Looking for Ideas/Tips for Management Review Meeting

[Wes Bucey]

Welcome to the Cove.

It's not an easy thing to make information that's dull by its nature more interesting, or interesting at all, especially if the audience isn't interested.

One thing you might consider doing is delivering what might be thought of as good news, that being the fact that there is no requirement for management review meetings. Management can review the performance of the QMS without meetings and Powerpoint presentations.

Absolutely! Unnecessary meetings are definitely non-value added.

I hasten to add that I think two-way communication is very important, so management has an obligation to communicate to involved parties whether and what action will be taken on items offered for management review (especially when the review is just reading reports.)

 

[tomvehoski]

While I agree that a formal meeting is often a waste of time, it may be a necessary evil for that other waste of time - the registration audit. ISO requires you keep records of management review, which can be difficult to do if you don't tie it to some formal activity.

I review customer satisfaction (scorecards, complaints, compliments, etc.) on a daily basis, continuously you could say. How do I prove that I reviewed the monthly scorecard that hit my inbox from Customer A yesterday? How do I prove that the management team read the internal audit report I sent out? I could route them by e-mail with a read receipt, but that would be a nightmare to control.

 

[ISOADMINHBH]

The responses thus far should give you a good idea of how to approach this. If Jim's advice is too radical for you at this moment in time (though it is wise and important advice), and you feel it necessary to address this via a 'traditional' meeting, then you simply have to note Jennifer and Jane's advice, in addition to the links Sidney has posted (especially the second one). Whatever you do, regardless of what has occurred in the past, don't issue an agenda along the following lines (mainly from point 3 onward):

1) Apologies
2) Minutes from last meeting
3) Results of audits
4) Customer feedback
5) Process performance and product conformity
6) Status of preventive and corrective actions
7) Follow-up actions from previous management reviews
8) Changes that could affect the quality management system
9) Recommendations for improvement

Yes, points 3-9 are taken directly from section 5.6.2 of ISO 9001 but, if used in the above manner, they will turn people off in an instant - you'll be fighting a losing battle before you say your first words. Some of the points may be salient but I've seen this approach used before and it didn't work. As recommended previously in this post, make it relevant. Put yourself in the shoes of the other attendees - what will they want to discuss? What information will they need? How will they want to see the review presented (i.e. how can you address the above points in a manner which will actually mean something to everyone)? If you can crack that, you're well on the way to conducting a meaningful and effective management review.

Best of luck with it all and don't get too anxious. Post any further queries you have here and remember - there are no such things as stupid questions - just stupid answers every now and again (though not here, of course!). The advice you'll get, especially from the Covers who have been helping people here for years, will be invaluable to you.

WOW! The scary thing is, this is EXACTLY almost word for word what our agenda has looked like since the very beginning!

 

[Wes Bucey]

While I agree that a formal meeting is often a waste of time, it may be a necessary evil for that other waste of time - the registration audit. ISO requires you keep records of management review, which can be difficult to do if you don't tie it to some formal activity.

I review customer satisfaction (scorecards, complaints, compliments, etc.) on a daily basis, continuously you could say. How do I prove that I reviewed the monthly scorecard that hit my inbox from Customer A yesterday? How do I prove that the management team read the internal audit report I sent out? I could route them by e-mail with a read receipt, but that would be a nightmare to control.

If there really is two-way communication, a record of the communications (memos, action items, non-action comments, etc.) is all the proof necessary. The closing meeting of a third party should be two-way communication, but, based on many threads and posts over the years, that is often NOT the case.

 

[ISOADMINHBH]

First of all thank you everyone for your replies!
After reading everything I am very overwhelmed! I’ve tried again and again to tell my boss that our MRM has no value added information! I don’t know how to get him to realize this and let me change up the normal agenda! Even if he did let me change it I honestly wouldn’t know where to begin!

 

[Jim Wynne]

While I agree that a formal meeting is often a waste of time, it may be a necessary evil for that other waste of time - the registration audit. ISO requires you keep records of management review, which can be difficult to do if you don't tie it to some formal activity.

I review customer satisfaction (scorecards, complaints, compliments, etc.) on a daily basis, continuously you could say. How do I prove that I reviewed the monthly scorecard that hit my inbox from Customer A yesterday? How do I prove that the management team read the internal audit report I sent out? I could route them by e-mail with a read receipt, but that would be a nightmare to control.

The idea that stuff has been reviewed is only half of the requirement. The other half is action on those things that need action. You can do the whole thing by preparing a periodic digest (monthly, quarterly, etc.) with the key issues and information, along with a requirement for documenting actions taken (or not taken, with rationale). Not very difficult to do.

 

[tomvehoski]

The idea that stuff has been reviewed is only half of the requirement. The other half is action on those things that need action. You can do the whole thing by preparing a periodic digest (monthly, quarterly, etc.) with the key issues and information, along with a requirement for documenting actions taken (or not taken, with rationale). Not very difficult to do.

Which is exactly what that formal meeting, with minutes, every six months does. Over and done in an hour and there are no surprises to anyone.

 

[Jim Wynne]

Which is exactly what that formal meeting, with minutes, every six months does. Over and done in an hour and there are no surprises to anyone.

I have no issues with the idea of MR meetings per se. If they work and serve the purpose (improving things), I'm all for them. Too many people think they're required and don't know that there are alternatives.

 

[JaneB]

First of all thank you everyone for your replies!
After reading everything I am very overwhelmed! I’ve tried again and again to tell my boss that our MRM has no value added information! I don’t know how to get him to realize this and let me change up the normal agenda! Even if he did let me change it I honestly wouldn’t know where to begin!

Understandable, if the agenda has followed the exact wording of the clause and that's how it's always been. It may work to go softly, softly...

I'd would certainly start a bit along the lines Jennifer suggested - go through each of those stipulated input requirements and ask yourself: what does this mean in our company? How can I translate these rather dry and remote words of the Standard into our terms and language? How can I have an Agenda that makes more sense to normal people who don't know the wording of the Standard (and probably don't need to).

I'd start by re-ordering things: do you really want to start with 'results of audits'? Aren't topics like business performance and customers (feedback/wins/losses/complaints if any) where you think managers will focus first - and rightly so? Why leave 'changes' till the end, since if performance & customers raise issues, you'd want to consider changes early? etc. And sure, you need to look at results of audits - but probably further down the agenda?

If you could at this point only change the order and the wording of the Agenda (while of course making sure all the essentials are covered), and ditto the outcomes (actions/minutes), that would be a step forward.

Talk the language of management, not of the Standard. Translate the Standard into 'management speak', don't adhere rigidly to its wording or structure.

 

[Mr.Happy]

1) Apologies
2) Minutes from last meeting
3) Results of audits
4) Customer feedback
5) Process performance and product conformity
6) Status of preventive and corrective actions
7) Follow-up actions from previous management reviews
8) Changes that could affect the quality management system
9) Recommendations for improvement

1a) Conclusions!
2a) Conclusions!
3a) Conclusions!
etc.
10) End Conclusions !!!