The International Organization for Standardization is seeking feedback related to its ISO management system standards.
As the U.S. member body to ISO, the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) is encouraging all stakeholders to review the following materials and respond to the online survey by the January 8 deadline:
- Review ISO’s survey paper on management system standards.
- Review the DIN paper about the proliferation of management system standards.
- After reading the above materials, respond to ANSI’s online survey.
ISO management system standards (MSS) provide a model to follow when setting up and operating a management system. As with all ISO standards, they are the result of international, expert consensus—offering the benefit of global management experience and good practice.
The standards can be applied to any organization, regardless of size, product or service, or sector of activity. Benefits of an effective management system include more efficient use of resources, improved risk management, and increased customer satisfaction as a result of products and services consistently delivering on what they promise.
The need for better coordination and coherence in the area of MSS was raised by Germany’s member body to ISO, the Deutsches Institut für Normung, during the ISO Technical Management Board (TMB) meeting in February 2015.
During the meeting, the TMB agreed that its members should consult with their national stakeholders, and that the results would be discussed at the next TMB meeting in February 2016. If national consultations result in consensus on any specific issues or concerns regarding ISO MSS, then the TMB will consider and establish appropriate mechanisms to address these issues and concerns.
All relevant U.S. stakeholders are asked to complete the survey, available online, and direct any comments or questions to ANSI Senior Director for international Policy, Steven Cornish, at scornish@ansi.org by close of business January 8, 2016.