ISO 9001 Certification is the international standard most coveted by every other organisation. The best of the bunch and the hallmark of quality, this standard have consistently proven to be the most influential and conspicuous of the ISO Series, establishing it as a worldwide brand for the quality certification. In 2008, this standard received its revision, where the quality management principles where drafted as a cornerstone of auditing by industry professionals from all over the world – where they infused their best knowledge and years of experience into a perfect template for checking the efficiency of an organisation.
Although, the majority of the tenets of the ISO 9001:2008 has stood the test of time, and still remains an impeccable measurement of the business process, certain voices in the industry feel that they could be changed ever so slightly to reflect the changing times that we inhabit. The news of this revision is going to impact a large majority of the business community, and therefore anyone making the transition into this new set of standards needs to examine its credence with the previous version, and then proceed to go for the shift.
The most conspicuous aspect of the new revision will be the changes in terminology, the vast majority of which will be still understandable to the public. Although
, there is slightly more emphasis on the risk-based thinking to enhance the application of the process approach, improved applicability for services, and increased leadership requirements. The new ISO 9001 Certification to ensure that the standard will deliver confidence in the organization’s ability to consistently provide product that meets customer and applicable statutory and regulatory requirements.
The methodology that th
e new ISO 9001 Certification adopts will provide a process oriented approach to documentation and review. Inside the new standard you will information on several topics that the previous covered, and where the latest one improves upon:
- Quality management system documents such as the quality manual
- Requirement such as document control
- Determination of process interactions
- Resource Management and work environment
- Product conception and consummation
- Internal audits
- Corrective and Preventive Action
All of this had started way back in June 2012, when the standards committee decided to come together for a review of the quality management principles. Web based surveys and opinions of the industry experts were all taken into account when it was decided that within a three year schedule, all the necessary will be taken to release a new update by September 2015. And as a result there are four major qualities which show a greater importance in the mechanism in the company. 
Quality Management Emphasis: The new standard will ensure that the Quality Management will play a bigger role in the business strategy of the organisation, and this will be a priority when considering any major changes that the company will undergo.
Leadership: Greater involvement of the leadership team will ensure that the entire organisation will stay motivated and will become more willing to finish the task they’ve been assigned to do. Moreover, this will have a rallying effect as they will start to identify with the leaders goals and objectives.
Risk and Opportunity Management: The management system will now have a more central role when it comes to venturing out for finding territories to occupy i.e., it will be the basis for the company’s adventures into finding out all opportunities that they can use.
An integrated Approach: With the advent of these new system standards it will be really amicable for the organisation to implement multiple and even more integrated quality management systems into the system’s framework, entailing a more smoother functioning of the business process.
The process of tr
ansition into this new ISO 9001 standard will be a very slow process for many organisation, partly because this certification bodies have to accredited by authoritative bodies so as to ensure that the standard keeps its high level of quality and not succumb into false imitators. Secondly, because the vast quantity of organisations currently having the ISO 9001:2008 Certification, needs time to understand the major differences that comes with the change and consequently train themselves and their employees to comply towards the standards specified. In the long run, though, say about two to three years, it is certain that most of them would have made the change successfully, and in turn, signal their entry into a new era of quality management systems.
