During years and years of consultancy, we’ve seen many people believing that the standard requires much more than they are capable of, no matter which version of the standard was in discussion. This happens especially for beginners, but we noted that even experienced persons had misjudged the requirements of the standard. Below are some classical examples of what ISO 9001:2000 does not require. You don’t have to have leading edge machinery and technology! Even if this would be a perfect situation, ISO 9001:2000 requires you to provide adequate equipment. Adequacy is strictly related to customer requirements. In other words, when a customer asks you to make a product for him, you will have to take in consideration what are those requirements, and perform an analyze to determine if you are capable of doing that. If the answer of analyze is yes, then is OK, with the technology and machinery you have available. If not, inform the customer that you can’t meet his requirements. Analyze has to take in consideration, among other things, if your machinery is capable of making that product or not. Conclusion: if you believe that your equipments are not suitable for an ISO 9001:2000 certification, just revise that idea... ISO 9001:2000 is not telling you when the suitable moment for going for a certification is! Many companies have in their mind to start applying ISO 9001:2000 standard. However, they believe that that moment has not come yet, because of changes in internal organizing, low qualification of employees, etc. This idea is completely wrong. The best way of managing changes in organization, improving the human resource level is to have a quality management system based on ISO 9001:2000 standard. For instance, the standard requires you to manage in a rational way any changes of the system; in other words, think of a change, establish it, then put it into practice as an experiment, checking how suitable it is. If it’s suitable, make that change permanent. If not, forget it. According to standard requirements, you’ll have to maintain the integrity of the system (which is what you are doing day by day in the company) when changes occur. As for human resource issue, the standard requires for you to provide needed training, so that to reach "the proper employee at proper place". ISO 9001:2000 is not asking you not to make mistakes! One of the most bizarre ideas of ISO 9001:2000 standard is that you are not allowed to make mistakes. In other words, all the time you have to make a perfect product, without rejects. If you will achieve this level, your company is will be a perfect one! Perfection is in heaven, not on earth. Let’s remember some of the basic requirements of the standard. One of them is continual improvement. If you reached the perfection, no continual improvement is possible any more, this means that you are not complying with standard requirements. This would be a big problem... What you have to know is that ISO 9001:2000 requires from you to learn from your previous mistakes, as much as possible. The way of doing that is to analyze nonconformance, figure out what was the cause, then decide if there is needed any corrective action, and if the answer is yes, come up with one, if possible. ISO 9001:2000 does not require tons and tons of documentation! Some believes that every little thing that is done in the company has to have an associate documentation, which clearly describes that. This is completely wrong. Each company seeks to be more effective and efficient. Having large documentations may be useful, but not all the time. The standard simply says that the amount of documentation has to be correlated with the complexity of processes and experience of employees. Bureaucracy is not an ISO 9001:2000 requirement at all! When high complexity of processes exist or when low qualification of working force exist, then documentation should be issued. ISO 9001:2000 it doesn’t require you to open the door for the customer! Of course, this is just an example, related with polite human behavior, but is not a standard requirement. In other words, the standard does not tell you how to do things, but requires you to prove that you did them. It’s entirely up to you to decide what you will do. In a simple way: the standard does not care how you do things! A recent example we faced: An architectural company said to us: I believed that you, as consultants, will tell me how draw!!! Totally wrong, since we are not architects. It’s each company’s freedom to decide how they will do things...
You don’t have to have leading edge machinery and technology! Even if this would be a perfect situation, ISO 9001:2000 requires you to provide adequate equipment. Adequacy is strictly related to customer requirements. In other words, when a customer asks you to make a product for him, you will have to take in consideration what are those requirements, and perform an analyze to determine if you are capable of doing that. If the answer of analyze is yes, then is OK, with the technology and machinery you have available. If not, inform the customer that you can’t meet his requirements. Analyze has to take in consideration, among other things, if your machinery is capable of making that product or not. Conclusion: if you believe that your equipments are not suitable for an ISO 9001:2000 certification, just revise that idea... ISO 9001:2000 is not telling you when the suitable moment for going for a certification is! Many companies have in their mind to start applying ISO 9001:2000 standard. However, they believe that that moment has not come yet, because of changes in internal organizing, low qualification of employees, etc. This idea is completely wrong. The best way of managing changes in organization, improving the human resource level is to have a quality management system based on ISO 9001:2000 standard. For instance, the standard requires you to manage in a rational way any changes of the system; in other words, think of a change, establish it, then put it into practice as an experiment, checking how suitable it is. If it’s suitable, make that change permanent. If not, forget it. According to standard requirements, you’ll have to maintain the integrity of the system (which is what you are doing day by day in the company) when changes occur. As for human resource issue, the standard requires for you to provide needed training, so that to reach "the proper employee at proper place". ISO 9001:2000 is not asking you not to make mistakes! One of the most bizarre ideas of ISO 9001:2000 standard is that you are not allowed to make mistakes. In other words, all the time you have to make a perfect product, without rejects. If you will achieve this level, your company is will be a perfect one! Perfection is in heaven, not on earth. Let’s remember some of the basic requirements of the standard. One of them is continual improvement. If you reached the perfection, no continual improvement is possible any more, this means that you are not complying with standard requirements. This would be a big problem... What you have to know is that ISO 9001:2000 requires from you to learn from your previous mistakes, as much as possible. The way of doing that is to analyze nonconformance, figure out what was the cause, then decide if there is needed any corrective action, and if the answer is yes, come up with one, if possible. ISO 9001:2000 does not require tons and tons of documentation! Some believes that every little thing that is done in the company has to have an associate documentation, which clearly describes that. This is completely wrong. Each company seeks to be more effective and efficient. Having large documentations may be useful, but not all the time. The standard simply says that the amount of documentation has to be correlated with the complexity of processes and experience of employees. Bureaucracy is not an ISO 9001:2000 requirement at all! When high complexity of processes exist or when low qualification of working force exist, then documentation should be issued. ISO 9001:2000 it doesn’t require you to open the door for the customer! Of course, this is just an example, related with polite human behavior, but is not a standard requirement. In other words, the standard does not tell you how to do things, but requires you to prove that you did them. It’s entirely up to you to decide what you will do. In a simple way: the standard does not care how you do things! A recent example we faced: An architectural company said to us: I believed that you, as consultants, will tell me how draw!!! Totally wrong, since we are not architects. It’s each company’s freedom to decide how they will do things...
Even if this would be a perfect situation, ISO 9001:2000 requires you to provide adequate equipment. Adequacy is strictly related to customer requirements. In other words, when a customer asks you to make a product for him, you will have to take in consideration what are those requirements, and perform an analyze to determine if you are capable of doing that. If the answer of analyze is yes, then is OK, with the technology and machinery you have available. If not, inform the customer that you can’t meet his requirements. Analyze has to take in consideration, among other things, if your machinery is capable of making that product or not. Conclusion: if you believe that your equipments are not suitable for an ISO 9001:2000 certification, just revise that idea... ISO 9001:2000 is not telling you when the suitable moment for going for a certification is! Many companies have in their mind to start applying ISO 9001:2000 standard. However, they believe that that moment has not come yet, because of changes in internal organizing, low qualification of employees, etc. This idea is completely wrong. The best way of managing changes in organization, improving the human resource level is to have a quality management system based on ISO 9001:2000 standard. For instance, the standard requires you to manage in a rational way any changes of the system; in other words, think of a change, establish it, then put it into practice as an experiment, checking how suitable it is. If it’s suitable, make that change permanent. If not, forget it. According to standard requirements, you’ll have to maintain the integrity of the system (which is what you are doing day by day in the company) when changes occur. As for human resource issue, the standard requires for you to provide needed training, so that to reach "the proper employee at proper place". ISO 9001:2000 is not asking you not to make mistakes! One of the most bizarre ideas of ISO 9001:2000 standard is that you are not allowed to make mistakes. In other words, all the time you have to make a perfect product, without rejects. If you will achieve this level, your company is will be a perfect one! Perfection is in heaven, not on earth. Let’s remember some of the basic requirements of the standard. One of them is continual improvement. If you reached the perfection, no continual improvement is possible any more, this means that you are not complying with standard requirements. This would be a big problem... What you have to know is that ISO 9001:2000 requires from you to learn from your previous mistakes, as much as possible. The way of doing that is to analyze nonconformance, figure out what was the cause, then decide if there is needed any corrective action, and if the answer is yes, come up with one, if possible. ISO 9001:2000 does not require tons and tons of documentation! Some believes that every little thing that is done in the company has to have an associate documentation, which clearly describes that. This is completely wrong. Each company seeks to be more effective and efficient. Having large documentations may be useful, but not all the time. The standard simply says that the amount of documentation has to be correlated with the complexity of processes and experience of employees. Bureaucracy is not an ISO 9001:2000 requirement at all! When high complexity of processes exist or when low qualification of working force exist, then documentation should be issued. ISO 9001:2000 it doesn’t require you to open the door for the customer! Of course, this is just an example, related with polite human behavior, but is not a standard requirement. In other words, the standard does not tell you how to do things, but requires you to prove that you did them. It’s entirely up to you to decide what you will do. In a simple way: the standard does not care how you do things! A recent example we faced: An architectural company said to us: I believed that you, as consultants, will tell me how draw!!! Totally wrong, since we are not architects. It’s each company’s freedom to decide how they will do things...
ISO 9001:2000 is not telling you when the suitable moment for going for a certification is! Many companies have in their mind to start applying ISO 9001:2000 standard. However, they believe that that moment has not come yet, because of changes in internal organizing, low qualification of employees, etc. This idea is completely wrong. The best way of managing changes in organization, improving the human resource level is to have a quality management system based on ISO 9001:2000 standard. For instance, the standard requires you to manage in a rational way any changes of the system; in other words, think of a change, establish it, then put it into practice as an experiment, checking how suitable it is. If it’s suitable, make that change permanent. If not, forget it. According to standard requirements, you’ll have to maintain the integrity of the system (which is what you are doing day by day in the company) when changes occur. As for human resource issue, the standard requires for you to provide needed training, so that to reach "the proper employee at proper place". ISO 9001:2000 is not asking you not to make mistakes! One of the most bizarre ideas of ISO 9001:2000 standard is that you are not allowed to make mistakes. In other words, all the time you have to make a perfect product, without rejects. If you will achieve this level, your company is will be a perfect one! Perfection is in heaven, not on earth. Let’s remember some of the basic requirements of the standard. One of them is continual improvement. If you reached the perfection, no continual improvement is possible any more, this means that you are not complying with standard requirements. This would be a big problem... What you have to know is that ISO 9001:2000 requires from you to learn from your previous mistakes, as much as possible. The way of doing that is to analyze nonconformance, figure out what was the cause, then decide if there is needed any corrective action, and if the answer is yes, come up with one, if possible. ISO 9001:2000 does not require tons and tons of documentation! Some believes that every little thing that is done in the company has to have an associate documentation, which clearly describes that. This is completely wrong. Each company seeks to be more effective and efficient. Having large documentations may be useful, but not all the time. The standard simply says that the amount of documentation has to be correlated with the complexity of processes and experience of employees. Bureaucracy is not an ISO 9001:2000 requirement at all! When high complexity of processes exist or when low qualification of working force exist, then documentation should be issued. ISO 9001:2000 it doesn’t require you to open the door for the customer! Of course, this is just an example, related with polite human behavior, but is not a standard requirement. In other words, the standard does not tell you how to do things, but requires you to prove that you did them. It’s entirely up to you to decide what you will do. In a simple way: the standard does not care how you do things! A recent example we faced: An architectural company said to us: I believed that you, as consultants, will tell me how draw!!! Totally wrong, since we are not architects. It’s each company’s freedom to decide how they will do things...
Many companies have in their mind to start applying ISO 9001:2000 standard. However, they believe that that moment has not come yet, because of changes in internal organizing, low qualification of employees, etc. This idea is completely wrong. The best way of managing changes in organization, improving the human resource level is to have a quality management system based on ISO 9001:2000 standard. For instance, the standard requires you to manage in a rational way any changes of the system; in other words, think of a change, establish it, then put it into practice as an experiment, checking how suitable it is. If it’s suitable, make that change permanent. If not, forget it. According to standard requirements, you’ll have to maintain the integrity of the system (which is what you are doing day by day in the company) when changes occur. As for human resource issue, the standard requires for you to provide needed training, so that to reach "the proper employee at proper place". ISO 9001:2000 is not asking you not to make mistakes! One of the most bizarre ideas of ISO 9001:2000 standard is that you are not allowed to make mistakes. In other words, all the time you have to make a perfect product, without rejects. If you will achieve this level, your company is will be a perfect one! Perfection is in heaven, not on earth. Let’s remember some of the basic requirements of the standard. One of them is continual improvement. If you reached the perfection, no continual improvement is possible any more, this means that you are not complying with standard requirements. This would be a big problem... What you have to know is that ISO 9001:2000 requires from you to learn from your previous mistakes, as much as possible. The way of doing that is to analyze nonconformance, figure out what was the cause, then decide if there is needed any corrective action, and if the answer is yes, come up with one, if possible. ISO 9001:2000 does not require tons and tons of documentation! Some believes that every little thing that is done in the company has to have an associate documentation, which clearly describes that. This is completely wrong. Each company seeks to be more effective and efficient. Having large documentations may be useful, but not all the time. The standard simply says that the amount of documentation has to be correlated with the complexity of processes and experience of employees. Bureaucracy is not an ISO 9001:2000 requirement at all! When high complexity of processes exist or when low qualification of working force exist, then documentation should be issued. ISO 9001:2000 it doesn’t require you to open the door for the customer! Of course, this is just an example, related with polite human behavior, but is not a standard requirement. In other words, the standard does not tell you how to do things, but requires you to prove that you did them. It’s entirely up to you to decide what you will do. In a simple way: the standard does not care how you do things! A recent example we faced: An architectural company said to us: I believed that you, as consultants, will tell me how draw!!! Totally wrong, since we are not architects. It’s each company’s freedom to decide how they will do things...
ISO 9001:2000 is not asking you not to make mistakes! One of the most bizarre ideas of ISO 9001:2000 standard is that you are not allowed to make mistakes. In other words, all the time you have to make a perfect product, without rejects. If you will achieve this level, your company is will be a perfect one! Perfection is in heaven, not on earth. Let’s remember some of the basic requirements of the standard. One of them is continual improvement. If you reached the perfection, no continual improvement is possible any more, this means that you are not complying with standard requirements. This would be a big problem... What you have to know is that ISO 9001:2000 requires from you to learn from your previous mistakes, as much as possible. The way of doing that is to analyze nonconformance, figure out what was the cause, then decide if there is needed any corrective action, and if the answer is yes, come up with one, if possible. ISO 9001:2000 does not require tons and tons of documentation! Some believes that every little thing that is done in the company has to have an associate documentation, which clearly describes that. This is completely wrong. Each company seeks to be more effective and efficient. Having large documentations may be useful, but not all the time. The standard simply says that the amount of documentation has to be correlated with the complexity of processes and experience of employees. Bureaucracy is not an ISO 9001:2000 requirement at all! When high complexity of processes exist or when low qualification of working force exist, then documentation should be issued. ISO 9001:2000 it doesn’t require you to open the door for the customer! Of course, this is just an example, related with polite human behavior, but is not a standard requirement. In other words, the standard does not tell you how to do things, but requires you to prove that you did them. It’s entirely up to you to decide what you will do. In a simple way: the standard does not care how you do things! A recent example we faced: An architectural company said to us: I believed that you, as consultants, will tell me how draw!!! Totally wrong, since we are not architects. It’s each company’s freedom to decide how they will do things...
One of the most bizarre ideas of ISO 9001:2000 standard is that you are not allowed to make mistakes. In other words, all the time you have to make a perfect product, without rejects. If you will achieve this level, your company is will be a perfect one! Perfection is in heaven, not on earth. Let’s remember some of the basic requirements of the standard. One of them is continual improvement. If you reached the perfection, no continual improvement is possible any more, this means that you are not complying with standard requirements. This would be a big problem... What you have to know is that ISO 9001:2000 requires from you to learn from your previous mistakes, as much as possible. The way of doing that is to analyze nonconformance, figure out what was the cause, then decide if there is needed any corrective action, and if the answer is yes, come up with one, if possible. ISO 9001:2000 does not require tons and tons of documentation! Some believes that every little thing that is done in the company has to have an associate documentation, which clearly describes that. This is completely wrong. Each company seeks to be more effective and efficient. Having large documentations may be useful, but not all the time. The standard simply says that the amount of documentation has to be correlated with the complexity of processes and experience of employees. Bureaucracy is not an ISO 9001:2000 requirement at all! When high complexity of processes exist or when low qualification of working force exist, then documentation should be issued. ISO 9001:2000 it doesn’t require you to open the door for the customer! Of course, this is just an example, related with polite human behavior, but is not a standard requirement. In other words, the standard does not tell you how to do things, but requires you to prove that you did them. It’s entirely up to you to decide what you will do. In a simple way: the standard does not care how you do things! A recent example we faced: An architectural company said to us: I believed that you, as consultants, will tell me how draw!!! Totally wrong, since we are not architects. It’s each company’s freedom to decide how they will do things...
ISO 9001:2000 does not require tons and tons of documentation! Some believes that every little thing that is done in the company has to have an associate documentation, which clearly describes that. This is completely wrong. Each company seeks to be more effective and efficient. Having large documentations may be useful, but not all the time. The standard simply says that the amount of documentation has to be correlated with the complexity of processes and experience of employees. Bureaucracy is not an ISO 9001:2000 requirement at all! When high complexity of processes exist or when low qualification of working force exist, then documentation should be issued. ISO 9001:2000 it doesn’t require you to open the door for the customer! Of course, this is just an example, related with polite human behavior, but is not a standard requirement. In other words, the standard does not tell you how to do things, but requires you to prove that you did them. It’s entirely up to you to decide what you will do. In a simple way: the standard does not care how you do things! A recent example we faced: An architectural company said to us: I believed that you, as consultants, will tell me how draw!!! Totally wrong, since we are not architects. It’s each company’s freedom to decide how they will do things...
Some believes that every little thing that is done in the company has to have an associate documentation, which clearly describes that. This is completely wrong. Each company seeks to be more effective and efficient. Having large documentations may be useful, but not all the time. The standard simply says that the amount of documentation has to be correlated with the complexity of processes and experience of employees. Bureaucracy is not an ISO 9001:2000 requirement at all! When high complexity of processes exist or when low qualification of working force exist, then documentation should be issued. ISO 9001:2000 it doesn’t require you to open the door for the customer! Of course, this is just an example, related with polite human behavior, but is not a standard requirement. In other words, the standard does not tell you how to do things, but requires you to prove that you did them. It’s entirely up to you to decide what you will do. In a simple way: the standard does not care how you do things! A recent example we faced: An architectural company said to us: I believed that you, as consultants, will tell me how draw!!! Totally wrong, since we are not architects. It’s each company’s freedom to decide how they will do things...
ISO 9001:2000 it doesn’t require you to open the door for the customer! Of course, this is just an example, related with polite human behavior, but is not a standard requirement. In other words, the standard does not tell you how to do things, but requires you to prove that you did them. It’s entirely up to you to decide what you will do. In a simple way: the standard does not care how you do things! A recent example we faced: An architectural company said to us: I believed that you, as consultants, will tell me how draw!!! Totally wrong, since we are not architects. It’s each company’s freedom to decide how they will do things...
Of course, this is just an example, related with polite human behavior, but is not a standard requirement. In other words, the standard does not tell you how to do things, but requires you to prove that you did them. It’s entirely up to you to decide what you will do. In a simple way: the standard does not care how you do things! A recent example we faced: An architectural company said to us: I believed that you, as consultants, will tell me how draw!!! Totally wrong, since we are not architects. It’s each company’s freedom to decide how they will do things...
