Issue 76 – Element 7: Support – Why should Management provide it?
ISO 9001:2015…
Element 7: Support – Why should Management provide it?
Receiving emails with questions and/or comments from readers of this Newsletter is much appreciated… please continue to do so since it provides me with ideas on what these publications should cover. In my last Newsletter (ISO 9001:2015 Newsletter Issue 75) we discussed the topic of “Element 6: Planning – Why should Management do it?”, and now in this Newsletter we will discuss “Element 7: Support – Why should Management provide it?“.
The ISO 9001 Element numbering…
Element 4 – Context of the organization
Element 5 – Leadership
Element 6 – Planning
Element 7 – Support
Element 8 – Operation
Element 9 – Performance evaluation
Element 10 – Improvement
Element 7 – Support consists of five (5) Clauses as listed below:
7.1 Resources
7.2 Competence
7.3 Awareness
7.4 Communication
7.5 Documented information
Let’s talk about Element 7… Like in the previous three Elements (4, 5, 6), again it comes down to deciding how important “Quality” is to your overall business model and business strategies. If “Quality” plays a critical role in your future business growth and business profits then that’s why you would want to provide “support” for it. The very first Clause (7.1 Resources) starts off with requirements for a budgeting process whereby resources needed for “Quality” are expected to be weaved into multiple line items. This is a good example of a proactive step, ensuring Quality gets funded like any other part of the business, and not waiting until Quality breaks to throw resources at it.
Clause 7.1 – Resources
This Clause contains six (6) sub-clauses:
Sub-Clause 7.1.1 (General) is as the name implies “general” regarding the need for resources to ensure the QMS functions properly. As I just mentioned above, this beginning set of requirements are focused on the “budget” process, which happens every year like clockwork (at least in bigger businesses). If you are a Manager of a process or an area or a department or a division or a facility, then ask yourself what activities are critical to the quality of the products and/or services that you and your team are responsible for. Now look inside your Budget and see where you have funded those critical activities. If you haven’t got them covered then ask yourself why not? Quality is never a random event.
Sub-Clause 7.1.2 (People) is a straight-forward requirement to make sure you put “round pegs into round holes”, in other words only give an employee a task that they are capable of doing. Sounds reasonable, right? You’d be surprised how often Managers break this rule because of the day-to-day chaos that occurs in running the business. “People” are probably the single biggest factor in providing “Quality” to your Customers. Nothing comes close. It’s why “Quality” used to be synonymous with “Craftsmanship” many centuries ago, where the individual’s reputation was judged by the quality of their work. Note that this sub-clause applies to any person in the organization who performs activities outlined within the QMS, whether they be management, front-line, full-time, part-time, hourly, salary, union, non-union, contract, temporary, telecommuter, summer/co-op student, intern, virtual worker, etc. If they touch a Customer’s Order (or can impact it) then they are in.
Sub-Clause 7.1.3 (Infrastructure) contains requirements for all of the “macro” things needed to run the business such as buildings, equipment, utilities, transportation resources, information technology, etc. All of those macro things are needed (and needed to function smoothly) to run your business… and as we said earlier, requires paying attention to how they can impact “Quality”.
Sub-Clause 7.1.4 (Environment for the operation of processes) goes hand-in-hand with the previous Clause (Infrastructure) but is now more focused on the “micro” things in your business, like work areas and work stations. Think of the physical factors in a work environment such as temperature, heat, humidity, light, airflow, hygiene, noise, etc.
Sub-Clause 7.1.5 (Monitoring and measuring resources) – The easiest way to understand this sub-clause is to think “monitoring and measuring devices”. Here they are asking you to select the right “devices” to use monitor and measure your processes, and then make sure they are “calibrated” so that Managers/Employees can make good decisions based on the data they provide. I sometimes get asked “why bother calibrating?”… I usually respond by asking “then why bother measuring at all if you don’t care if the device is working properly?”.
Sub-Clause 7.1.6 (Organizational knowledge) – This sub-clause addresses the risk of knowledge walking out the door (retirees, etc) with the possible negative impact on Customer orders. Probably the easiest way to begin capturing business knowledge is to write down (or record) what you do within every process. This may sound overwhelming but here is a simple analogy: Do you really want to memorize how to prepare all the meals you enjoy?… Wouldn’t it be easier to just write this all down and put them into a recipe box for when you need them? Running your business shouldn’t require anything less… why leave a process to chance? Document it… standardize it… forget about it.
Clause 7.2 Competence: This Clause connects directly with the “People” sub-clause discussed above. The idea here is to regularly check that those Employees that can impact “Quality” get assessed to ensure they remain competent in their assigned roles. Every person in the organization needs feedback… and wants feedback… on how they are doing… this is a crucial component of “managing” others, effectively.
Clause 7.3 Awareness: This Clause encourages Managers to practice transparency when it comes to making their people aware of why Quality is important (the Quality policy); what Quality targets and goals the organization wants to reach (the Quality objectives); what level of “Quality” is currently being achieved; and how they personally can contribute to achieving good “Quality” (and vice-versa). If you want everyone to be on the same Team when it comes to “Quality” then you need have them all reading from the same song-sheet.
Clause 7.4 Communication: This Clause addresses one of the most complained about processes in many companies, and Managers are the ones that need to improve it (i.e. communication). If you want poor Quality then practice poor communication. The requirements are asking you to spell out “who”, “what”, “when”, “where” and “how” your organization will communicate both internally, and externally.
Clause 7.5 Documented Information: Remember sub-clause 7.1.6 (Organizational knowledge) discussed above? This Clause builds on this concept by asking you to document your processes by capturing what it is that your company does. As an aside, don’t assume that a series of written paragraphs is the only format to document a process… I’ve seen procedures that include process maps, flow diagrams, pictures/photos, screenshots, audio/video recordings, sample boards, etc. After you’ve spent the time to write the “Users Manual” for your business, then make sure to keep it up-to-date!
Be sure to watch for our next Newsletter issue where I will be answering some of the questions that I get from Readers of my Newsletters about how to implement the requirements of ISO 9001:2015 in a specific and practical way, that will also help improve business performance…
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Need Help?
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For cost effectiveness, the Internal Audit function can be outsourced to an external experienced auditor on a periodic basis. This will provide an independent and objective assessment to management, of where process issues may exist, along with identifying opportunities for improvement. It will also provide the evidence needed to satisfy the Internal Audit requirements in the ISO Standards. We have used two different approaches with this service: a) We conduct the entire audit ourselves, or b) We act as the lead auditor, and along with your Team of internal auditors, we complete the entire audit together. This latter approach allows your people to receive guidance and direction from an experienced lead auditor while at the same time maintaining significant involvement in the internal audit process.
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Internal Process Auditor Training for ISO 9001:2015
The two (2) day Internal Process Auditing for ISO 9001:2015 Training Session is focused on a process approach to auditing with the objective being not only to assess conformance of the quality management system, but also to uncover process improvements during an audit. This goes hand in hand with the process auditing requirements found within ISO 19011 and the process approach covered in ISO 9001:2015, which promotes continual process improvement throughout this Standard. An enhanced checklist is developed, and there will be workshops throughout, to reinforce learning, as well as a live, practice audit. If you are looking to meet the ISO 9001:2015 internal audit requirements and to “raise the bar” for your internal audit program then this is the course you should consider.
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Until next time…
Tim Renaud
Helping Business Professionals Reduce Risk and Remove Waste!