Obtaining ISO 9001 certification is important to attest to the level of quality management, but it is even more important to think about maintenance. At the end of a year, it is necessary to submit the company to a new assessment – whether or not it offers recertification.
So that all the effort in obtaining the certification is not wasted, it is essential to carry out the maintenance of ISO 9001. Therefore, here are 6 tips on how to carry out this process successfully.
Define the right implementation method for your company
Maintaining ISO 9001 requires a series of activities that need to be closely monitored and kept within certain parameters for management to continue to mature. Despite this, each company has its own needs and particularities. Thus, it is essential to define which deployment method is the most suitable for your company. You can perform actions every quarter, divide actions by sectors or else do everything in an agile and continuous way.
Perform diagnostics and planning
It is also important to carry out internal diagnostics and planning, including those based on the implantation method. From these diagnoses, it is possible to identify which are the most problematic processes, for instance. With planning, it is possible to define what are the necessary actions to achieve the maximum result in quality.
Have training cycles
After obtaining ISO 9001 certification and during the maintenance period, new market needs, new technologies and new standards are likely to emerge. To maintain the ISO certification, it is essential that employees follow all these changes. Thus, it is recommended that employees go through at least one or two training cycles during this maintenance period, in order to guarantee recycling and setting quality standards.
Involve employees in this maintenance
In addition to being continuously trained, employees also need to be involved. There is no quality without the participation of those who most influence the processes, so it is necessary that everyone is aware of the importance of this maintenance.
This involvement generates a commitment to maintaining the quality levels corresponding to ISO 9001, which favors recertification at the end of the period.
Perform internal audits
Internal audits serve as a kind of test to point out which are the critical points that are still out of the standard or that need to be monitored closely. Thus, it is important to carry out internal audits as a way to identify which points may impair maintenance. After the internal audit, specific plans must be carried out on the points found, in order to guarantee the success of the maintenance.
Consider the assistance of a software planning and development company
Technology plays an important role in achieving ISO 9001 and an even more fundamental role in maintaining it. With the use of software focused on quality management, it is possible to perform integrations between processes and obtain better results in general.
Therefore, it is essential to consider having the support of a company specialized in developing solutions of this type in order to maintain the certification. The maintenance of ISO 9001 in your company is possible if there is a focus on planning, recognition of results, involvement and training of employees, in addition to the use of technology. In this sense, it is also essential to have a specialized company focused on developing solutions and software aimed at quality management.
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