When analyzing a problem and determining its root cause, you need to apply logical and critical thinking, analytical skills and calculations to fit pieces together like a puzzle to present a picture that makes sense to the beholder. When fixing a problem, it shouldn’t be enough to just use a band-aid solution – if you fix the symptoms only, the problem is more likely to occur again. You should want to determine the root cause of the problem to ensure that it never happens again. Determining a root cause can be an easy few questions and answers, but here at ISO Update, we want to help you improve your ISO 9001 Root Cause Analysis to ensure your organization is performing at its best.

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ISO 14001 is the international standard for an effective environmental management system (EMS). It is a tool to assess organizational goals and performance and can be integrated with multiple other standards, such as ISO 9001. The standard focuses on optimizing an organization’s processes based on the international standard to ensure the organization is operating in a manner that will consistently produce products with no negative environmental impacts and strives for a positive impact on the environment. ISO 14001 was revised in 2015 and as of the ISO Survey Results released in 2018, ISO 14001 has been utilized by over 300,000 companies with over 440,000 physical sites certified around the world. These guidelines are all-inclusive and generic such that they can be applied to any industry and can be adopted by any organization regardless of its sector, location or size. 

2015 Revision

ISO 14001 was first established in 2004 and its most recent revision was released in 2015. The initial standard was confined to a narrow scope of environmental concerns and included only bigger enterprises. The revision brought about significant advancements including a high-level structure, expansion in the scope of environmental management services, expanded operational requirements and inclusivity of companies of all levels and sizes. Moreover, it also covers an extended array of domains concerning environmental management systems. It includes performance evaluation, improvement, support, operation, management, leadership, and support. 

Industrial Scope

ISO 14001 facilitates the environmental performance and operations of organizations and enables them to gain the trust of the stakeholders. The standard forms a basis for a continuous system of improvement and caters to stakeholder relevant environmental issues such as waste management, resource utilization and management, air and water pollution, and climate change alleviation. Properly utilizing ISO 14001 also works towards minimizing energy wastage and optimizing resource usage and efficiency, leading to decreased costs and increased operational savings. ISO 14001 aims to address the environmental concerns of organizations in a holistic pattern and provide companies with a competitive edge in the market. 

Benefits for Organizations

Companies have reported multi-faceted perks directly as a result of implementing ISO 14001 such as:

• increased engagement of employees,
• financial advantage,
• better market image,
• the confidence of stakeholders, and
• competitive advantage

It was observed through research that SMEs are reluctant to adopt standards, with the most common reason being a lack of capital required for its adoption. ISO 4001 is specifically made to include both larger enterprises and SMEs on a similar set of regulations, meaning your larger competitors would be held to the same standards as you are if government entities were to move to mandate ISO 14001. Having a system in place before growth also sets your organization up for success as you grow, allowing your system to utilize best practices from the start without the costly need for external help after the fact. Preparing now will be a more cost-effective solution than fixing, evaluating, researching, and implementing a solution later on.

ISO 14001 is largely meant to enable your organization to minimize hazardous impacts to the environment. In this way, the companies abide by the environmental regulations alongside specific performance and operational indicators to ensure continual improvement. ISO 14001 also allows you to consider local, regional, and international regulations in an effective manner, to ensure your organization is compliant with all laws and regulations of every market you are present in, and any you wish to enter. Because of this, certification not only drives market compatibility but also brings about positive changes in the internal dynamics of your company.

Integrating ISO 14001

If you are interested in becoming certified to ISO 14001, you will need to first implement the system in your business effectively. This is done through properly understanding the standard, its requirements and an understanding of your organization and its capabilities. Proper implementation and certification to ISO 14001 is possible without certification to any other standard, or alongside other standards like ISO 9001:2015. It is our recommendation that any organization, no matter what industry can benefit from more than one standard certification. You may want to consider adopting both ISO 9001, the standard for quality management systems, and ISO 14001 and consider standards like ISO 45001, the health and safety management system, and ISO 27001, for information security management. At ISO Update, we believe strongly in the benefits that utilizing standards brings to companies.

The following approaches are effective for all ISO Standard management system implementations, just ensure the people you utilize have the correct credentials and experience.

Internal Implementation

Utilizing internal resources such as a quality management team or department is a great implementation method. Internal quality representatives with insider knowledge allow your management system to be truly unique and effective for your personal processes. It is also arguably easier to be held accountable to your EMS when it is internally developed and familiar.

Utilizing an internal quality team to develop your implementation plan, execute your new system, and monitor its effectiveness is encouraged within the requirements of ISO 14001 and most management systems for the purposes of demonstrating leadership and promoting the adoption of the standard and its best practices effectively. However, not all organizations have the capacity to dedicate personnel to this role or no personnel have the training or knowledge immediately to prepare a system well enough. Many Certification Bodies offer training for internal systems management, internal auditing, and informational sessions on each standard, so be sure to investigate what is available in your area.

Learn more about courses available in the ISOUpdate Training Directory.

External Implementation

Many organizations benefit from external implementation or consultants. An ISO Consultant works as an extension of your organization to become your “internal auditor”, without being a full-time employee. Consultants are typically ISO Auditors who have been working within the standard for several years and are hired by organizations like yourself to evaluate, critique and help you implement a management system that is completely tailored to your organization. An effective consultant should understand your industry, have valid industry codes, and experience you trust. It is important to utilize your typical hiring methods when looking to hire an ISO Consultant, considering your corporate culture, its needs and how your new consultant will work within your organization. This auditor should be an extension of your company, just like any other employee, and should be a person you trust and respect.

Consultants have the bonus of personal experience with External Auditors, the auditors that will come into your organization once per calendar year to evaluate your systems for certification. Consultants often have years of experience working with or for Certification Bodies and understand how to navigate you and your system through an effective audit and prepare your organization for success.

Consider: Your organization can have it all. Consider adopting both implementation approaches for the most benefit to your organization. Having internal personnel or a team dedicated to your management system with insider knowledge and experience of your company and the added experience in ISO and Auditing of a consultant to aid them periodically is immensely beneficial to your system and your company. Consider contacting a few CB’s and Consultants in your area to determine their recommendations based on your current capabilities, resources, your current management systems, and size of your company.

Written by Aurion

ISO Certification is always beneficial for industries as it helps in achieving business productivity. It also helps organizations to enhance customer satisfaction and improve product quality

ISO Certification consists of certain guidelines, standard practices, and requirements. It will help to transform organizational culture.

The organization will embrace the process of :

• Practising quality first business processes
• Optimizing business operations to continue, and,
• Achieve higher business productivity.

ISO Certifications ideal for the Construction Industry

The most beneficial ISO Certifications for the Construction Industry are:

• ISO 9001:2015 Certification for Quality Management System
• ISO 14001: 2015 Certification for Environmental Management System
• ISO 45001: 2018 Occupational Health and Safety Management Standard

Implementing ISO 9001:2015 Standard in Construction Industry

SO 9001:2015 is the ISO Standard is a globally accepted certification. It insists on implementing a Quality Management System (QMS) to enhance operational efficiency.

The Quality Management System Certification focuses on 7 key areas:

• Customer Focus
• Leadership,
• People Management,
• Process Optimization,
• Continuous Improvement,
• Evidence-based Decisions, and,
• Relationship Management.

ISO 9001:2015 Standard in the Construction industry helps in :

• Improving Employee Training
• Employee Development, and,
• Overall Corporate Communication

It helps employees increase job satisfaction, streamline business operations and enhance productivity.

Learn more about ISO 9001 Certification from Aurion International

Key Areas where ISO 9001:2015 Certification will be beneficial for the Construction Industry

You can evaluate supplier performance by leveraging practices of relationship management.

The Quality Management System framework can be used to assess the suppliers. Also, it improves the overall supply chain performance.

Companies can pitch to more Public Sector and Large Private Sector Clients.  They can demonstrate the practices of continuous improvements and business process optimizations.

Practising quality in business proceedings will attract international clients.  ISO 9001 Certified supplier will be trusted by international companies. They will be more likely to establish a long term partnership

ISO 9001:2015 Certification helps you to easily comply with the legal regulations. The QMS requires the organization to follow and practice certain regulatory requirements.

ISO 9001:2015 certification also helps in managing the risk effectively. Especially in case the construction contracts, often the budgets go up due to lack of planning.

QMS system ensures proper measures are taken to ensure the project is managed well. It helps in flagging any deviation from the scope and budget.

Additional Benefits for Construction Industry by getting ISO 9001:2015 Standard

• Continuous improvements and practice industry best practices
• Reduce Construction cost significantly to both builder and customer
• A pre-requisite for participation in tenders of large Multi-National & Government Projects
• Gain higher client and stakeholder confidence by being ISO 9001 Certified
• Higher customer satisfaction due to streamlining of business process and product/service quality

Implementation of ISO 14001:2015 Standard in Construction Industry

ISO 14001:2015 Environmental Management System (EMS) ensures environmental protection.   The organization at every stage of the construction operation follows environmentally-friendly measures.

The Environmental Management System Standard is vital to ensure the environment is protected.

The organization ensures that there are no harmful elements are discharged to nature. No activities hinder the environment is undertaken by the company.

ISO 14001:2015 Certification specifies the requirements for building an Environment Management System.

It is to protect the environment, inspect and test systems and comply with environmental protection.

The organization must meet the environmental expectations of customers and the government. They must incorporate environmental management elements into organizational business processes.

Key benefits from implementing ISO 14001:2015 Standard

• Improve resource efficiency
• Reduce waste and drive down costs
• Measure environmental impacts and rectify
• Transform supply chain design into an environment-friendly one
• New business opportunities from large companies
• Build stakeholder and customer trust

ISO 14001:2015 will help in reducing the organization’s role in impacting the environment. It helps in understanding the effect the environment will have on the progress of the business.

It will save the consumption of materials and energy during construction projects. It reduces the overall cost by efficient waste management

ISO 14001:2015 will Improve environmental performance over the years. It will reduce harmful impacts on the surroundings. A system for continuous environmental support will be developed and maintained.

ISO 45001:2018 Standard in Construction Industry

Occupational Health and Safety Management System will take care of employee safety and health. Employee safety plays a significant role in the construction industry especially. It will prevent various incidents and accidents in the workplace that lead to serious injuries.

ISO 45001:2018 Standard is a globally recognized ISO Standard with external accreditation. It will help gain trust and get new business by showcasing to clients the compliance to ISO 45001:2018. It will ensure a safer workplace environment. Some of the large clients specify the ISO 45001:2018 Standard as a requirement for participating in the tendering.

ISO 45001:2018 helps organizations to reduce:

• The overall occurrence of worksite incidents
• Downtown and cost of disruptions due to health hazards
• Cost of insurance premiums
• Employee turnover rates

ISO Standard Certification helps organizations across industry verticals to achieve enhanced business productivity, boost product quality and achieve customer satisfaction.

About the Author

John Wick is an ISO Consultant working with Aurion ISO Consultants in Dubai. John likes to write on ISO Training, ISO Consulting, latest changes in ISO Standards, industry-wise benefits from getting ISO Certified. Reach out for expert consultation on any ISO related queries.

About Aurion

Aurion ISO Consultants, Dubai offers world-class ISO Services such as Training, Consulting, Certification, Implementation, and Audits in Dubai, UAE and Worldwide.

Aurion ISO Consultants is an Award-Winning Consultant firm in Dubai, UAE and one of the fastest-growing ISO Service provider in the UAE and GCC region. We have assisted 1800 clients across several countries globally.

We provide you with a Single-Window Solution with ISO Consulting, ISO Training, and ISO Implementation and ISO Audit Services. With our ISO Certification, you can transform your business into quality first one.

Contact Us: Aurion ISO Consultants | 0097142504150 | contact@aurioninternational.com |#213&214,6E-A Dubai Airport Freezone, Dubai | www.aurioninternational.com

While you are planning to implement ISO Certification Standards for your organizations, to know more about the ISO Certification standards and all ISO related services from Aurion ISO Consultants, you call us right away!

Once companies have made the decision to implement a Quality Management System (QMS) like ISO 9001:2015, they are usually faced with a multitude of new considerations and issues to sort through. If you are currently running a successful business, chances are you are complying with a large percentage of the standard, it’s only a matter of being able to prove this to an auditor and document your processes effectively. By developing an implementation plan, you will give yourself goals and action points that will help you and your team efficiently tackle the objective of achieving certification. Working on a thorough implementation plan will not only help break the process down but will also give you a rough idea of the resources and time needed to start implementing the standard.

A bit of preplanning is also required. You will need to determine what your timeline and end goals are and whether they can reasonably be attained. Aim for realistic and practical goals and estimates and consider using generic checklists and “Gap Assessments” that will help you move in the right direction.

Want to learn more? Read the full article here.

An ISO Audit is the systematic process of collecting and evaluating information about an organization’s processes to determine their level of compliance with the standard they are being audited against. Audits are completed to check the effectiveness of measures in place and to determine if the organization is operating at full capacity within the requirements to achieve certification and continue to grow. Within an audit cycle, which is typically 3 years, an organization will have both ‘internal’ and ‘external’ audits completed at least once per the calendar year, with the scope of the audit and the scale of the audit dependent on who is conducting it and its purpose. 

Internal auditing is carried out independently by an organization, utilizing internal personnel or an ISO Consultant with experience and knowledge of your organization and industry. It is an appraisal of the efficiency and effectiveness within certain departments or the organization. External Audits are done to evaluate your organization and recommend certification to the standard you are compliant with. External audits are performed by third-party auditors affiliated with a Certification Body. Internal audits are a requirement of ISO Standards, but cannot grant you an ISO Certificate.

Goals of Internal Audits:

The purpose of an ISO internal audit is to assess an organization’s efficiency as measured by the level of its quality and risk management systems and its overall business practices against one or more ISO Standards. Companies and organizations conduct internal audits to evaluate and improve the efficiency of their business practices capabilities by highlighting any existing flaws or shortcomings and ensuring plans are in place to properly address them.

While conducting regular and effective internal audits of your management system is a requirement of the standard, it’s also a requirement for a reason. Internal audits are a chance for your organization to truly see the progress you are making, and a chance for your employees to show off their skills and voice any concerns. Some of the major ways an organization can benefit from an internal audit:

• To review and evaluate the reliability and soundness of its internal control system;
• To ascertain the degree of compliance with established standards, policies and procedures;
• To minimize losses and maximize profits;
• To ascertain whether the information generated in an organization is accurate and reliable;
• To ascertain the level of integrity of the data provided to management;
• To provide informed advice and feedback to management on next steps and growth opportunities;
• To seek opportunities for improvement in the existing systems.

Internal auditing is based on several guidelines that are dependent on the organization’s specific vision and strategy. To be beneficial, it should provide appropriate and unbiased information that the organization can utilize in the enhancement of its performance. This means that auditing should be undertaken while keeping in mind the specific requirements and criteria of the organization and the environment within which it operates. While you might be tempted to download and follow a checklist, don’t use these as a one-stop-shop for the perfect internal audit, utilize them as guidance and tailor them for your specific needs.

Principles of Internal Auditing:

Following are some of the basic principles of auditing that should be universally applicable regardless of the size, scope or industry.

Objectivity: An internal audit should be an objective activity. All internal auditors must maintain objectivity in their judgment. Consider if you are auditing your peers, to not hold previous judgement or past experiences against an individual or team, audit within your scope, do not audit with an objective of proving a point. Audit with the objective goals of bettering the organization and providing a value-added practice to the organization.

Ethics: Like all other business practices, internal audits should also be done within the confines of morals and an ethical code. (link)

Confidentiality: Auditors have access to sensitive information about the organization and its employees. It is very important to ensure the highest level of confidentiality to avoid possible misuse of such information.

Competence: Auditing is a complex procedure. It must be done by skilled, experienced and competent auditors. When selecting an auditing team, consider their questioning skills, and their listening skills. An auditor must be prepared to ask questions that will give them the information they need, without causing stress for the auditee. Consider offering employees ISO Training to help reduce stress and increase engagement.

Planning: The audit process should be thoroughly planned to avoid confusion at later stages. Once an audit plan is in place and dictated to the auditees, do not stray from the scope of the audit. This will avoid issues with timing and employee engagement.

Documentation: It is important to maintain proper documentation of the audit process. Internal audits conclude with a closing meeting where findings are shown to management and you must provide a detailed report promptly after the audit is completed. By ensuring you are documenting your findings effectively, you will have much more success in your closing meetings and when you create your report.

Integrity: The audit reports must accurately depict the facts discovered during the audit process. The integrity of the audit findings is essential.

Selection of Auditors:

Internal auditors should be carefully selected. An internal audit team must be adequately staffed in terms of both numbers and experience. They should also be properly trained to ensure that the needs of each audit task are fulfilled. The success of the internal audit largely depends on the quality of the audit team that is determined by the level of their training and expertise. 

Internal Audit Process:

The internal audit process should be planned well beforehand so that objectives are clearly defined, and priorities are established. You will need to provide the audit plan in advance to ensure you are able to talk with those you need to and can access the documents or processes needed to complete the audit on schedule. The planning process should include setting a schedule for each activity and setting deadlines. All tasks that need to be performed must be clearly defined. An audit plan should be made with a thorough understanding of the organization and its environment and presented clearly at the opening meeting. 

The internal audit process must be continuously supervised by a designated audit team leader. The Lead Auditor will ensure that the audit process is proceeding according to the plan. The performance of the audit team should also be reviewed just like that of other employees and members of the organization. A comprehensive report should be issued once the internal audit is complete with findings communicated promptly and concisely. These findings must be presented in a way that makes them helpful for management in deciding their course of action. 

The findings of the internal audit must be supported by ‘Audit Evidence’ which provides reasons for the conclusions of the internal audit team. This evidence must be easily understood and articulated in your reports to allow the external auditors to come to a similar conclusion during any third-party audit activities.

If done correctly, internal audits can have a very positive impact on the overall organizational performance of any company and be a value-added experience your company will benefit from.