ISO 9001 Registration Pros and Cons

al40

Quite Involved in Discussions
I have been asked by my boss to share best practices with a company in our area concenrning what we've done with our quality systems and how ISO registration has helped us.

So I've been asked to first present overview on the "Pros and Cons of ISO registration" in order to help them determine if they want to pursue ISO 9001:2000 registration or not.

Can anyone point me to a document or article that discusses the pros and cons of ISO registration, that I could use to develop an overview? I'm pro ISO and have never thought of ISO having any cons.

Thanks,

Al
 

ScottK

Not out of the crisis
Leader
Super Moderator
I have been asked by my boss to share best practices with a company in our area concenrning what we've done with our quality systems and how ISO registration has helped us.

So I've been asked to first present overview on the "Pros and Cons of ISO registration" in order to help them determine if they want to pursue ISO 9001:2000 registration or not.

Can anyone point me to a document or article that discusses the pros and cons of ISO registration, that I could use to develop an overview? I'm pro ISO and have never thought of ISO having any cons.

Thanks,

Al

I don't have an overview but I think that the first and most common CON is cost.
Cost in man hours
Cost for registration
Cost for surveillance
 
C

Craig H.

I have been asked by my boss to share best practices with a company in our area concerning what we've done with our quality systems and how ISO registration has helped us.
So I've been asked to first present overview on the "Pros and Cons of ISO registration" in order to help them determine if they want to pursue ISO 9001:2000 registration or not.
Does any cover have an overview on the pros and cons of ISO registration, that I could use to develop an overview? I'm pro ISO and have never thought of ISO having any cons.

Thanks,

Al

Al,

Sure there are cons. The cost of registration and audits are one, if the decision is made to go that route. There is also the cost of the time spent auditing, documenting, etc. (but we should be doing that sort of thing anyway, shouldn't we?). A perceived cost, or more correctly risk, is having outside eyes looking at sensitive areas of the company, but I don't know of any instances where this has become an issue in reality (anyone else?).

Another con is that it is something new, which will, in itself, generate fear. You can look at other threads here at the Cove for some great advice concerning limiting this, though.

The big one might be training and/or consulting costs.

Weigh these against the pros of a well-designed Q system, and I think things should balance nicely in favor of ISO 9001.
 

Sidney Vianna

Post Responsibly
Leader
Admin
I think that one of the biggest "cons" is the false sense of security that a certificate and zero non-conformities might provide. Many organizations mistakenly derive that, by being certified and not being written up by the external auditors, they have an effective management system in place.
 

RCW

Quite Involved in Discussions
Trying to look out of the box a little more and adding another con, is this company going to be venturing in other fields where there are requirements above and beyond ISO 9001? If the company ever ventures into automotive, aerospace, medical (and I'm sure I missed a couple), they will have to be registered specifically for that or those specs.

There are others at the Cove here whose companies are "multi-functional", that is reaching across several of the disciplines listed above. I'm sure they also have "fun" keeping track of concurrent quality systems.

Wasn't ISO 9000 suppose to be the one and only quality system?
 

Sidney Vianna

Post Responsibly
Leader
Admin
Wasn't ISO 9000 suppose to be the one and only quality system?
Not really. Never intended as such. I hope the OP does not need help with "pros". So far, he's got none.
crazy.gif
 

RCW

Quite Involved in Discussions
Not really. Never intended as such. I hope the OP does not need help with "pros". So far, he's got none.
crazy.gif

My bad! I should have used a facetious emoticon to qualify my statement.

How's this for a pro? When a company acknowledges it needs are real plan to operate its business and goes to the effort of establishing an industry standard quality system, why shouldn't they take the credit for the work they have accomplished? Let the rest of the business world know that your company is ready to compete and deliver to its customers. This can best be done by having a third party registrar come into the company and recognizing those efforts by certification.
 

Coury Ferguson

Moderator here to help
Trusted Information Resource
My bad! I should have used a facetious emoticon to qualify my statement.

How's this for a pro? When a company acknowledges it needs are real plan to operate its business and goes to the effort of establishing an industry standard quality system, why shouldn't they take the credit for the work they have accomplished? Let the rest of the business world know that your company is ready to compete and deliver to its customers. This can best be done by having a third party registrar come into the company and recognizing those efforts by certification.

But it gets down to: Certification does not guarantee product and customer's expectations are met.

My Pro: It establishes and validates evidence that the Business System and practices are consistent within defined parameters.
 

Jim Wynne

Leader
Admin
But it gets down to: Certification does not guarantee product and customer's expectations are met.

My Pro: It establishes and validates evidence that the Business System and practices are consistent within defined parameters.

Another "pro": It usually doesn't stain your clothing.:D
 

Jim Wynne

Leader
Admin
On a more serious note, one of the problems in justifying ISO registration is companies who misrepresent (deliberately or through ignorance) the significance of registration. For some reason or another, the inkjet cartridge industry is probably the worst offender. There's a great example here:
How do you know that the quality and performance of that cartridge you purchase from Carrot Ink will really live up to our promises? That ISO 9001 seal on our packaging is the key.
In 1978, the International Organization for Standards (ISO), based in Geneva, Switzerland, issued a set of quality management standards, known as ISO 9000. Later revised in 1994 and 2000, these stringent standards are accepted worldwide and assure customers that a product or service will meet their expectations each and every time. ISO 9001 is a specific set of standards under ISO 9000 that addresses quality design and development, production, installation, and servicing.
ISO 9001 certification is very rigorous and extensive process… With the end result guaranteeing that you, the customer, are getting a very high quality product.
 
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