Risk Based Thinking In ISO 9001:2015

Risk is the effect of uncertainty on the expected result, which encompasses any deviation whether it is negative or positive. The intent is for an approach to risk based thinking which promotes continual improvement and is proactive rather than reactive.

Risk based thinking is an important concept that forms the basis of ISO 9001:2015. This concept may seem to be new, but it has always been a part of ISO 9001 and at the same time, done by many organizations.

Any reference to ‘preventive action’ is removed but the concept of identifying and addressing potential mistakes before they occur remains the same.

ISO 9001:2015 requires an organization to determine the risks and opportunities affecting products and services, processes and the QMS as a whole and to take necessary action to address them.

Risk based thinking is determining the risk in qualitative terms as well as quantitatively defining the degree and rigor of formality needed to plan and check the quality management system and its activities.

Different processes have different levels of risk in terms of impact on customer satisfaction and results of the QMS. Also the results of non conformities are different for different organizations.

Risk-based thinking is prominent in Clause 6.1. The clause requires an organization to consider its context when planning the Quality Management System.

Eurotech, an IRCA approved training partner (ATP), is conducting ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management Trainings in your city. These training will help you better understand the concept and importance of a quality management system, while encouraging risk-based thinking in your organization. To know more about this training, drop an email at trg@eurotechworld.net or call us at +91 9316744482 or 0172 - 4191128.

Challenges In Auditing Organization’s Management System

An auditor faces many challenges while auditing an organization’s management system as per the requirements of ISO 9001:2015. There are many new challenges in the new version of ISO 9001 for both consultants as well as auditors. One of the most important challenges is the requirement of documented information instead of paper. Earlier, organizations used paper, but now, it is to be proved to the auditor that each and every person of the organization conforms to the new standard. Another challenge is about the differentiation between internal and external parties. There is a requirement of gap analysis between the new and old standard to help the organizations better understand the new requirements.

Thus, an auditor should be prepared in advance to audit the commitment of the top management. He should study the context of the organization before doing the audit.

Eurotech, an IRCA approved training partner (ATP), is conducting ISO 9001:2015 quality management system trainings in your city. These training will help you better understand the challenges faced during an audit and the best possible ways to overcome them. To know more about these trainings, drop an email at trg@eurotechworld.net or call us at +91 9316744482 or 0172 - 4191128.

Cost of Quality

In search of quality excellence, companies need to have a great awareness of the cost of quality. It is often observed that, very few organizations make any reference to the cost of quality in their management review. Most of the times, the risks associated with quality cost can slip from the radar. But it is important for the organizations to identify these risks when the organization wants to implement continuous improvement processes.

Reduction in cost with the help of process approach allows organization to determine whether they are adding value or cost.

PDCA, process approach and risk based thinking are an integral part of ISO 9001:2015. Using these methods will lead to optimum utilization of resources and better accountability.

A quality professional should ensure whether the organization has a designated person who is responsible for overall coordination and reporting of quality costs.

Quality professionals need to face the challenge of identifying and collecting quality cost data. Identification of prevention, failure, internal failure and appraisal cost helps while producing the data.

Prevention quality costs include training of staff and surveying the markets. Appraisal cost can be anything from inspection of incoming goods to proofreading. Internal failure costs may include costs of scrap material, rework or repairs cost etc. Cost of quality is big. But worry not! There are many models that can be used to effectively measure the actual cost of quality.

Eurotech, an IRCA approved training partner (ATP), is conducting ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management Trainings in your city. These training will help you better understand the concept and importance of a quality management system in your organization, resulting in lowering the cost of quality for your organization. To know more about this training, drop an email at trg@eurotechworld.net or call us at +91 9316744482 or 0172 - 4191128.

What Quality Professionals Do?

To embed quality in the organization’s core, the quality professionals focus on three main areas in the organization. These areas are:

  1. Governance: Governance commences when the top management expresses its commitment to quality. Effective and strong governance means ensuring that the aims of the management are clear cut and at the same time, reflect the stakeholder requirements. It also includes ensuring that right policies, processes and people are in place to turn aims into actions.
  2. Assurance: The quality professional will ensure that the priorities and policies that have been decided are being carried out properly and whether the output i.e. product, service or project, is meeting stakeholder’s needs or not.
  3. Culture: The quality professional has to ensure that there is a culture of improvement in the organization. This means that there is continually evaluating the organization’s performance to reduce risk, improve efficiency, and create new opportunities.

 

The quality professionals are recognized in the organization as the following:

  • Agents for Change: They help in changing the culture, processes and behavior of the organization.
  • Guardians: Their role is to protect the business by identifying the standards governing business performance and ensure that they are met.
  • Collaborators: They work in collaboration with leaders and managers.
  • Leaders: They create, manage and improve the organization’s business processes.
  • Progressive: They have an understanding of the realities of managing an organization in a continuously changing environment.
  • Professional: A quality professional is qualified by the professional institute of CQI IRCA and is bound by a strict code of conduct.

CQI is the only chartered body, which is dedicated to quality professionals. IRCA is the division of CQI and is the leading professional body for management system auditors.

Eurotech, an IRCA approved training partner (ATP), is conducting quality trainings in your city. To know more about these training, visit our website, drop an email at trg@eurotechworld.net or call us at +91 9316744482 or 0172 - 4191128.

Why To Pursue A Career In Quality?

In our last post, we discussed about careers in quality. This post is the continuation of the last post. In this, we will focus on the reasons of why to pursue a career in quality.

Some of the reasons as to why you should pursue a career in quality, that we can list out are given below:

  • From good to great: You can easily transform an organization from good to great while considering the needs of management and stakeholders.
  • Easily move from sector to sector: Quality is essential in every sector for its growth and favorable results. Having a career in quality allows you to easily move from one sector to another.
  • Identification of what makes an organization stop ticking: If you are a quality professional, you can easily identify what works and what doesn’t for the organization.
  • A respected expert: The quality role is the best role in any organization. It is the only role, apart from the role of managing director, whose scope includes improvement of everything that is done in the organization. You get an opportunity to work with everyone and support them in achieving their goals.
  • Setting your own business: If you pursue a career in quality, you become capable to setup your own business, going around helping organizations improve their performance and achieve operational and quality excellence.

Eurotech, an IRCA approved training partner (ATP), is conducting quality management system trainings in your city. To know more about this training, drop an email at trg@eurotechworld.net for getting more information about these trainings or call us at +91 9316744482 or 0172 - 4191128.

Career in Quality

A career in quality means, working to make the organizations better.

Quality professional are required in every industry and in every sector. Some of them are generalists and some are specialists.

Many quality professionals may have title like quality manager, quality director etc, while others deal with quality as a part of the broader remit.

Some of these professionals are concerned with the delivery of goods and services while some are a member of the leadership of the organization. Some work in the organization, while some work outside the organization with which they deal.

The link bonding all these quality professionals is their dedication to protect and strengthen their organization by ensuring that the needs of the stakeholders are met and their expectations are exceeded.

At the strategic level, the quality professionals make sure that the organization translates its objectives into outcomes.

Their focus resides on increasing the efficiency, reducing risk, ensuring compliance, problem solving and implementing tools for improving processes.

There are many ways to enter into a career in quality. Traditionally, many people moved into quality, starting from the areas like engineering and health and safety.

In today’s generation, the appeal of a career in quality is to get a chance to work towards improvement in all aspects of a business.

 CQI is the only chartered body, which is dedicated to quality professionals. IRCA is the division of CQI and is the leading professional body for management system auditors.

Eurotech, an IRCA approved training partner (ATP), is conducting quality management system trainings in your city. To know more about this training, drop an email at trg@eurotechworld.net for getting more information about these trainings or call us at +91 9316744482 or 0172 - 4191128.

Importance of Quality Policy for Auditors

Sub clause 5.2.1 of ISO 9001:2015 standard states the requirements of top management in respect of quality policy of the organization. It is the responsibility of the top management to establish a quality policy which is in line with the purpose of the organization and supports its strategic direction. The top management is also responsible for maintaining and implementing the quality policy.

ISO 9001:2015 requires that the quality policy should be maintained as documented information irrespective of its medium i.e. the documented information can be a carved on a metal plate, available in the format of a video etc, all are acceptable.

The quality policy should also be communicated and understood by the employees of the organization and must also be at the disposal of interested parties. The requirements of communicating the quality policy are specified in the sub-clause 5.2.2.

The auditors should ask for evidence from the top management whether they have formulated the quality policy and are maintaining and implementing the same. They should also make sure that the formulated policy is in line with the organization’s context and commits to improve its quality management system. This is a necessity as defined in sub-clause 5.1.1 b).

Eurotech, an IRCA approved training partner (ATP), is conducting ISO 9001:2015 quality management system trainings in your city. To know more about this training, drop an email at trg@eurotechworld.net for getting more information about these trainings or call us at +91 9316744482 or 0172 - 4191128.

15 Ways of Improving Quality-Management Review

The last way of improving quality, as discussed in ISO 9001:2015 Standard is management review.

The top management should review the organization’s quality management system at periodic intervals. The review should start from leadership and end with management review.

Management review ensures that there is continuous suitability, effectiveness, adequacy and alignment with the organization’s directions and scope for improvement.

Clause 9.3.3 a) states that, ‘the outputs of the management review should include actions and decisions related to improvement opportunities.’

While reviewing, top management may consider changes in the external as well as internal issues which are relevant to the QMS. Leaders can review whether the QMS is complied or not, to meet the needs and expectations of society, regulatory and statutory requirements as well as the requirements of the stakeholders and environment.

When sustainable development initiatives are made through satisfying all the stakeholders like customers, shareholders, government, environment, society and all other interested parties, quality is improved and sustained success can be achieved.

Eurotech, an IRCA approved training partner (ATP), is conducting ISO 9001:2015 trainings in your city. To know more about this training, drop an email at trg@eurotechworld.net or call us at +91 9316744482 or 0172 - 4191128.

 

15 Ways of Improving Quality-Actions That Enhance Customer Satisfaction

The fourteenth way of improving quality, discussed in the standard includes any action that enhance customer satisfaction.

This is the first time that an ISO quality management system standard has been thus liberal and adoptable for the benefit of users and customers. Clause number 10.1 specifically points out that the organization can determine the opportunities for improvement and can implement any action necessary to meet customer requirements and enhance their satisfaction.

Followers and implementers can think of any idea, method, strategy or tool to implement the actions for quality improvement and enhancing customer satisfaction.

Eurotech, an IRCA approved training partner (ATP), is conducting ISO 9001:2015 trainings in your city. To know more about this training, drop an email at trg@eurotechworld.net or call us at +91 9316744482 or 0172 - 4191128.

15 Ways of Improving Quality- Innovation and Re-organization

15 Ways of Improving Quality- Innovation and Re-organization

The twelfth way of improving quality discussed in the standard is innovation. An example of innovation is given below.

A new invention of LED TV was introduced to the world in the year 2004 by Sony. They proved that innovation is marketable if it meets the needs and expectations of the consumers. Clause 10.1 a) of the standard mentions that, the organization can improve its products and services to fulfill the requirements of its customers, with the help of innovation. 

 

The next way of improving quality is re-organization.

The organization can improve its performance through re-organizing the existing resources.

Eurotech, an IRCA approved training partner (ATP), is conducting ISO 9001:2015 trainings in your city. To know more about this training, drop an email at trg@eurotechworld.net or call us at +91 9316744482 or 0172 - 4191128.