including documentation which supplemented the coaching sessions. Her 1-2-1 coaching sessions resulted in deeper analysis of what their business can act on to improve their impact, for example putting in place a scrap metal policy for X-ray scanners and equipment that needs to be disposed of. They have also streamlined their Engineer’s service visits, by making the most of them while in any given area to reduce the carbon impact of travel.

[17:00] What was the most useful resource in the isologyhub? – The training provided for carrying out Risk Assessments, with a focus on their environmental risks.

[18:05] What was the main benefit of achieving certification to ISO 9001 and ISO 27001? – Having both standards sets them aside from their competitors, as many have ISO 9001 but not many have ISO 27001. It also brings a sense of continuity to the business.

[18:55] Caroline’s top tips – Use an independent company (such as Blackmores) to assist with Implementation. Having a helping experienced hand will make the journey run a lot more smoothly and will give you piece of mind, especially as you have your own day job to worry about!

[19:30] A reminder that the ISO 27001 Transition Gameplan is available on the isologyhub – ISO 27001 recently updated, and those certified with need to update to the latest 2022 version of the Standard. Our Transition Gameplan will guide you through the changes and what needs to be done to update your Management System.

[21:17] Caroline’s book recommendation – ‘Menopausing’ by Davina McCall

[22:17] Caroline’s favorite quote – ‘It’s not so much that I began to run, it’s that I continued’

You can find out more about Todd Research via their website!

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Currently, there are around 1,077,884 valid ISO 9001 certificates globally – which beats the second runner, ISO 14001, by over 600,000!

There is no doubt that the Quality Management Standard, ISO 9001, is still the most widely adopted ISO Standard – and for good reason!

ISO 9001 is basically a model for running a successful and profitable business. It provides a common framework for things that all businesses should have in place, including defining your companies unique ‘way of working’.

In addition to being a blueprint for a business’s operation, there are many other benefits to be gained from implementing ISO 9001. Today, Mel explains a few of these benefits in greater detail.

You’ll learn

What is ISO 9001?
Why Implement ISO 9001?
The benefits of ISO 9001

Resources

In this episode, we talk about:

[00:30] Why talk about ISO 9001 benefits? Often times, Mel gets asked for benefits of ISO 9001 so a business case can be put forward.

[01:00] What is ISO 9001? For a detailed break down of the Standard, go back and watch ‘Episode 36 – What is ISO 9001?’

[01:45] For those that have Implemented ISO 9001, what are the benefits? We’d love to hear from you! If you have some stories to share – feel free to leave a comment on which ever media player you’re listening on – or email us. We’d love to share some of your experiences in a future episode.

[02:09] Benefit #1: Win new business – From a sales and marketing perspective, ISO 9001 is essentially a passport to trade. It demonstrates credibility to Stakeholders as it’s a mark of quality.

[02:55] Benefit #2: A framework that can fit any business – This can be for any industry sector and business size. It helps businesses figure out what is working well and what’s not working so well.

[03:10] Benefit #3: Identify opportunities for Improvement – It helps businesses figure out what is working well and what’s not working so well. It can help identify issues such as: Bottlenecks in processes, resourcing and external factors.

[04:05] ISO 9001 helps you to look at your business – warts and all. It does no one any good to bury their head in the sand and ignore issues, especially as Stakeholders and clients will see through this.

[04:40] Benefit #4: Put quality controls in place to mitigate risk and raise your standards – If you have complaints or need to do a product recall – you need processes in place to handle this. ISO 9001 gives you the tools to do so, creating an effective framework everyone can follow.

[05:40] Benefit #5: Improve efficiency – ISO 9001 helps you identify the best way of working and pushes you to optimise that. That could include eliminating aspects of you business that waste time, or create burdens.

[06:05] Benefit #6: Creating a unique Blueprint – ISO 9001 isn’t an out of the box solution – it can be tailored to your way of working. It helps to establish relevant Policies and Procedures that improve your business operations.

[06:24] Benefit #7: Enhancing customer satisfaction and employee retention – Good quality business practices will inevitably help you to keep ahold of good clients – and good employees too! This can be achieved by having clear roles and responsibilities in addition to vision and goals for the business.

[07:20] Benefit #8: Increase profitability – Businesses often look at the cost of poor quality – where is your business leaking money? Addressing those issues is a direct cost saving.

[08:21] Businesses who have grown through acquisition often find ISO 9001 a great tool to help standardise their way of working, so they can easily integrate other businesses and services.

We’d love to hear your views and comments about the ISO Show, here’s how:

Share the ISO Show on Twitter or Linkedin
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The world is facing a crisis: poverty, hunger, inequality and climate change are just some of the issues we need to address.

In 2015, world leaders came together to create 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) which aim to tackle these issues, to build a better world by 2030.

What you may not be aware of is the fact that ISO Standards play a big part in the journey towards a better future. Many commonly used ISO Standards already meet certain goals, with more in development.

Today, Mel explains what the SDG’s are, and how businesses can align themselves with the SDG’s with related ISO standards.

You’ll learn

The 17 sustainable development goals set by the UN.
How to align your business with the SDG’s.
How the SDG’s affect our day-to-day lives.
The ISO standards that can help you meet the SDG’s.
Details of the first 9 SDG’s and the ISO standards that relate to them.
Where the term ISO came from.

Resources

United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
What is ISO 20400 – Sustainable Procurement
How to avoid anti-bribery fines – ISO 37001
Need support with revamping your Management System? check out our ISO Support Plan
Need guidance and support with ISO Standards? Isologyhub

In this episode, we talk about:

[01:48] What the sustainable development goals are.

[02:29] When the SDG was established and what it’s agenda is.

[03:17] An overview of the 17 SDG’s.

[04:48] Where the term ISO came from.

[09:05] How ISO 20400 and ISO 37001 relate to the goal of ‘No Poverty’.

[11:25] The ISO standards related to the goal of ‘Zero Hunger’ including ISO 22000, ISO 26000 and ISO 20400.

[13:05] How ISO 13845 can relate to the goal of ‘Good health and well-being’.

[13:53] The first-ever management standard on education ISO 21001.

[15:23] How ISO 26000 can help improve gender equality.

[17:40] The ISO standards for water management that relate to the UN’s goal of ‘Clean water and sanitation’ including ISO 24518, ISO 14001 and ISO 24521.

[19:48] The increase in development of ISO standards in the area of Affordable and clean energy’ including ISO 50001 and the ISO 52000 series of Standards.

[21:37] How international standards promote the goal of ‘Decent work and economic growth’ including ISO 45001, ISO 37001, ISO 9001 and ISO 44001.

[27:48] How international standards promote the goal of ‘Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure’ including ISO 56002 and ISO 56003

Just a reminder, we’re offering 6 months free access to the isologyhub for anyone who signs up to an ISO Support Plan!

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Share the ISO Show on Twitter or Linkedin
Leave an honest review on iTunes or Soundcloud. Your ratings and reviews really help and we read each one.

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This episode is the final part of our 3-part series on Management Review, and this time Mel is joined by Rachel Churchman to explain how to best conduct Management Reviews and what’s best to include in them.

Rachel Churchman is a Managing Consultant at Blackmores where she assists clients to implement, maintain and continually improve their UKAS certified ISO Management Systems.

Mel and Rachel discuss the different ways to conduct a Management Review, how to improve the Management Review process, and who should be involved in your Management Review.

You’ll learn

The purpose of a Management Review.
Different ways to approach your Management Review.
The importance of using data.
Who you should involve in your Management Review.
How to deal with non-conformities and corrective opportunities.

Resources

In this episode, we talk about:

[07:30] The purpose of a Management Review.

[11:15] The Management Review carried out at Blackmores and the issues we came across.

[13:06] The ways Covid has shifted from being viewed as a risk to an opportunity.

[14:14] The importance of reviewing your company’s subscriptions in your Management Review.

[15:30] The benefits of involving more people in your Management Review.

[17:52] Why data analysis is so essential in a Management Review.

[22:35] The importance of considering your outputs as well as your inputs in your Management Review.

[24:47] Areas you should monitor and measure in your Management Review.

[30:53] The most beneficial ways to review your objectives.

[34:43] How to deal with non-conformities and corrective opportunities at Management Review.

[37:20] Types of resources you should review in your Management Review.

[41:50] Our top tips for Management Review.

[47:24] The three different ways to conduct a Management Review and the benefits of each one.

For members of the isologyhub, we have a few Management Review templates available for download

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Richard Matheron is the Quality and Continuous Improvement Manager at BP Chargemaster. He’s had a long career as a quality professional and hands-on Manager, with his background mostly being in engineering and manufacturing management.

Currently, Richard is working for BP Chargemaster helping them transform themselves from an SME to an international world-class business. BP Chargemaster is the UK’s biggest name in electric vehicle charging. They design, build, sell and maintain the most popular charging units in the country, and have begun to expand their business worldwide.

Today, Richard is here to discuss his experience with implementing ISO 9001 (Quality Management) and ISO 14001 (Environmental Management). These have been a fundamental component in his management of transitioning the company from an SME to an international organisation.

Richard explains why these ISO’s are so necessary, and why it’s so important that a company has someone who can focus on continuous improvement within their business. He reiterates the importance of people to not be afraid of change and discusses some of the most effective ways to carry out positive improvements within your organisation.

He explains the ways having a priority board and suggestion box can help to drive continuous improvement, and how often the best solution for an issue isn’t a complicated one but is one of the simplest…

Website: www.bpchargemaster.com

Mobile phone: 07813098736

Email: Richard.matheron@bp.com

You’ll learn

How the demand for electric charge vehicles is changing.
The types of tax incentives and grants that are available for businesses who use electric cars.
Why digital security is more important now than ever before.
How to grow your business from an SME to an international organization.
The most effective ways to drive continuous improvement.
The best ways to track the effectiveness of new improvement measures.
How ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 have helped Richard.

Resources

In this episode, we talk about:

[00:30] Who Richard is, what he does for a living, and what he’ll be sharing with us today.

[01:50] The types of dance that Richard teaches in his free time.

[03:44] BP Chargemasters position in the electric vehicle charging market.

[04:55] How demand for electric cars has changed over the last year.

[05:39] The tax incentives and grants that are available for businesses for using electric cars.

[07:14] What Richard does as the Quality and Continuous Improvement Manager at BP Chargemaster.

[10:05] The value of data and the importance of digital security.

[12:29] How to best manage a company that’s growing from an SME to an international enterprise.

[18:22] The way Richard drives continuous improvement at BP Chargemaster.

[20:43] What ‘8 D’ is and how it can help to identify the causes of problems and the best ways to improve on them.

[25:06] How Richard tracks the different improvements that he puts in place.

[27:27] The book Richard recommends to those working in the business world.

If you need assistance with implementing ISO 9001 or ISO 14001 – Contact us!

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Andy Pavlovic is the Compliance director at Maris. Maris is certified to four ISO standards, ISO 9001 for quality, ISO 14001 for environmental management, ISO 45001 for health and safety, and ISO 37001 for anti-bribery standards. He manages and maintains all of these ISO standards for Maris and makes sure that the company upholds these standards across the board.

This episode, Andy Pavlovic is here to share with me what he’s learnt from his years working as Maris’s compliance director and overseeing the implementation of four different ISO standards.

Andy speaks about how ISO standards enable Maris to maintain consistency across the company in the quality of their work, their health and safety procedures, and their environmental impact.

He explains how implementing standards allow organisations to be scalable and how having multiple standards doesn’t necessarily mean spending more time on them.

With ISO 37001 being a relatively new standard, he explains the value following this standard has not only for the ethos of Maris but also to the commercial side of his business.

Finally, he explains how Maris keeps their employees compliant with their standards and what the key benefits of having an integrated management system are…

Website: https://www.maris.co.uk/

Linkedin:

You’ll learn

How ISO standards allow organisations to be scalable.
Why implementing the correct ISO standards is even more important than ever during COVID times.
The importance of choosing the right systems for your organisation.
How to maintain consistent adherence to standards across your company over long time periods.
The best ways to train your staff to be compliant with new ISO standards.
The benefits of having an integrated management system when dealing with multiple ISO standards.

Resources

Blackmores

In this episode, we talk about:

[00:32] Who Andy Pavlovic is and the different ISO standards that Maris are certified with.

[01:48] Andy’s experience working with ISO standards.

[02:18] What Maris does and the industries they work in.

[03:05] Andy’s ISO responsibilities as the Compliance Director.

[04:00] How ISO standards work across different cultures and the importance of having these in place.

[05:12] How Andy manages four different ISO standards, and how having these standards enable companies to be scalable.

[08:07] The importance of organisations accepting standards as part of their culture.

[09:52] The importance of giving new employees a proper formal induction and what this process looks like.

[11:52] The commercial advantages of having ISO standards and how this has helped Maris win new business during the COVID pandemic.

[13:34] What the benefits of having an integrated management system are.

[15:16] Advice Andy has for anybody who is looking to implement ISO standards.

[16:45] Andy’s book recommendation to anyone looking for self-growth.

[18:19] The importance of having someone with the right expertise in house when implementing ISO procedures.

[19:14] How to get in touch with Maris or Andy himself.

If you need assistance with implementing ISO 14001, ISO 9001, ISO 45001 or ISO 37001 – Contact us!

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This episode’s guest has experienced at first-hand what it’s like going from Chaos to Calm amidst the impact of the Coronovirus Pandemic, and how she has slipped into seamlessly delivering her work remotely, which typically would have been done face to face.

Lorna is founder and Director of Leonard Business Services, and is almost at the end of completing an ISO 9001 implementation project, so I thought it would be good for Lorna to share her experience of working remotely amidst the COVID-19 Pandemic and her experience of being audited to ISO 9001 remotely.

Top tips for remote working during a Pandemic

Keep calm and carry on
Keeps spirits and morale high with group online sessions – just 10 minutes is fine to share a hobby or fun group activity, or half an hour on Friday at the end of the day to share ‘end of the week’ drinks (virtually)
Keep connected – 15 minutes ‘start the day’ get-together.
Plan your agendas to work remotely to maximise your time.
Use the time for reflection on how you can operate more efficiently
Review resources and optimise on investments made (people/products/process)
Consider ways to operate more sustainably after ‘Lockdown’ i.e. remote working to avoid travel/CO2 emissions.

To quote Lorna ‘Keep calm and Carry on’ as we continue to adapt to the situation.

Click HERE to learn more about Lorna’s business, Leonard Business Services.

If you would like to learn more about IS0 9001, we have an ISO 9001 Steps to Success series available to listen to HERE.

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Before I dive into the most popular standard in the world, I’d like to begin by busting some of those myths around ISO 9001.

Myth – You need to have a Quality Manual

Myth – You need to have lots of lengthy irrelevant procedures

Myth – You need to have a Quality Manager

Myth – It’s just a tick box exercise

None of these statements is true – Maybe some of them were correct in 1982 (the old BS 5750 standard), but not in 2020!

This weeks ISO show provides an overview of ISO 9001:2015, where we interpret the standard (as a technical document) and break it down into very simple terms what the requirements actually mean.

Although there are 10 clauses, only 7 of these are actually requirements that you need to put in place (Clauses 4.0 – 10.0), and they all make sound business sense. What business doesn’t need to have a system to explain to employees what they need to do? What business doesn’t need to monitor and measure the performance of their business (including any costly mistakes)?

ISO 9001 is basically a model for running a successful and profitable business – if implemented in the right way (which, by the way, is not buying a certificate and ISO in a box online – that’s for the cheaters!).

The quality standard provides a common framework for things that all businesses should have in place, including defining your companies unique ‘way of working’. It provides a ‘hub’ a ‘go to place’ for all company policies, procedures and forms/templates. So ultimately your ‘blueprint’ for business operations and success.

I walk our ISO Show listeners through the 7 Key requirements and highlight some of my favourite parts that I believe add the most value in terms of investing in ISO 9001.

7 key requirements

Context of the organisation
Leadership
Planning
Support
Operations
Performance evaluation
Improvement

For supporting information check out:-

FREE copy of a Communications Template – just contact us at enquiries@blackmoresuk.com

Want to learn more about ISO 9001? Listen to our Steps to Success Series.

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Tony Bennett, Senior Information Security Executive shares his journey on achieving certification to ISO 9001 (Quality), ISO 27001 (Information Security) and ISO 22301 (Business Continuity) in one hit!

Kingsley Napley, is an internationally recognised Law firm based in central London. To exceed clients’ expectations, they decided to develop their systems to meet the requirements of these leading international standards. Tony worked in collaboration with Rachel Churchman of Blackmores to support the delivery of the project, and bring together all the requirements of the standard into one holistic framework. This led to gaining a greater understanding of the organisations operations, risks and strengths, which led to the creation of a ‘Best Practice’ Framework. As the first Law Firm in the UK to achieve certification to all three standards as an integrated management system, Kingsley Napley are clearly demonstrating how to raise standards within their profession.

As an experienced Information Security professional, in this weeks’ ISO Show Podcast, Tony shares invaluable guidance on:-

Why Quality, Information Security and Business Continuity is so crucial in the legal sector
How he delivered the project within 12 months
The drivers behind implementing all three standards as an integrated management system
Explains how the assessment was actually an enjoyable experience!
Key tips on overcoming obstacles and challenges – Communication, communication, communication!
How leadership plays such an important role in the success of initiating change management
Specific advice for those in the legal sector who may wish to raise their standards and achieve certification

For further Information on Kingsley Napley and their journey on achieving certification, visit their website.

For support with achieving ISO 9001, IS0 27001 and ISO 22301, see our Steps to Success.

For a FREE consultation Contact Us

For further information on the Standards:

ISO 9001 Quality Management

ISO 27001 Information Security Management

ISO 22301 Business Continuity

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Join Mel and Derek Hall, this week as they discuss the awesome sustainability work that Derek did to be awarded an MBE for his contribution to sustainability management in business based on ISO 14001 and ISO 9001.

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What is the future for ISO 9001? It only seems like yesterday that the latest version of ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 was released, even though this was back in November 2015. How time flies as they say! All organisations have now transitioned to the latest version, however, standards, the same as businesses can never afford to be left to stand still. In true Deming fashion (Plan, do, check, act), the time has come for the next review and revision. Next year, in 2020 the review process begins again…….

I was delighted to be joined on the ISO Show this week by Paul Simpson, Chair of the ISO 9001 Technical Committee in the UK (TC 176) and Director of Strategy to Action.

In the ISO Show this week Paul explains:-

How Annex L supersedes Annex SL
What is the role of TC 176 and what they are currently doing in relation to ISO 9001?
The future concepts for ISO 9001
Views on whether ISO 9001 could change much following the review which begins in 2020

If you would like to find out more about Paul Simpson and his company, Strategy to Action, Action to Success, click HERE.

If you would like to find further information about the ISO 9001 Quality Technical Committee, click HERE.

Need assistance with ISO 9001? We’d be happy to help, simply Contact Us.

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You’ve done all the hard work, the Quality Management System (QMS) has been created and implemented. Our final episode in the ISO 9001 Steps to Success Podcast series with Rachel Churchman covers the final critical stage – compliance and preparation for your certification assessment.

This is where you need to prove that the quality system is effective – that it is producing the results you want; better quality products, services, happy clients and reduction in costs.

The final stages include management and employee involvement, Internal Audits and Management Review. Here are a few tips from this week’s ISO Show Podcast:-

Management involvement and employee awareness

Check all employees have been made aware of the Management System and have been involved.
Have training/competency records been updated to reflect this?
Ensure you’ve got employee ‘buy-in’ – get representation across your business.

Internal audits

Are a mandatory requirement of ISO 9001
Checks that the QMS is being followed and clearly understood within the business
Don’t expect the system to be perfect – take the findings from the audits and use them to make improvements
Internal Audits with Blackmores are an inclusive experience. It helps to get feedback from the business on how the system is working for them. It’s definitely not a tick-box exercise.
Communicate in advance which procedures are to be audited and who is to be involved.
Provide an opportunity for employees to have a voice – bring opportunities to management’s attention.

Management Review

Is a mandatory requirement for ISO 9001
A holistic review of the Quality Management System’s performance
Specific inputs and outputs provided in the standard for the meeting i.e. audit findings, trends.
Enables fact-based decision making
Proves that that QMS is effective and provides results on the value.
Can be an ‘eye-opening’ experience for Management
Make sure outputs from the Management Review get fed back to the workforce to encourage further opportunities for improvement.

If you would like to understand what to expect in as assessment listen to episode 3 of the ISO Show.

Listen to the ‘ISO 9001 Steps to success’ series by subscribing to us on iTunes or Soundcloud

And click HERE for further information on our ISO 9001 Steps to success service

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In our second episode in the ISO 9001 Steps to Success Podcast, Rachel Churchman explains in detail about how to create and launch your Quality Management System. Here are 10 tips for implementation:

Collate, review and update all your existing policies and procedures.
Get Quality Champions to represent each function within the organisation – they know better than anyone else what the procedures are and how they can be improved.
Establish your company branding and document control, so all the documents have the same company branding, font size/type and that they are dated and clearly referenced.
Share and document ‘Best Practice’ to ensure you have a consistent approach.
Get approval and endorsement from the leadership team.
Publish your QMS so it is easily accessible to all employees – this could be via sharepoint, a Wiki, company intranet, manual or laminated process maps next to work stations/equipment.
Launch your QMS – have a ‘Quality Focus’ week, posters, screensavers, meetings agendas, email from the CEO – ensure all employees are aware of the QMS and its importance to the business, clients and to individual employees.
Ensure your sales and marketing team have all the relevant information they need about ISO 9001 and your QMS.
Inform employees of the next steps – Internal audits and the external assessment and how to prepare.
Get feedback on the QMS from employees and empower them to take responsibility for it – it is their Quality Management and is for their benefit.

I look forward to you joining us for the final episode of the ISO 9001 Steps to Success Series on the ISO Show, where we’ll be sharing tips on the final steps to implementing a QMS and preparation for the ISO 9001 assessment.

Listen to the ‘ISO 9001 Steps to success’ series by subscribing to us on iTunes or Soundcloud

And click HERE for further information on our ISO 9001 Steps to success service

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Over the last 13 years that I’ve been running Blackmores, the most popular standard has been without doubt ISO 9001. We’ve implemented the Quality Standard for hundreds of businesses large and small, so I thought this would be a great place to start with our first ISO Show series. We are introducing for the first time a 3-part series, ISO 9001 Steps to success, which will take you through how to implement a Quality Management System – from initial idea through to assessment.

Rachel Churchman is my guest on the ISO 9001 Steps to success series. As a Managing Consultant at Blackmores, she brings a wealth of experience in implementing ISO Standards and will guide you through the Blackmores ISO Steps to success for the successful delivery of your ISO 9001 Project.

In episode 1 Rachel highlights:

Why ISO 9001 is so popular – it’s not just a Quality System…. It’s a ‘Best Practice’ system for running any business
How to establish the scope of certification
What is involved with a Gap Analysis to understand how compliant you are to ISO 9001
Where the typical gaps are within a business that needs to be filled to pass an assessment
What type of evidence you need to start to establish
Who needs to be involved with the creation of the QMS

Rachel guides us through understanding how to get under the skin of a business to establish the context of the organisation. This includes establishing risks, opportunities and interested parties and provides some handy tips to achieve this: –

External issues – PESTLE – Political, Economical, Social, Technological, Legal, Ethical and Environmental.
Internal issues – SWOT – Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats.
Identify interested parties that are affected by or could have an impact on your business.

Listen to the ‘ISO 9001 Steps to success’ series by subscribing to us on iTunes or Soundcloud

And click HERE for further information on our ISO 9001 Steps to success service

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Established over 100 years ago in 1912, The London School of English is the longest-established Accredited English Language School in the world, with premises in London and Canterbury, and now offering courses online. I was delighted to be joined by Hauke Tallon, CEO of the London School Group on this week’s Podcast to discuss:-

Secrets of the success of a the longest-established Language School
Experience of implementing ISO 9001 with professional help
Explains the London School of English process for success and how this is at the core of the business
Embedding processes to stay on track
How quality can be an overused term
Core drivers to improve efficiency and not just get the badge
How ISO 9001 helped to align group processes
How working with an ISO 9001 Consultant made implementation a ‘liberating’ experience

The London School of English have impressively been rated as ‘Excellent’ in over 750 independent client reviews. For a business that might be looking to use independent reviews to validate high quality services or products, Hauke explains how to get there. Officially rated as the top language school, Hauke explains about the process for dealing with the reviews – good or not so good, and why its important to deal with all reviews promptly and learn from any opportunities for improvement. Simply by virtue of asking clients to provide a review, the numbers increase, and at present the average response rate is approximately 25%, which is pretty impressive.

Although the word ‘Quality’ can be seen as being overused in business, for the London School of English the evidence is in their Trust Pilot Scores and ISO Certification. ‘We have a way of delivering that is repeatable, so we get the same outcome’. Quality is at the core of the London School of English, so much so in fact, that it’s part of the culture. This is demonstrated in the marketing material ‘Our proven process’ which states that ‘the time you spend with us is so much more than a course, accommodation, free lunches and additional services; you will leave us having had an unforgettable experience’. ISO 9001 helped provide an approach that enables the group to be more effective and efficient to benefit the companies and of course client experience.

Hauke left us with a wise Chinese proverb – ‘The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, and the next best time is now’.

Special thanks to Hauke Tallon from The London School Group for joining me this week. Until next time!

And for ISO 9001 services in this area – check out ISO Steps to Success, or if you would like support with keeping your QMS in tip top shape, our ISO Support Plan will help you whip it into shape and keep up those high standards.

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I was delighted to be joined by one of our ISO Support Plan clients, Optimum on the ISO show this week. Optimum is part of Totally Group Plc and an important player in the healthcare sector in the UK.

Huge volumes of sensitive data are processed in the healthcare sector. As Information Governance Lead and a qualified Physiotherapist at Optimum, David Angove explains about keeping one step ahead in his role in relation to information security.

David described how Optimum’s ISMS should be like a well-fitted suit rather than a straight-jacket. This all stems from the robust Risk Assessment which considers all risks to your business, including managing the integrity of data. The ISMS helped to put a continual improvement plan in place to mitigate risk. He explains about preventing access to private information through documenting controls and applying them to all 20 Optimum clinics. Examples include physical security controls i.e. locking screens to protect patient data. Other controls relating to personnel security include having a starters and leavers process to ensure access rights are granted correctly, and that access rights are revoked when an employee leaves the organisation.

ISO 27001 also helped with preparation for GDPR compliance, particularly with investigating all aspects of where and how data is stored within the company. When I asked what top tips he’d give to a company looking to implement ISO 27001 David recommended getting assistance from a consultancy such as Blackmores (we hadn’t paid him to say that, I promise!), including support with the assessment, as the consultant will ‘know the standards inside-out’.

David also recommends a gripping read, ‘Ghost in the wire’s: My adventures as the words most wanted hacker’ by author Kevin Mitnik which covers how he hacked into some of the country’s most powerful – and seemingly impenetrable – agencies and companies using social engineering and other methods. This acts as a good reminder about the value of Penetration Testing, to test how good the security of your business is and to understand that everyone is aware of your systems.

He mentioned that you can have the fanciest encryption systems and the best passwords, but if the people answering the phones or processing data aren’t aware of them, then its only as good as the weakest link.

To For an overview of what ISO 27001 entails check out our latest ISO 27001 video….

And for services in this area – check out – ISO Steps to success, or if your ISMS is like a straight-jacket rather than a well-fitted suit, our ISO support Plan will help you into an Armani equivalent ISMS for your business.

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Special thanks to David Angove from Optimum for joining me this week. Until next time!

I’m delighted Kim-Marie Freeston, Managing Director of UComply shared with me her background and journey to ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 in this weeks podcast.

Kim-Marie is a thought-leader in employers’ compliance, in particular the Home Office requirements for employee ‘Right to Work’. Gain an insight into Kim-Marie’s views by subscribing to our Podcast ‘The ISO Show’.

You can subscribe to our Soundcloud and Itunes to stay updated on the latest episodes.

Kim Marie was formerly CEO of Lifeline Recruitment Solutions with over 20 years in the recruitment industry, including 6 years as a board member of the REC – the Recruitment and Employment Confederation.

Spotting a compliance gap in the market for ID checks to meet Home Office requirements, Kim-Marie founded Ucomply in 2012 and worked with a team of technology experts to offer the first software solution to manage ID checks and employee compliance requirements.

As a client, Blackmores supported Ucomply to achieve certification to the Quality standard ISO 9001 and the Information Security standard ISO 27001. Sharing her journey, topics discussed include:-

Key points

Background and journey to raising standards at Ucomply
Challenges and benefits of ISO 9001 and ISO 27001 for a software firm
Top tips for implementation
‘Right to Work’ employers’ requirements explained

Need assistance with ISO 9001 or ISO 27001? We’d be happy to help, simply Contact Us.

Resources mentioned:-

Free download ‘7 Vital Points every business must understand about Right to Work’

How to implement ISO 27001 video

Can you work for an hour without getting interrupted to answer a question? Either by an employee, a client or a phone call from someone else (who you don’t particularly need to speak to).

If not, it sounds like it could be time for you to consider systemising your business. If it’s difficult for you to try to complete a task without interruptions, then just think what it will be like for others in your organisation? Interruptions usually happen because people are asking you questions that they don’t have the answers to or need something from you such as authorisation for something. They do this because they don’t have clear instructions to follow or access to the information they need and are not fully empowered to take responsibilities for their own processes.

There needs to be a system in place to instruct employees in EVERY aspect of how you run your business. This system is the blueprint to your business operations – it’s your unique way of working; from an enquiry coming into the business through to billing and client feedback.

In the ISO Show Podcast ‘How to systemise your business’, I’ll give you an example of a company that doesn’t have a process for new enquiries and one that does, and the difference this makes.

In the words of Deming, the continual improvement visionary ‘If you can’t describe what you are doing as a process, you don’t know what you are doing’.

So where do you begin with systemising your business? How do you transform from a reactive business that is constantly firefighting to a proactive business that can focus on productivity and profitability?

Many organisations use ISO 9001 as a starting point to find out where their gaps are – risk and opportunities. However, if an ISO standard isn’t on your agenda yet, I’d like to share with you some tips to get started on systemising your business. It all begins by identifying the BIGGEST, MOST EXPENSIVE AND DISTRACTING PROBLEMS IN YOUR BUSINESS. Start by listing all the issues that your company has faced in the last month; incorrect orders, re-work, staff errors.

The idea is to get an accurate view of the things that waste time and hurt your business, either through financial or reputational damage. If you would like to get others involved i.e. heads of departments, you can ask them to do this exercise retrospectively, or they could record all the issues that occur over a one-month period. You can then review and highlight the ones that waste time and/or money.

The next thing you need to do is simply ask the question ‘why?’ By asking this question you are trying to get to the root cause of the problem.

Issue: No paper for the printer to print invoices at the beginning of the day.

Why? We’ve been using up the paper over the last few days.

Why? Because we use paper daily, everyone takes it for granted that it’s there. Nobody thought to restock it.

Why? Because the boss normally does it and he’s not here.

Why does only he do it? He always places the order, it’s the way things have always been done.

Why? Because he doesn’t think anybody else can do it properly.

Why? Because nobody’s been shown how to do it, and he knows how much we might use.

Why? Because there is no minimum stock level to trigger an order.

Why do you need to use paper for invoices? We don’t! it’s just the way we’ve always done it. I guess we could email them a copy to avoid using paper and save postage costs.

I’ve just asked ‘Why?’ 8 times. This allowed me to get to the crux of the problem and to rethink the way things have always been done. But not only that, by asking ‘Why?’ a few more times, we’ve actually found a solution to prevent the issue from reoccurring and to save the business time and money.

Just because things have always been done the same way, doesn’t mean it’s the best way to do things now or in the future. Now, you may need to ask the question ‘Why?’ a few times, it doesn’t really matter, so long as you get to a point where you have an actionable result and you can systemise it.

I think sometimes, when things go wrong in a business, the natural thing is for people to ask ‘Who?’

Asking ‘Who?’ makes people automatically defensive and doesn’t necessarily help in solving the problem. A better approach could be, ‘Hey, I’ve noticed we’ve had 7 returns this week – do we know why this has happened and what the possible solution is?’ or ‘I’ve noticed that the risk assessments for 3 sites were not completed last month – do we know why? and how we can prevent that from reoccurring next month?’

One of the myths around ISO Standards is that a large number of wordy procedures are required to implement a compliant management system. So, I’d just like to bust that myth by saying you don’t, you can systemise your business in the way that you see fit! For example, you can have checklists, screen shots of how to follow a process i.e. stock inventory, or a flow-chart. You can use video, operations manuals – it is entirely up to you. But the main thing is to make sure that everyone is involved, and that the key process owners have a say, as they will own the process at the end of the day, and they will be empowered to take responsibility for following them and keeping them up-to-date as the business evolves.

Now, successfully implementing systems into your business isn’t something you will achieve overnight. Your staff will need to understand and follow the system, and there will be times that they will want to avoid using them if there is a short-cut. This is where strong leadership comes into play. A strong leader will offer encouragement when employees are struggling …and discipline if they can’t be arsed. You will also need to be a role model and always use the system yourself. If you don’t follow your own company procedures, then others will think that it’s ok for them to do the same.

If you want assistance with using ISO Standards to systemise your business, contact us.

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