What is ISO 9001?

ISO 9001 is the heart of quality practice. Created by the International Organisation for Standardisation in 2015, ISO 9001 provides a flexible framework for the design of a Quality Management System (QMS) that ensures both products and services meet customer and regulatory standards all whilst creating a path to improvement that can be repeated by all that use it. In times of tighter supply chains, higher regulatory scrutiny and customer expectations that are quite rightly rising, having a robust and proveable QMS is a strategic asset. The core principles of ISO 9001 are customer focus, leadership, people engagement, approach to processes, improvement, evidence based decision making and relationship management.

We are built on structure, from Anthony Webb at the top to Operations, HR, Compliance, Finance and every supervisor on the front line. ISO 9001 reinforces clear processes, concise handovers and defined responsibilities so that issues are prevented before they land on our teams or clients.

Let’s have a look at why quality management matters in the cleaning sector

1 – Health and Safety depends on it. That’s quite a bold statement by all accounts but cleaning isn’t just about appearances. Having proper quality controls in place reduces the spread of bacteria, germs and allergens. In spaces with a high volume of people, such as schools, hospitals or gyms, poor quality cleaning can quite literally make people sick.

2 – Consistency builds trust – In the words of Meagan Francis, “Cleaning and organizing is a practice, not a project.”. Anyone can clean well once. Quality Management ensures it’s done every time, across different teams and locations. Reliability builds confidence and confidence builds trust.

3 – “Clean” is subjective without a QMS. When you have clear standards, audits and check lists, you then have your standards to train and measure against. And if you’re training against your own standards, you’re taking guess work out of the equation for your teams.

4 – Protect your (client’s) assets!! – When you have a QMS place, you are protecting assets by ensuring products are used in the correct way.  Using the incorrect chemicals, tools or methods can cause damage and cross contamination of surfaces.

5 – Do it right the first time – If your team knows the standards that are set out, you are managing the quality and expectation of the standard of work upfront, reducing re-cleaning time and client complaints.

6 – Clear procedures and expectations – Having a QMS isn’t micromanaging your teams, it’s giving them the clarity and training to set them up to win!

To sum it up, in cleaning, small mistakes are often visible. Smells, dust and missed areas reflect badly on your team and on you as a business. Having a quality management system to work with shows your reliability, commitment to standards and to your people. Ask how 3Way can help your business today.