Understanding the Benefits of the New ISO 9001 & ISO 14001 Management Systems Standards – Part 1

ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 are the most renowned standards for measuring quality management and environmental management systems globally.

As the deadline for the new versions of ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 is approaching on 14^th September 2018, what are the expected benefits and how can you switch to the new standards with ease?

As of now, over 1.1 million ISO 9001 certificates have been issued for ‘Quality Management’ worldwide. Around 350,000 ISO 14001 certificates have been issued globally for ‘Environmental Management’. Both standards are the most commonly used management systems worldwide. For instance, ISO 9001 currently covers 67% while ISO 14001 covers 21% of the total ISO management systems certificates issued globally. So together they already account for 88% of the total ISO management systems certificates issued globally.

The two ISO standards were last revised in September 2015. The updated versions were similar to the modern business language and practice, which make them more relevant to the current business environments as well as the needs of modern users. 

What Are the Benefits of upgrading to ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 standards?

If you are still wondering what you stand to gain with the updated versions, here are some of the advantages to businesses of these new versions:

• The new versions have more impact to top management engagement as well as improved alignment between management systems and the organisation’s strategic direction. Making these standards as an integral part of your business’ processes will help drive growth.
• By updating your ISO version, the requirements for documentation will reduce. This will enable organizations to decide on things that matter most to its operation and how to manage and control it in this era where automation and smart systems have become an integral part of management processes.
• By implementing the new ISO standards, you will be able to take care of the interests of all stakeholders, which may include end-users, consumers, regulatory bodies, etc.
• The new standards support the adoption of Risk Based Thinking, which allows you to differentiate between the various processes based on their level of importance and impact on delivering conforming products or services. With this, you can then focus on your key priorities.
• The adoption of the High-Level Structure (Annex SL) will help to facilitate coordination and integration of the different management system standards.

ISO QA Isle of Man can help your business transition to new standards. Contact us today for a free consultation.