Get It Right with An Integrated Safety Management System

Queensland’s peak advisory Board to the Government on work health and safety issues, the Work Health and Safety Board, has launched a five-year plan to improve work safety throughout the state.

Industrial Relations Minister Grace Grace said the plan reflected contemporary thinking on work health and safety and identified four main areas to be focused on over the next five years. These include designing healthier, safer workplaces, fostering a culture of health and safety and regulating effectively.

Integrated Safety Management System

Largely instigated by the Dreamworld and Eagle Farm tragedies in October 2016, the plan will increase pressure on businesses to ‘get it right’. And yes, that will mean more Red Tape. But there is a way of achieving all this with minimal disruption, and that’s implementing an ISO integrated safety management system.

ISO management systems across the board are recognised as the best systems in the world. These are doable management systems based on real situations. The advantage of an integrated system is a reduction in documents and duplication. It will also put workplace safety at the core of your operation.

Safety Management System Training

Integrated also means that it will use the best of your current systems and will be tailor-made to suit not only your industry, but also your goals and expectations. A key part of all this is safety management system training, to ensure everyone’s on the same page.

An integrated safety management system is suitable for any sized organisation, in any industry. Once implemented, you can apply for certification, which make you stand out against other businesses. It will also make you an employer of choice, ensuring you attract and retain the best employees.

Using the ISO mark on your packaging and marketing tells consumers that you take workplace health and safety seriously. There is proof that such accreditation will boost your business, with around 55% of consumers globally saying they will pay more for products produced and sold by socially responsible organisations.

Why You Really Need A Quality Assurance Management System

Shoppers love a bargain, that’s for sure, but don’t for one-minute think they’ll accept poor quality. Queensland consumers tell it how it is and regularly complain about faulty poor-quality products, poor customer service, incorrect labelling and poor communication.

These are such basic requirements that it amazes me they are not done correctly. But then I remember that not every business has a quality assurance management system in place. If they did, the chances of disappointing customers would be drastically reduced.

Quality Management System Queensland

In fact, if more organisations adopted an ISO quality management system in Queensland, they could charge more for their products! It really comes down to understanding the difference between quality control and quality assurance.

If you are operating purely on quality control, you can offer refunds or replacements on faulty or damaged products but is that enough? What is it costing you? And is that customer likely to buy from you again?

The whole point of a quality assurance management system is to reduce the number of errors from the get-go. The system ensures quality is built in throughout your organisation, in everything you do. It gives you more control over the quality of your products and can help you make decisions about future product lines.

Quality Assurance Management System

The best approach is to work with a quality assurance consultant to create and implement a management system tailored to your organisation. The world's favourite quality assurance management system is ISO 9001.  

International Standards such as ISO 9001 are formulated by experienced global experts, regularly reviewed and updated to reflect market changes. The latest quality assurance management system is ISO 9001:2015.

ISO 9001:2015 is different from the 2008 version in that it places far more emphasis on customer satisfaction. It also puts a stronger focus on your organisation's leadership and commitment.

If you want to be confident about the quality of your business, this is the way to go.

Getting A Quality Management System in Queensland Is A Smart Move

Rather than considering why you need a quality management system in Queensland, I can’t think of one reason not to! There really is nothing to lose but everything to gain.

Management systems of any kind are always of benefit to any sized business. It is often the smaller organisations that benefit most, as management systems are proven to save time and money; improve efficiency and ensure you comply with legislation.

Any type of system that improves your business should be seen as an investment, not a cost! In fact, the cost of not having a quality management system could be much higher! In today’s competitive market, you need to ensure your business is producing and selling products that are consistently good, safe and fit for purpose. How are you currently ensuring that’s the case?

Quality Management System Training

Do you have a quality management system in place? And do you ensure your team regularly receives quality management system training?

Quality assurance is not something you simply put in place and forget about. To work properly it must be constantly reviewed and improved. That’s why more organisations are choosing an ISO 9001 quality management system in Queensland.

This system can be integrated with other ISO management systems, and with your current quality control procedures. Having said that, you should find that costly returns and refunds are drastically reduced once you put ISO 9001 in place.

Attract More Referrals

Some businesses believe that if they implement quality management system training, they must go through the certification process. That’s not the case but quite frankly, why wouldn’t you? ISO accreditation offers many benefits including greater customer confidence, stronger brand, better reputation, more referrals and more.

It will also enable your organisation to tender for government contracts or become a supplier to a major company. In fact, ISO 9001 certification is usually a requirement.

Now’s the Time for A Quality Management System in Queensland

When businesses define the word ‘quality’ they generally refer to their product or service; but ‘quality’ is about far more than that. From the consumer’s point of view, quality should apply to every aspect of their buying journey, from first viewing the product online or in-store to after-care.

This difference of opinion has even revealed itself in surveys, with business owners saying product quality is improving and consumers saying it is declining.

Quality Not Price

The fact is that globally, quality is becoming more important to consumers than price. A recently released report on customer expectations in the US revealed that 53% considered quality the most important factor when buying a product, as opposed to price (38%). Interestingly, the report also revealed that store discounts don’t hold the same appeal as they used to. Most shoppers would prefer to pay the normal price to get a quality product AND service.

The results of surveys like this will have a huge impact on how retail and online stores do business in the future. The big stores had shoppers well trained to focus on deals but, with that no longer as relevant, they will need a new approach to marketing.

Quality Assurance Management System

In Australia, more businesses are implementing a quality assurance management system in a bid to lure and hold onto customers. Such a system is not just about the quality of the product but the overall service.

Quality Management System

By placing quality at the heart of the operation, a quality assurance management system can create a different workplace culture. Through regular internal audits, the company can ensure everything about it spells ‘quality’, including its marketing, packaging, customer relations, after-care and more. In other words, exactly what those surveyed consumers wanted.

Right now is an excellent time to consider a quality management system in Queensland. Not only will it put you ahead of your competitors, but it will lay the foundations for a healthy customer base in the future.

Looking For An Internal Audit Certification Course In Queensland?

If you're happy with your current employer but would love some extra responsibility (and pay) it might be time to step up as an internal auditor. It's a change that would give you the challenges and satisfaction you need.

Internal auditors are useful to any organisation that uses management systems for key areas, such as quality assurance and workplace safety. Whereas a third party or lead auditor reports to an external organisation, the internal auditor works for the business and reports to management.

Internal Audit Certification Course

An internal audit certification course would not only prepare you for this role; it would also give you a wide range of new skills and qualifications that will greatly benefit any career change in the future. Key areas covered by an internal audit certification course include monitoring, reporting, communication, risk management and more.

Internal Audit Certification Course

It's your job to ensure that the organisation's written policies and procedures align with what's actually happening. It's exciting, it's challenging and, if you're auditing ISO systems, it's global.

Learn the Best Systems for Success

There are many benefits; you get to learn about and work across every area of the business and help your colleagues do their job better. You discover the best systems and practices for success and get to use new technology and tools. Most importantly, you play a key role in making the business successful.

Qualified Lead Auditors

Sounds great, you say, but where are internal auditing courses held? If you're in Queensland internal auditing courses are held at Standard Consulting in Brisbane. Training can be done onsite or at the training center. As specialists in helping businesses implement successful management systems, your trainers are all qualified lead auditors who are up-to-date with current legislation and requirements.

Your training will not only give you a thorough grounding in the theory of internal auditing, it will also use mock internal auditing sessions to give you hands-on experience.

Time To Consider An Integrated Safety Management System

For small businesses, adding a separate new management system can be a huge commitment. But, with the constantly evolving laws concerning workplace safety, they feel they have no other choice. The good news is that there is a solution and that's choosing an integrated safety management system.

ISO management systems have been designed to work well together. The experts who write these systems realised that for smaller organisations, implementation could be very time-consuming and expensive. So gradually, as the management systems are reviewed and updated, it's getting easier to integrate them.

Integrated Management Services

Some management systems integrate better than others; for example, workplace safety integrates well with environmental management and quality assurance. The best way to achieve all this is to work directly with integrated management services in Brisbane.

Who has the time to do it all themselves when you can call in experts who not only tailor-make your management plan but also help roll it out and train your employees? It's a win-win situation.

Workplace Safety is Changing

It's worth noting that the integrated safety management system is changing because workplace safety is changing. Businesses are being reminded to update to the new ISO 45001:2018 safety management system.

ISO 45001:2018 combines AS/NZS 4801:2001 (Australian Standard) and OHSAS 18001:2007 (International Standard).

Safety Management System

It's been shown that implementing an integrated safety management system helps reduce the number of work-related injuries, prevent accidents and improves productivity. Built into the system are the tools needed to comply with Legislation, Regulations and Codes of Practice.

Protect Yourself and your Employees

Remember, your turnover and your reputation depend on the health and safety of your employees. Organisations that deliver poor safety performance find that their costs rise excessively and they even face downtime. An integrated safety management system protects you and your employees by helping identify and control risks, and comply with health and safety legal requirements.

If you haven't yet made the change to an integrated safety management system, now's the time.

Reasons To Choose Integrated Management System Training

Have you noticed how much more red tape there is now? It's endless but usually justified. There's new legislation on workplace health and safety and environmental management, all designed to protect people and the planet.

Whilst all this is a good thing it can be hard to manage all the extra paperwork and be sure you're doing everything right. This is especially true for small business owners. There is a solution, and that's integrated management system certification in Australia.

Meeting Tender Criteria

This is a voluntary system but, if you're a small business looking to become a supplier, or you're bidding for tenders, you may find you need this. It could well be listed on the bidding information. If that's the case, you should contact Standard Consulting Training Center soon.

An integrated system is exactly as it sounds; it's a recognised management system that integrates multiple areas, such as quality assurance, workplace health and safety and environmental management.

Integrated Management System

The first step is to sit down with consultants and work out what you have, what you need, and what can be carried over. That way you don't have to start from scratch and spend unnecessary money. Using the management systems you already have as a base, a good consultant will tailor-make your integrated management system and initiate roll-out. He or she will then arrange integrated management system training.

Once the integrated system is in place, and internal audits prove it is working, you can take it to the next level and go for certification.

Get a Head Start

Integrated management system certification in Australia is likely to become increasingly important as businesses strive to keep up with customer demands. In a world where new competition springs up daily, it's a way of ensuring your business stands out from the herd.

You could wait until it's compulsory, or you could take the initiative now and gain the advantage early.