When it comes to systems for quality management work, there is often a lack of clear instructions. In most instances there are standards and rules stating what has to be included in a quality management system, but no guidance on what to do to make it come to life and how to implement it throughout the organisation. This is something we intend to change!
How to position your quality management system for success
The process of introducing a management system for systematic quality work can be broken down into four steps. From the very beginning it is important to adapt the roll-out to your specific situation , which is to say where your organisation finds itself right now by using, for example, a GAP analysis.
No quick fix…
Implementing a management system is no quick fix. It usually takes up to two years before all the working practices in a management system are made clear, provided that everything runs without a hitch – which, unfortunately, it rarely does. But there are four simple steps to getting the introduction off to a good start and reducing friction in your organisation.
1. Pave the way - management’s commitment
Prerequisite number 1 for successful implementation is clear leadership that insists on results and analyses in order to develop and improve. Prerequisite number 2 is the desire and courage to switch from an analogue working method, with folders that gather dust, to a dynamic working method in a digital tool.
2. Asses the organisation
Begin by analyzing the organization's current status so as to avoid spending time and energy on the wrong things. Analysis of the organisation’s current status serves as the basis for how to proceed with work on your quality management system.
3. Decide on the content - quality policy
The analysis of your organisation’s current status will have given you an idea of what stage your quality work is currently at. The next step is to establish what will be included in your management system. The following elements are usually included:
- Scope, responsibility, participation
- Basic structure
- Systematic improvement process
- Documentation obligation
- Implement and keep it alive
4. From plan to action
The transition from plan to action is not easy, and this is where the management’s commitment shows through: their commitment to demanding results and analysis, to giving managers and employees feedback, to implementing decisions that result in development and improvement in the operation’s processes. This is the true basis of dynamic quality work.
