The International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) issues the international standard ISO 9001 which specifies requirements for a Quality Management System (QMS) within companies of any size. Quality Management is about understanding our business processes and the continuous effort to improve those. ITSL Group aligned its business with quality management best practices and successfully met the requirements of the ISO:9001-2015 standard. After a detailed audit from a certifying body, ITSL received its ISO:9001-2015 certificate in early July, 2020.
The benefits of being ISO:9001-2015 certified
From an operational point of view, the ISO 9001 certification will help us to:
- Improve performance on a continual basis;
- Improve process efficiency;
- Better organise processes.
ISO 9001 results in better internal management, less wastage and increased productivity. But more importantly, achieving this quality management standard results in better service for our customers:
- We can consistently provide services that meet and exceed customer requirements;
- We boost customer satisfaction and retention;
We facilitate customer feedback and opportunities to offer new services to customers.
Quality Management Principles
In order to get ISO-9001:2015 certified, we established new or documented already existing policies, procedures, controls, checklists and tools. We were guided by a few simple QM principles:
- Customer focus: We improved communication channels and outlined service quality initiatives;
- Leadership: We envisioned a clear management process and established gatekeepers for important decisions;
- Engagement of people: Employee and customer feedback is critical;
- Process approach: We documented inputs, activities and outputs of every business process;
- Improvement: We established systems for continuous improvement of workflows;
- Relationship management: We enable this through technology and communication feedback loops.
Quality comes first, but what’s next?
David Savage, ITSL’s Founder and Director, commented on the recent certification: “I am very proud of the whole ITSL team that worked tirelessly to prove and certify our quality standards. The ISO:9001-2015 certification is part of our continuous commitment to customer satisfaction. Achieving this standard makes us more professional and devoted to service quality. We look forward to maintaining this important achievement or as the famous quote goes: “Excellence is not an act, but a habit”.”