External management system officers

Every management system standard assumes that somebody holds the system together day to day. Controlling documents, running the audit programme, following up actions, preparing the management review. In many companies that is half a job – but only half.

That is exactly where an external appointment comes in. We take on the role for quality, environmental or occupational safety management in your company. For a single standard or for an integrated management system. For micro and small companies, a post of their own rarely pays for itself. But medium-sized companies also decide quite deliberately to place this role outside the company for good, because that moves the effort of keeping knowledge current and of maintaining qualification, competence and expertise out of the business as well. An external consultant brings current knowledge and experience; an internal employee has to keep up to date during working hours.

Who this is for

• Your quality management officer is going on parental leave, and the role should be more than nominally filled in the meantime
• Your officer has resigned, but the certification audit is already in the diary
• You are growing, and what two people handled on the side no longer holds up at sixty employees
• A customer is asking for an additional standard, and you have nobody in-house qualified for it
• The workload does not justify a post of its own – but without knowledge of the standard it cannot be done on the side either

What we take on

What you get

• A role that is filled, with a name and contact details – internally and towards the certification body
• A written definition of the role with clearly defined approval authority: who decides what, and from where on management decides
• A system that is ready for audit at any time, not only four weeks before the date
• Continuity across staff changes: an internal officer post is often one person with an extra task. When that person leaves, the knowledge goes too. We have looked after clients for more than 20 years – the history stays in your company
• A fixed rhythm on site instead of one visit a year. An external officer who only appears for the audit does not work. It takes regular dates, availability in between and somebody the staff know

How we work

1. 1

   Define the scope of the role

   First we clarify what belongs to the role and what does not. Which tasks we take on, which stay in-house, which approvals we may give. We put that in writing before we start.

2. 2

   Take stock

   We review the documentation, audit reports, open actions and the last management review. The result is a short list of what has to be dealt with first.

3. 3

   Handover and introduction

   Where possible, we take over directly from the previous officer. Then we introduce ourselves in the departments. Staff should know who to call when there is a nonconformity.

4. 4

   Day-to-day work at a fixed rhythm

   Agreed days on site, availability by phone and email in between. In practice that means approving documents, following up actions, preparing audits, answering questions.

5. 5

   Close the annual cycle

   Internal audit programme completed, management review held, certification audit supported. Then we look at the scope of the role together and adjust it if it no longer fits.

Where the limit is

The scope is negotiable, the responsibility is not. We take on tasks, from short-term cover during parental leave to filling the role permanently. What we cannot take on is overall responsibility for the management system. Under every common standard that sits with top management and cannot be delegated.

In practice that means: we prepare decisions, make recommendations and point out risks. The risk-based decision and the approval of actions rest with you. If an action costs money or people, we need somebody on your side to approve it. Where our approval authority ends is written into the agreement, so that nobody has to guess when it matters.

Who handles this at our end

Marion Rammé – IRCA certified and registered QMS / EMS / OHSMS Lead Auditor #01194927

Rüdiger Rammé – IRCA certified and registered QMS / OHSMS Lead Auditor #01192806

The role is deliberately staffed by two people. An external appointment that rests on a single head merely moves the risk of absence outside your business instead of solving it: through illness or holiday, the very thing you outsourced comes to a standstill. Who stands in, from when and with what authority is set out in the agreement, not left to the calendar.

The team in detail

Related topics

• Building a management system – when a system still has to be created
• Internal audits & gap analyses – carrying out the audits, independently of the officer role
• Training & workshops – when knowledge is to be built up in-house
• ISO 9001 – the standard behind the role of the quality management officer
• ISO 14001 – environmental management, in practice often the second role in the same hands
• Overview of standards – which standards we look after

Frequently asked questions

Let us talk about it

The first conversation is free and without obligation. It usually takes half an hour. Afterwards you know what to expect.

• Marion Rammé, Hamburg
• Rüdiger Rammé, Lüneburg – phone: +49 4131 2198634
• Email: all@bout-quality.de

Prefer to write? The contact form reaches us just as well.