Can ISO 9001 become the 'Babel fish' for aligning the plethora of compliance requirements? - Ron Mazzachi, Martin Andrew, Craig Ottaway

Can ISO 9001 become the
‘Babel fish’ for aligning the
plethora of compliance
requirements?
      Ron Mazzachi, Martin
      Andrew, Craig Ottaway

Standards in Legislation

   The Australian Government’s
    ComLaw Website shows over 360
    pieces of current legislation
    referring to uses the term
    ‘Standards’
   Two main uses of the term
    Standards are in ‘Product
    Standards’ and ‘System Standards’

The rise and rise of the Service
Standards

   There has been considerable
    development of many quite specific
    and detailed standards for Service
    industries such as health,
    community services and education.
   These may or may not be
    associated with legislative
    instruments

Example of Service Industry
 Standards
 The Australian Service Excellence
  Standards
 Quality Improvement Council
  Health and Community Services
  Standards
 The National Safety and Quality
  Health Service Standards
 The National VET Regulator
  Standards

Some basics of the VET system

   TAFE is the government public provider of
    VET
   There are also over 4,500 private providers
    of VET
   VET offers job specific skills across many
    industries with qualifications from
    Certificate I, II, III, IV, Diploma through to
    components of Bachelor or higher degrees
   A provider of public or private VET is
    known as an Registered Training
    Organisation (RTO)

Publically funded VET in Australia
- In 2013

   1.88 million students enrolled
     11.9% between 15 to 64 years
     30.9% of Australians between 15
      and 19 years
     42.0% aged 24 years and under

     82.8% studying part-time

     24.1% of all students between 15
      and 19 years

Publically funded VET in Australia
- In 2013

 585 600 Qualifications
  Framework (AQF) qualifications
  completed in 2012
 39.4% of AQF qualifications
  completed at certificate III level
  and
 22.8% at certificate IV level

Key components of the (VET) system.

1.   Nationally agreed Australian
     Qualifications Framework
2.   Nationally agreed system for registering
     and quality assuring training providers
3.   Industry-led system defines the
     outcomes that are required from training
4.   A system focused on a person’s needs
     for work
5.   A quality assurance structure applied
     across the VET system

The National VET Regulations and
current quality assurance
arrangements
   Existing VET Quality Framework
    came into effect from 1 July 2011
   Previously each jurisdiction had
    separate departments responsible
    for overseeing VET quality.
   The Australian Skills Quality
    Authority (ASQA) is now responsible
    for accrediting RTOs nationally

The National VET Regulations and
current quality assurance
arrangements
   Major changes to the VET System
    regulation came about in 2000 with
    the AQTF.
   Often significant updates averaging
    every 2.5 years since
   A new standard is expected within
    the next month!

The VET Quality Framework
    comprises
   The Standards for National VET
    Regulator (NVR) Registered Training
    Organisations
   requirements for a Person to be ‘Fit and
    Proper’
   requirements for Financial Viability Risk
    Assessment
   requirements for Data Provision
   the Australian Qualifications
    Framework.

The National VET Regulations

 Comprises 22 sections
 11 for businesses wishing to
  become a RTO,
 11 applicable for current RTOs
  seeking re-registration

The National VET Regulations
   Areas to be addressed for both include:
      demonstrating strategies to provide quality
       training and assessment,
      equality for access,

      a management system responsive to the
       needs of clients and stakeholders,
      governance, insurance, financial
       management,
      issuing qualifications, and integrity in
       marketing.
      each Section of the NVR has further detailed
       requirements.

Quality Management Systems

   ISO 9001 is largest with over 1
    million businesses or organisations
    certified.
   In Australia almost 10,000 businesses
   Each ISO member country has a body
    responsible for ensuring the
    consistency of certifications across
    businesses
   JAS-ANZ is the body for Australia and
    New Zealand

ISO 9001:2008 specifies
     requirements for an organization
   needs to demonstrate its ability to
    consistently provide product that meets
    customer and applicable statutory and
    regulatory requirements, and
   aims to enhance customer satisfaction
    through the effective application of the
    system, including processes for continual
    improvement of the system and the
    assurance of conformity to customer and
    applicable statutory and regulatory
    requirements.

ISO 9001:2008 specifies
     requirements for an organization
   Note that ‘product’ here covers any work
    products or deliverables, including a
    service or training.
   ISO 9001:2008 comprises several key
    and many sub components that an
    organisation must address to be in
    compliance, including Documentation,
    Management responsibility, Resource
    management, Product realization, and
    Measurement, analysis and improvement.

NVR Legislation

   Requires a RTO to have ‘in place
    management systems that will be
    responsive to the needs of clients, staff
    and stakeholders’.
   RTOs might adopt a formal model such
    as ISO or other systems such as
    Investors in People, or the Baldrige
    Framework whether or not they seek
    formal certification for that system

NVR Legislation - ISO 9001:2008
links

   Many sections of the NVR are
    almost identical in intent to ISO.
   NVR 4.2 requires Strategies for
    training and assessment to meet
    the requirements of the relevant
    Training Package and Industry.
   Similar intent to ISO 7.1 Planning of
    product realization

NVR Legislation - ISO 9001:2008
    links

   NVR requires the RTO to have a defined
    continuous improvement strategy that
    requires the collection and analysis of
    data in many specific sections of the
    NVR.
   Section 8 of ISO simply addresses
    continuous improvement far more
    elegantly ‘as a tool to be used wherever
    appropriate to help a business’

NVR Legislation - ISO 9001:2008
    links
   SNR 16.7 requires an RTO to provide appropriate
    mechanisms and services for learners to have
    complaints and appeals addressed efficiently and
    effectively
   ISO 9001:2008 Standard 7.2.3 requires an
    organisation to determine and implement effective
    arrangements for communication with customers in
    relation to customer feedback, including customer
    complaints
   Standard 8.5.2 requires the organisation to have a
    documented procedure established to define
    requirements for reviewing nonconformities
    (including complaints) to eliminate the causes of
    nonconformities in order to prevent recurrence

NVR Legislation - ISO 9001:2008
    links
   There are numerous similarities between
    the requirements of the NVR and ISO
    9001:2008
   There is no incentive for RTOs to use an
    existing quality management system to
    help improve their whole of business
    operations.
   ISO 9001 is not recognised or given
    credit.
   Much of the NVR is essentially a parallel
    and duplicate system

Other legislative approaches

   Elsewhere in Australia there are
    legislated certification standards
    that acknowledge or use an ISO
    certification
   For example the ‘National Safety
    and Quality Health Service
    Standards’

The role of the Quality Assurance
    Manager

   The Australian Bureau of Statistics
    maintains a classification of
    Occupations - ANZSCO
   It describes the title, work role, work
    experience and qualifications required
    for all major occupations.
   For Quality occupations includes
       139914: Quality Assurance Manager
       2247: Management and Organisation
        Analyst

Employer views of Quality
    Manager
   …To be successful in this role applicants must be able to
    demonstrate successful results in:
       Facilitating internal and external audits
       Up to date knowledge of government reporting & funding
        requirements
       Development and implementation of standard operating
        procedures, policies and other related systems to adhere to
        AQTF and ASQA requirements.
       Monitoring and maintaining Government funding contract
        requirements
       Developing training & assessment strategies, adding new
        qualifications to scope & assessment mapping.
       Building relationships & communicating with key operational
        and high level stakeholders such as registering, funding and
        all other regulatory bodies…….

Employer views of Quality
    Manager
   …Your duties in this role would include:
       Providing leadership and support to Managers across ASQA
        Compliance
       Liaising with ASQA and other state and federal government
        bodies in relation to registration, additions to scope and other
        related issues
       Development and implementation of policies and procedures
       Oversee all internal auditing for ASQA Compliance.
       You must have the following skills to be successful
            A strong background in RTO Compliance in a National RTO, with an
             understanding of different state requirements.
            Experience with ASQA re-registration or registration audits
            Understanding of mapping and validation and moderation
            Experience managing AVETMISS compliant reporting systems
            The ability to understand business outcomes whilst managing a highly
             compliant RTO….

Conclusion

   Build regulatory approaches that allow
    the voluntary integration of an existing
    quality management system, such as ISO
    9001 or alternatively
   Develop legislation where possible along
    the logical structures of ISO 9001 to
    facilitate consistency across regulated
    industry
   This should allow a more effective and
    competitive model of regulation while also
    encouraging providers to be efficient and
    responsive businesses.