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The benefits to be gained from a QMS that is fully compliant with the Standard and integrates business strategy with quality management is summarized in Table 20.1. We have assumed that the fully responsive techniques discussed in this book have been chosen to create the QMS. Specifically, Table 20.1 considers the benefits to be gained for three functional categories:
Type I—readers: for the readership, the benefits extend from improved communication to improved strategic and tactical decisions. Most importantly, all members of the value chain are included in this group.
Type II—organizational objectives: with regard to organizational strategy, the impact is exceptional when we analyze the organization's ability to set, pursue, and communicate quality objectives. This enhanced communication begins with the posted organization's quality policy and propagates throughout the organization via the publication of progress reports on measured performance. Although measured performance was a requirement in the 1994 version, it is more solidly and formally addressed in the 2000 version, especially with the focus on quantitative analysis.
Type III—the QMS: with respect to the QMS, we observe a strong impact on the clarity and completeness of tier II documents. The tier II documents have been extended over the 1994 version to more clearly address the need for process documents that can be in the form of SOPs. However, the focus on processes opens up the doorway to a TQM evaluation of all of the organization's core competencies.
Table 20.1: Benefits of the Unified QMS (Fully Compliant with the Standard and Integrates Business Strategy with Quality Management)
Type of Reader or Function Type I—Readers | Benefits |
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Site manager | Significantly improved communication at all levels; opportunity to modify processes based on a more complete perspective |
Executive staff | Obviously strong correlation between the completeness of the manual and the overall knowledge of the executive staff with regard to business policy |
Customer | Dramatic improvement in communication and acceptance for more demanding contracts |
Third-party registrars and assessors | Exceptional clarity leads to a far more effective assessment at a greater depth into the organization |
Subsuppliers | Significantly improved grasp of your objectives and how to respond to them |
All decision makers | The availability of clear and concise information significantly improves the decision-making process |
Type of Reader or Function Type II—Organizational Objectives | Benefits |
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Response to organizational objectives | Exceptional response at all levels of the organization in the measurement and publication of enterprise metrics |
A powerful framework within which to establish quantitative quality objectives throughout the enterprise and to categorize them in terms of metrics and goals/targets | |
A signal to all employees that the main purpose of the ISO 9000 certification is to improve the effectiveness of the operation, not just achieve certification |
Type of Reader or Function Type III—The QMS | Benefits |
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Tier II documentation | Very strong influence on the completeness and effectiveness of hub documents and knowledge of business processes |
Tiers III and IV documentation | Appears to have a minor effect. We have observed exceptional tier III performance with incomplete manuals |
However, the impact on tier III documents as compared to tier II documentation is not that strong. This comes as no surprise because every organization, no matter how new or small, must work from some basic documentation and formatting. It is not unusual to find excellent work instructions and significantly incomplete manuals in the same organization.
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