ISO 9001 Quality Policy and Quality Objectives

Section 4.1.1 requires you to define and document your Quality Policy and Quality Objectives for quality and commitment to quality. These must be relevant to your organizational goals and customer expectations.

ISO 9000 Quality Policy (ISO 9001 Sec 4.1.1)

It is a brief statement or document that defines your quality goals and objectives, a commitment

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iso 9000 quality policy

to meeting them as well as continuous improvement. It should provide an outline for creating, stating, and measuring your performance of the quality objectives.

Example: We will consistently provide products and services that meet or exceed the requirements and expectations of our customers. We will actively pursue ever improving quality through programs that enable each employee to do their job right the first time and every time.

ISO 9000 Quality Objectives:

These measurable steps towards achieving your quality policy are either determined as you create your QMS or in your management reviews. You need to ask yourself: what will you do to meet the goals stated in the quality policy? Knowing that perfection is impossible, you must have some acceptable tolerance defined and measured.

Examples:

  • % of on time deliveries
  • % of internal scrap
  • % defects

Both of these are different for every business. Here is an example:

  • Say your company goal/mission is to produce the best widget in the world
  • Your Quality Policy may state they will be 99% defect free (among other things)
  • The Quality Objectives put metrics on that, typically in terms of the product or service. What do you consider a defect? (package is broken, product fails, etc.)

When you are working on document control, make sure that you include your quality policy and quality objectives. They must be controlled. Control them by:

  • Making them part of a procedure
  • Making them part of the quality manual
  • Making them their own numbered, controlled document
  • You may want to handle the quality policy and quality objectives separately because the quality objectives might change more frequently than the quality policy. This may mean you do not want the objectives in the quality manual.