The next stages in the evolution of ISO 9001
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The latest version of ISO 9001 was released two years ago (2008) with very minor
changes to the requirements. This is in contrast to the he previous version of the
standard (released in 2000) which resulted in significant changes including the
introduction of an entirely new concept of a process approach. At QPRC we wanted
to know what to expect from the next stages in the evolution of the requirements
of ISO 9001, and invited Dr. Gary Cort
who currently chairs
ISO Technical Committee 176 to answer our questions:
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Dr. Cort: If the past is
any guide, then we should expect a six to eight year update cycle, which would have
the next revision coming on line around 2015. While many of us in ISO Technical
Committee 176 believe that we could reduce this time by half (at least), to do so
will require fundamentally restructuring the standards writing process, which is
completely serial today. Imagine separating the standards writing process into design
(i.e. deciding what the content of a revision will be) and development (the iterative
process implementing the design, i.e. creating the standards documents, circulating
for comments, balloting, etc.). This would allow one team to complete the development
of the current revision while another team simultaneously works on the design of
the next revision.
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Dr. Cort: To date there have
only been two substantive versions of ISO 9001 – the original 1994 standard and
the year 2000 revision – so it is not really reasonable to talk about trends. But
there are many proposals, each of which enjoys its own constituency within the Technical
Committee and throughout the international community.
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There are strong arguments for keeping ISO 9001 essentially unchanged as a minimal
entry-level quality management system. Others believe it should be continually updated
to reflect state of the art quality thinking. There are champions for specific additions,
such as addressing risk management or resource management. Many think the architecture
of the standard needs a fundamental overhaul, perhaps incorporating a maturity model
or providing mechanisms for leveraging other standards from the ISO family or beyond.
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We have also begun a campaign to create an ISO 9000 ecosystem—a dynamic, user-focused
environment to sustain and invigorate the ISO 9000 family of standards, make our
products more robust and easy to use, and propel them into new application domains,
adapting as they go. We are populating the ecosystem with downloadable tools, templates,
examples, case studies, decision trees, metrics, and reference material—practical
information to help users apply our standards successfully in the real world.
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Dr. Cort: Sustainability
is a bedrock concept across ISO today. Our mantra is “International Standards for
a Sustainable World.” So we will certainly see the notions of sustainability included
more explicitly in ISO 9001 and the other 16 standards that comprise the ISO 9000
family. It is my opinion, however, that the ISO 9000 family of standards is already
innately compatible with the ideas of sustainability and sustained success. Using
them as is can provide a powerful framework for sustainable operations.
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Dr. Cort: While I don’t anticipate
any direct references between the two standards, I firmly believe that the greatest
opportunities for the ISO 9000 family of standards lie at the intersection of quality
and society. I am immensely proud to report that ISO 9001 has already had some very
important (and highly successful) forays into the world of social responsibility.
Through International Workshop Agreements (IWAs), ISO 9001 has been used as the
basis for international standards for Reliable Local Governments (IWA-4) and Secondary
Education (IWA-2). It is also the basis for the landmark legislation in Colombia
that requires registered quality management systems for public institutions. Furthermore,
the Republic of Panama has become the first nation in the world to register its
national Electoral Tribunal against ISO 9001, and there is a growing movement to
develop an ISO-9001-based international standard for electoral bodies.
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Dr. Cort: The best way to
prepare for the evolution of the ISO 9000 family is to become part of it. More than
ever we need to understand your concerns and needs. But even more than that we need
your contributions to build a dynamic ISO 9000 ecosystem that delivers on the value
proposition of our standards. If you have a useful tool or implementation system,
we would love to make it available through our ecosystem. If you can share case
studies, lessons learned, hints and tricks, example implementations, or anything
else that can help unlock the potential of the ISO 9000 family – there is a world
of users and potential users who hunger for this information. Get involved, showcase
your knowledge and results, and help make the world a better place.
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Dr. Cort: ISO standards are
drafted (principally) by technical committees comprised of representatives of the
international community of nations. ISO Technical Committee 176 is one such committee
and is responsible for the 17 international standards that comprise the ISO 9000
family. The national standards bodies of the participating countries – more than
80 in our case – provide our membership. These are the people who actually write
the standards.
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In order to do this job effectively, however, we need lots of input from the public.
We are able to gather some of this input through formal instruments like surveys,
but these just scratch the surface. We desperately need comments, criticisms and
suggestions from business and society in general.
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In today’s fast-moving business world, communication is more important than ever
for establishing expectations and setting priorities. Help us create a high bandwidth
channel for collecting your crucial input.
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