Do I need a Management System?

‘Do I need a Management System?’

It’s funny how many people ask this in the early stages of an organisation’s development. Clearly these organisations already have a Management System; interrelated processes for getting things done. And, unencumbered by anything but achieving the goal, some of these system designs are as direct and effective as is achievable: make the product, sell it, collect the money…. it’s still a Management System.

Perhaps a better way to phrase the question is ‘should I have an efficient, consistent, repeatable and documented way of doing things.’ The answer to this should be an emphatic “YES”. If you do something well, document the process and ensure you do it just as well next time. 

There are further benefits to;

-        Could the process be improved?

-        If errors occur, will you learn from them?

-        Would others doing the same task use the same process and achieve the same result?

So, a documented Management System is a business fundamental. The next logical question is ‘Do I need a Certified Management System?’. This question is a little more subjective; some organisations have no need to take this next step and others will see significant benefits.

An organisation might need a Certified Management System to satisfy customer requirements. But if this is the only motive to become Certified your business is missing out. Since 2015 ISO Quality and Environment standards, followed in 2018 by Health & Safety have mandated that organisations should consider a more holistic view of the business. For example;

-        Determining Organisational Context is a requirement of these standards and will challenge organisations to step back and consider the environment in which they do business

-        Leadership will be challenged – are strategic decisions having a positive or negative impact

-        Assessing Risks and Opportunities is also a requirement and will stretch companies to consider the ‘what if’s’ – whether good or bad

-        Clauses challenging communication will highlight whether Strategy in the Boardroom delivers consistent Tactics on the shopfloor

So used correctly, Management Systems can be a highly effective Business Improvement tool with benefits reaching all parts of the organisation. They can and should be used to amplify the good whilst identifying and helping to change the bad the benefits of which will be noticeable to all.

If you need help with you Management System, Certified or not, contact us at enquiries@iqmslearning.co.uk for an informal chat and we’ll be glad to help.

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