In November 2008, ISO published ISO 9001:2008 - the fourth and latest edition of the quality management system requirements standard. How has it changed? Hector Nairn reports.
In truth, ISO 9001:2008 is only slightly changed from the 2000 edition. It was reviewed just as all standards are - to ensure that they stay relevant and useful.
In the case of ISO 9001, which now has a million certifications in 170 countries, the review process is especially rigorous. Around 1,000 organizations participated in an extensive user-feedback survey and the results were extensively analysed. This exercise demonstrated that, in the words of Charles Corrie, secretary of the ISO drafting committee responsible for the ISO 9000 series, "Internationally, the companies using this standard are comfortable with where the standard is at the moment." Hence the small amendments.
"We want to constantly monitor the standard to ensure that it's still giving leading-edge advice to organizations to help them be competitive," says Corrie. "We don't want an outdated standard that is no longer helpful to the marketplace."
Considerable discussion
While ISO found the current ISO 9001 was still delivering, its review of ISO 9004 went further. ISO 9004 is the companion standard to ISO 9001. It provides guidance on how you can continually improve your business' quality management system, as opposed to ISO 9001, which sets out requirements. Organizations cannot be certified to ISO 9004 - it's about the subjective areas of quality, like management commitment, which can't be audited. Instead, it aims to take organizations that are already certified to ISO 9001 forward, essentially to make the most of the benefits of ISO 9001.
ISO 9004 was reviewed in parallel with ISO 9001, but with a somewhat different result. Instead of amendments, the standard is being considerably revised and has taken a very new direction. In 2000, it was billed as "Quality management systems - Guidelines for performance improvements". When the new standard is published in 2009, it will be "Managing for the sustained success of an organization - A quality management approach".
Future prospects
Why the new focus on "sustained success"? "ISO 9004 is trying to answer the question, what is the purpose of quality?" says Corrie. "In 2000, we looked at customer requirements in the widest possible sense. Now we're addressing why you should do that. The answer is: to achieve sustained success for an organization over the long term."
Does the new direction of ISO 9004 indicate the future direction of ISO 9001? The answer is that it probably does, says Corrie: "ISO 9001 has to be written to provide consistent objective assessment across different organizations, but ISO 9004 calls for subjectivity. Wherever we can migrate the subjective advice in ISO 9004 into ISO 9001 in the future, we will probably do so."
For now, the world has a new and modestly improved ISO 9001. Next year, ISO 9004:2009 is due to be published (note that the Draft International Standard version is already available from ISO). It will be several years before ISO 9001 is changed again, but in the meantime, organizations wishing to take the value of their ISO 9001 certification to the next level can turn to ISO 9004:2009. For everyone else, ISO 9004:2009 suggests an exciting future for ISO 9001.
What's new in ISO 9001:2008?
The new edition of ISO 9001 is an amendment and not a revision; in other words, the changes are very small. They are broadly as follows:
- the user-feedback survey on ISO 9001:2000 revealed that there were some ambiguities and some points needing clarification. These have been tidied up, along with clarification inareas that were previously too open to interpretation.
- the new edition has improved compatibility with ISO 14001 for those wishing to integrate their ISO 14001 certification with their ISO 9001 certification.
ISO 9001:2008 - What it means to certified organizations
For certified organizations, the transition period runs from 14 November 2008 to 31 December 2009. All organizations need to be compliant with ISO 9001:2008 by the end of 2009 to retain their certification. BSI's clients will be audited against the new edition of the standard at their next continuing assessment or re-certification visit.
Antony Barrett, product marketing manager responsible for ISO 9001 at BSI Management Systems UK, comments: "We don't see anyone having any problems in achieving the 2008 edition of the standard." Client managers will work with clients to manage the process.
BSI Management Systems UK has a free webinar on the changes to ISO 9001. Register at: www.bsigroup.com/jan09webinar
BSI Learning is also running a workshop on the enhanced benefits of ISO 9001, during which the changes to the standard will be discussed. For more information: www.bsigroup.com/jan09costorasset
For more information: www.bsigroup.com/jan09iso9001
Source: http://businessstandards.com/Articles/090130_BS26_ISO9001
