Management Systems & ISO Assessment
Introduction. Many companies have found that strong
management systems are critical to maintaining compliance and
implementing EHS improvements. The experienced eye of an independent
consultant can be particularly valuable in understanding your
company’s management systems.
Experience. As shown by our management
systems and ISO 14001 experience, our consultants have assessed
the management systems of over 30 organizations. This experience
allows us to effectively assess what is working and what is not
and bring knowledge of examples of leading practices from other
companies. We can identify unique aspects of your company culture
or organization that can help or hinder effective EHS management.
ISO 14001. ISO 14001 is the key international standard for the implementation of environmental management systems (EMSs) within organizations. We conduct ISO 14001 gap analyses to help an organization establish how its current systems compare to the requirements of the standard. We provide a report that summarizes the gaps and includes prioritized recommendations to close the gaps. Once the gaps are identified, we can provide guidance
and hands-on assistance to help implement the required elements
of a management system. This includes assistance in areas such
as environmental aspects evaluation, procedure development, training,
auditing, and management review (see implementation).
Among the topics we often review during a management systems
assessment are:
- Policy development and communication
- Risk assessment and management
- Regulatory tracking
- Goals and objectives
- Emergency response systems
- Standard operating procedures
- Data management systems
- Document control and recordkeeping systems
- Training programs
- Change control systems
- Incident/accident management and investigation
- Internal and external reporting
- Internal audit & inspection programs
- Personnel reward and recognition programs
- Roles, responsibilities, organizational structure
- Resources
The Information Technology Connection. An important aspect of effective and efficient EHS management systems today is the integration of information technology and software tools. Increasingly, proper use of information technology and software within an organization can help save time and money by streamlining how information gets managed and communicated throughout an organization. Our consultants have extensive experience developing such tools and, most importantly, helping organizations integrate those tools within their current management systems.
Our Qualifications. To better understand our experience in this area, review descriptions of projects we've conducted in the areas of management systems / ISO 14001 and information technology and review this case study:
