Author(s):
Domingues, Pedro 
; Sampaio, Paulo ; Arezes, P.
Date: 2011
Persistent ID: http://hdl.handle.net/1822/15245
Origin: RepositóriUM - Universidade do Minho
Subject(s): Integrated management systems; Actions; Interactions
Description
Concepts like interfaces, synergies, fuzzy logic, organisational synapses and networking rule our
days. These concepts orbit around the term “interactions”. Literally, interactions are everything. For
instance, graphite and diamond are just carbon atoms “interacting” differently. Currently, customers
demand a broader vision from organizations. In order to fulfil this demand organizations
implemented and certified their management systems focusing different stakeholders’ requirements
and according to several organisational standards, being the most reported ones ISO 9001, ISO
14001 and OHSAS 18001. Despite of the difficulties to achieve a consensual definition, if we
consider concepts like quality tools, “Quality” is mainly an “action” concept. Thus, the main
challenge faced by quality management systems (QMS) in an integrated environment would be
philosophical: to leave the spotlights of an “action” based approach and to embrace the subtleness
of the “interaction” approach. It is common sense that the system defining, promoting and
stimulating interactions should not be involved in the action itself. Implications of this new role to
play by quality management system are huge. Traditional organisational structures place quality
transversally to production processes. It is expected that quality management system adopts a more
vertical organisational orientation in order to accomplish new objectives posed by management
systems integration. Human behaviour towards item production or service performance should
change according new organisational placement by QMS. Each worker despite their organisational
function should have a priori and a posteriori quality requirements knowledge, being critical a
precise boundaries definition among elements constituting the responsibility chain. Auditing
procedures should be adjusted too. Potential synergies between processes, internal and external
communication flow, objectives redefinition, policies adjustment and a new vision horizon are
among some check-points to be assessed by the audit team. It should be assure that top management
commitment is not with a system but with an organisational philosophy. Processes indicators should
be available at all time and by several persons. This requirement is not far fetch in our days due to
the currently available networks and information systems. Non conformity detection, treatment and
correction, under an integrated approach, should not be a middle management meeting of the
affected process. In this case, quality procedures should assure that Environmental and
Occupational Health and Safety representatives are involved and empowered to discuss decisions to
be made. In this article we analyze the reposition of the quality management system after an
integration process pointing out the practical implications of this newly perspective. It is intended to
be an initial contribution to a newly task already achieved by other systems and sciences: the
assessment of “interactions” in management systems.
