Process approach

ISO/TC 176/SC 2/N 544R3 specified in Chapter 3.2: Typical types of processes that can be identified:

In accordance with 3.1 above, organizations have to define the number and types of processes needed to fulfil their business objectives. While these will be unique to each organization, it is however possible to identify typical processes, such as:

- Processes for the management of an organization. These include processes relating to strategic planning, establishing policies, setting objectives, ensuring communication, ensuring availability of resources for the other organization’s quality objectives and desired outcomes and for management reviews.

- Processes for managing resources. These include all the processes that are necessary to provide the resources needed for the organization’s quality objectives and desired outcomes.

- Realization processes. These include all processes that provide the desired outcomes of the organization.

- Measurement, analysis and improvement processes. These include the processes needed to measure and gather data for performance analysis and improvement of effectiveness and efficiency. They include measuring, monitoring, auditing, performance analysis and improvement processes (e.g. for corrective and preventive actions). Measurement processes are often documented as an integral part of the management, resource and realization processes; whereas analysis and improvement processes are treated frequently as autonomous processes that interact with other processes, receive inputs from measurement results, and send outputs for the improvement of those processes.

.Also see Figure 4 Example of a process sequence and its interactions for ISO/TC 176/SC 2/N 544R3 showing the interaction between Management Processes, Resource Processes, Processes Product and Measurement Analysis Improvement Processes.

Also, the ISO / TC 176/SC 2 / N 544R3 specified in Chapter 2 what is a process? These: A “Process” can be defined as a “set of interrelated or interacting activities, which transforms inputs into outputs”. These activities require allocation of resources such as people and materials.

Figure 1 shows a generic process. Inputs and intended outputs may be tangible (such as equipment, materials or components) or intangible (such as energy or information). Each process has customers and other interested parties (who may be either internal or external to the organization), with needs and expectations about the process, who define the required outputs of the process. For example, a company provides services for conducting internal audits. The society is provided by internal audit. In this case the client is company X. If the audit is performed by company personnel in this case the customer is internal, namely top management of the company. So audit is a process. Input: intangible (information - reference standard, system documentation, audit questionnaire, etc.). Output: intangible (information - audit report, etc.). External client company X or internal customer top management Allocated resources: people, financial (salary internal auditor, specific software, office equipment, etc.) or financial resources paid foreign company conducting internal audit.

Acceptance criteria for this process can be described in the procedure are mandatory for ISO 9001. The audit process can be measured and monitored by quality indicators. This process adds value by discovering and removing them nonconformities and their causes. („All processes should be aligned with the objectives, scope and complexity of the organization, and should be designed to add value to the organization”).