Understanding ISO: Benefits of ISO 9001 Quality Management

Ever been asked if you have a quality management system or ISO 9001? Many clients now require this certification as a minimum for their supply chain. Other than meeting these requirements, what else can ISO 9001 do for your organisation?

Efficiency and Improvement

Most organisations who pursue ISO 9001 are private, commercial organisations, so let’s start with money, though this applies to all types of organisations. At its core, quality management helps you do more with less, it maximises your profit. The standard gets you to look at your organisation, what impacts it, it’s resources, it’s products and services, and to consider what to do when a product or service is defective. In so doing, it encourages the organisation to think carefully about whether their current approach is getting the best value for the business, increasing production, mitigating risk, minimising waste and maximising profit.

ISO 9001 requires you to periodically review that your systems are operating effectively. As a result, you are more likely to identify issues which may be frustrating your employees, and by having documentation to explain how your organisation operates you have documents that everyone can read and understand, so they know what is expected of them. This can lead to better employee satisfaction, and happier employees are more productive, providing your business with further benefit. Furthermore, using smart procedures, you can empower employees to participate in innovation for your organisation to improve existing products and procedures, or to develop new ones.

Another element of ISO 9001 is monitoring, measurement, analysis and evaluation. If done well, this can provide you with valuable information which can be used internally to drive improvements, but also in external marketing to demonstrate that your organisation is proactive and innovative, and has the data to prove it, so clients feel even more positive about purchasing your products or services.

Pre-qualification

Many large organisations now require their supply chain to have ISO 9001 certified by a UKAS accredited certification body. Typical industries where this is implemented is is becoming increasingly common include:

• Major development contractors (construction)
• Government
• Healthcare
• Automotive
• Aerospace
• Supermarkets
• Major high street retailers

Customer Satisfaction

All the requirements in the standard are striving towards one ultimate objective, improving customer satisfaction. Complying with the requires should enable you to deliver better products, quicker, for less cost, and help keep your customers happy. Producing more with less and minimising faults also minimises waste so is better for the environment too. Furthermore, the standard requires you to seek feedback from your customers to support your actions and support further improvements, strengthening your business, your customer relationships and your brand – win, win, win.

Have you seen any other benefits to ISO 9001? If you’re interested in benefitting your organisation and your customers, get in touch.