Countdown to integration?
The first ‘hot topic’ question in the last issue of INform - which asked if readers thought that auditors would be primarily auditing integrated management systems (IMSs) in five years - elicited a lot of response (click here). None, however, were as categorical as that of Ian Dalling, director of Unified Management Solutions
IMSs will, I believe, become the norm as a result of a natural evolutionary process driven by enlightened organizations that have the wisdom to understand the benefits, followed by those who blindly follow any management fashion and are motivated by the fear of being left behind. The former will be the most successful while the latter will fail to get the full benefits.
The essence of managing an organization is to optimize opportunity and minimize risk. A key tool for achieving this comprises the formal management arrangements that we use to control and guide the organization’s assets and processes, in such a way that we fulfil the objectives and satisfy stakeholders with respect to quality, health, safety, environment, security, ethics, social responsibility etc. I have yet to hear a coherent argument for fragmenting these formal arrangements other than making life easier for one specific group, but at the expense the organization as a whole.
However, it must be understood that the controls resulting from an integrated opportunity/risk assessment will often be diverse requiring specialists to assign, approve and audit them. Looking at just one facet of managing a nuclear plant, for example, the controls used to safely manage nuclear criticality, radioactive particle and general radiation hazards are each very different in nature requiring diverse management controls. However, the same IMS can be used to assess those hazards or any other type of opportunity/risk interaction with people and the environment etc.
Reaping the benefits
There are at least 12 principal benefits of IMSs:
- more concise minimalist management system with all aspects adding value without redundancy
- enhanced communication through simplicity and uniformity
- easier compliance, less violations, greater employee participation and ownership leading to stress reduction and better utilisation of creativity
- better opportunity/risk issues conflict resolution and management
- enhanced stakeholder understanding and satisfaction
- accelerated training and reduction in training needs
- reduced monitoring (audits/inspections), including certification surveillance
- improved management and process transparency leading to more efficient and effective management review and action planning
- faster change dynamics supporting optimal organisational evolution
- better implementation and return from improvement initiatives such as the business excellence model, TQM, Investors in People, six sigma, ISO standards and regulations etc.
- enhanced competitiveness and business security
- increased profitability through lower costs, improved productivity and creativity
It should also be noted that this evolution in management systems is happening within enlightened intelligent organizations with little outside stimulus from:
- BSI and ISO: they have been slow to develop integrated management standards
- the multitude of management bodies that mostly still narrowly focus on supporting just one facet of the totality of management
- the management system certification bodies who are currently reactively working hard to resource the demand for an integrated audit service for IMSs
- academic bodies, which despite offering degrees in every subject imaginable, have yet to offer a degree in integrated management
Fragmenting the management system leads to waste of effort and an inability to optimize the management and process controls. Given the major improvements possible through integration, it can give an organization much more than just a marginal competitive edge. The resulting increase in business efficiency and effectiveness, through integrated management, will drive an evolution in management practice that becomes increasingly integrated - integration begets integration - future management will be integrated.
About the author: Ian Dalling is the director of Unified Management Solutions which specializes in integrated management. He can be contacted at e: ian@unifiedmanagement.com.
The IQA special interest group on integrated management is open to all those interested in the subject. For further details visit: www.iqa.org/integrated/index.shtml
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