In simple terms, the ISO 9000 quality system can be described as follows

Steps for effective implementation
1. Commitment from senior management-announce conviction and appoint management representative
2. Establishing a steering committee and a taskforce-Make senior managers members of the steering committee, make the management representative the Secretary and assume chairmanship. Set up a taskforce for implementation consisting of active members from more than one department under the leadership of the MR (management Representative). A professional training organisation or consultant advisor must train both.
3. Appoint a consultant/Advisor/Trainer, if necessary-A good consultant will teach the organisation "to fish" and not "give fish"; may give system advice but the organisation must develop its procedures so that upfront ownership is cultivated.
4. Start ISO awareness programmes in the company- All employees need to be informed of the advantages of seeking certification and the benefits to the employees must be equally emphasised.
5. Training-Both technical and quality related training must be planned and executed. Departmental heads and supervisors best impart technical training whereas for quality related Quality Assurance personnel or the Advisor could impart training. Training programmes may have to be differently conceived for various levels depending on their respective needs.
6. Initial status survey-Existing processes may be flowcharted and retained if adequate or modified for improvement if obvious gaps are identified with respect to the requirements of the standard chosen. It is important to involve union representatives during this effort and enlist their support.
7. Action Plan-The action plan for formulation and establishment of the system in conformance with the standard is evolved by a consensual approach with clear deadlines and assignments to specific individuals.
8. Develop quality system documentation-A three tier documentation approach is taken consisting of a Quality Manual, Quality System Procedures, Work Instructions and formats. Small companies may set this out in a single volume if confidentiality is not an issue. Separation of the levels helps keep confidentiality in level2 & 3 and make the Quality Manual open to customers. A master list and document authorisation and control procedure needs to be drawn up.
9. Implementation-Either one-shot or phased implementation may be done depending on size of the organisation. Choosing easier implementation areas first is a good strategy to build up enthusiasm and minimise resistance to change.
10. Internal Quality Audit-Trained internal auditors audit implemented areas to verify conformity and raise nonconformity reports, if necessary. They would have been trained in step 5.It may be a good idea for the Advisor to "handhold" them in the first audit. Internal customer auditing an internal supplier is a proven best practice.
11. Management Review-When a documented quality system has been in operation for three to six months an internal audit and management review should be conducted and corrective actions implemented. The efficacy of these actions must be ensured.
12. Pre-assessment audit-Choose the certifying agency and request them to conduct a pre-assessment audit so that any surprises in certification audit may be avoided on account of differences in approach. Remedy any nonconformities noted.
13. Certification and Registration-Certifying agency is invited to perform the certification audit and their advice taken Usually certification is awarded for three years subject to periodic surveillance audits.

Introduction

In a country like India, there are a large number of small scale industries which desire to acquire ISO-9000 certification to exploit export opportunities, but shy away from it believing that it is expensive. It is a fact that any new system being installed requires the allocation of resources and manpower. The expense is in reality an investment for returns in the future in terms of reduction in cost of non-conformance and expanding market opportunities. To a certain extent the initial burden can be lightened by what is known as the group or "cluster" approach. Under such an approach, a number of companies (no more than 10), pool their resources to organise an ISO-9000 implementation process. The collective approach is possible because designing an ISO-9000 system does not require the disclosure of proprietary technological and process information.

Methodology
The methodology of the group approach is described below:

Forming the group

Five to Ten small companies can join together with one company taking the lead for the process of group learning and using the knowledge acquired to adopt an ISO-9000 quality system.

Project Planning

A project plan can be prepared jointly, listing the activities and resources required, by a consensus approach. The presence of a consultant as a facilitator is desirable. A suitable person from one of the companies who has good communication skills and who can be trained as a management representative or coordinator can be assigned to coordinate the joint activities.

Training

The project's most important aspect is training employees at all levels starting with the chief executive.
Three differently tailored courses must be visualised for the senior, middle management and the employees in general respectively. The senior levels will need policy formulation guidance, the middle management will need implementation tips and all levels will need a clause-by-clause understanding of the Standard. A group of trainers and internal auditors may also have to be trained in separate courses common to all companies. The training fees to the consultant may be shared amongst the companies. The companies may share the common training venue at an industry association. Group training has the following advantages:
· The cost per participant is considerably reduced.
· The training is tailored to the needs of the group
· The participants can exchange their experiences during training and assist each other after the training.
· This group training may make it possible for a trained employee of one company to act as an internal auditor for another company.

Using new procedures

After developing and documenting the quality system, each company should test the system for at least three months and make minor modifications as required in individual companies. It is then a common date for all companies is fixed for the official launch of the system.

Overcoming problems

There are likely to be two kinds of problems; one, specific to each company which each company management can solve and the other which need to be solved by a common shared approach with the consultant advice. The chief executives` participation in such meetings can be very helpful. At least two cycles of internal audits and corrective actions is desirable.

Pre-assessment audit

As soon as most companies in the group are ready, a pre-assessment audit is recommended to be conducted by the experienced consultant. The result of the audit may have systemic findings and it simultaneously serves as a dress rehearsal for the certification audit. The nonconformities found are systemically remedied.

Preparing for certification

A certification agency may be chosen jointly considering the type of accreditation required for effective export marketing, be it UKAS (UK), RVA (Netherlands), RAB (USA) under whose banner the certificate is needed. The costs of certification may be negotiated and shared. A consultant will be able to guide effectively in this process.

Post-certification

Even after certification, the group of companies could continue to act as a quality improvement club. Experience sharing in respect of tools of improvement, process benchmarking, joint procurement of magazines, special training sessions etc., can be organised to reap the intended benefits of the system. The Governments at the Centre and the States have instituted some incentives like part sharing of the costs on reimbursement basis, and soft loans from financial institutions.