The "traditional" way
to define how a business does (or should) operate is to
define a set of "procedures", narrative descriptions
of related sequences of events within a department or work area (for example,
in Stores or Purchasing).
Often, a company will generate one set of procedures for its quality system,
another for how it deals with environmental matters, and another for how
it addresses heath and safety issues. Each procedure may be 10-12 pages in
length (or longer).
Typical problems with the narrative procedures found in many organisations
are:
- inconsistent terminology (eg job titles, document names ...)
- the responsibility for taking action is not clear
- repetition (in slightly different wording)
- contradictions from one part of a procedure to another
- gaps in the logical flow
- a tendency to add even more words to "explain" something which is not clear.
Because such procedures can be difficult to understand, they tend not to
be used and sit on shelves where they become out of date.
There is also a tendency to use an external standard as the starting point
for defining a system.
Procedures are built around the sections of the standard in an artificial
structure which does not fit naturally or logically with the way that an
organisation operates.
So you may have a contract review "procedure" and a purchasing "procedure".
But confirming that you can do the job is only one step within the process
of tendering for work, and your purchasing activity is not logically complete
until the goods or services have been received and checked.
Our approach takes a different view of management and of compliance. Rather than merely setting out to comply with an external standard
(perhaps because you fear that you will lose potential customers if you are not certified, we believe that you should start by looking at what
you do now, how you do it and how you can improve.
This means taking a "systems" or process-based view of your business.
Next (Processes ...)
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