As your business grows in size and complexity, and as customer expectations become more prescriptive, you may need to make the leap from a traditional program-based quality management system (QMS) to an integrated system. In an integrated QMS, quality is established and managed throughout every activity, procedure, role and responsibility in your business. Rather than having a distinct Quality Management Manual that centralizes quality assurance and control but is less “operationalized”, an integrated QMS (typically called an “integrated management system”) manages quality at all levels and within all roles throughout the organization. An integrated system assures that quality is implemented alongside all other business activities and objectives, weaving it into the very fabric of your business.
Due to that level of integration, such a quality system is very much a part of how you do business, and emerges from the detailed nature of that business. Thus, it requires greater investment — in time, effort, cost and commitment — than the Quality Manual approach used in our Quality-1-2-3 option. While Quality-1-2-3 is designed to get you started and open doors to new business, integrated quality management may become necessary as that new business grows in scope and complexity. (By the time you need integrated quality management, you’ll also be able to justify the effort and expense of implementing it.)
When you get to that point, we can help! Our experienced management-system and quality-assurance experts can facilitate your move from a program-based quality system (such as Quality-1-2-3) to an integrated solution. Contact us to find out more!