Integrated Management Systems and its Benefits

Integrated management systems (IMS) have become increasingly popular in recent years as organisations look for ways to improve efficiency, effectiveness, and compliance while reducing costs. But what exactly is an IMS and how can it benefit your organization? In this blog post, we'll explore what an IMS is, how it works, and the many benefits it can provide.

What is IMS?

At its core, IMS is a framework that combines two or more management systems into a one smart system. These could be quality (ISO 9001), environmental (ISO 14001), and health and safety (ISO 45001) into a single system. This merger ensures that an organisation's management systems are aligned and work together to support the overall goals and objectives of the organisation.

What are the benefits of IMS?

Improved efficiency: One of the biggest benefits of IMS is improved efficiency. By combining two or more management systems into a single system, an organisation can reduce duplication of effort, eliminate conflicting requirements, and break silos amongst different departments. This can lead to more efficient use of resources and better coordination of activities.

For example, consider a manufacturing organisation with separate quality, environmental, and health and safety management systems. Without an IMS, these systems may have overlapping requirements and may not be well-synced with one another. This can lead to confusion, wasted effort, and conflicting requirements. By implementing an IMS, the organisation can bring all these systems together under one roof, improving efficiency and reducing costs.

Improved effectiveness: Another benefit of IMS is improved effectiveness. An IMS can improve an organisation's overall performance by ensuring that all management systems are aligned and working towards common goals and objectives. This can lead to improved quality, increased customer satisfaction, and reduced environmental impact. Additionally, an IMS can enable organisations to implement a culture of continuous improvement by encouraging regular reviews of management systems and identifying opportunities for improvement.

Reduced costs: IMS can help an organisation reduce costs by eliminating the need for separate systems, reducing the number of audits, and streamlining processes. An IMS allows organisations to have a single point of control for multiple management systems, which can lead to cost savings in terms of personnel, training, and documentation.

Improved compliance: Compliance is another area where an IMS can provide benefits. Organisations are expected to comply with a variety of regulations and standards, and this can be a daunting task. An IMS can help an organisation more easily comply with multiple regulations and standards by providing a single control point for multiple management systems. Additionally, an IMS can provide a more holistic view of an organisation's compliance status, making it easier to identify areas of non-compliance and take corrective action.

Greater flexibility: IMS also provides an organisation with greater flexibility to adapt to changing requirements, regulations, and standards, as well as to respond to changes in the business environment. An IMS can enable an organisation to respond more quickly and effectively to changing business conditions, as well as to changing regulatory requirements. 

Continuous improvement: Finally, IMS can facilitate continuous improvement by encouraging an organisation to review and improve its management systems on an ongoing basis. An IMS can be designed to be flexible and responsive, which can enable an organisation to continuously improve its management systems in order to better meet the needs of its customers and stakeholders.

What is HLS and how does it relate to IMS?

High-Level Structure (HLS) is a set of 10 clauses that provide a consistent approach for implementing and improving management systems. From 2012 onward, all revised ISO management system standards will use a common framework containing a Unified High-Level Structure Common Text and Terminology. Since then, all ISO management systems follow a similar structure and use common terms, making it easier and less confusing for organisations to implement IMS.

The HLS is formed around ten clauses:

1. Scope
2. Normative references
3. Terms and definitions
4. Context of the organisation
5. Leadership
6. Planning
7. Support
8. Operation
9. Performance evaluation
10. Improvement

The HLS is used for all ISO management systems standards such as ISO 9001 Quality Management, ISO 14001 Environmental Management and ISO 45001 Occupational Health and Safety management.

What are the benefits of HLS?

• Provide a core set of requirement
• Focus on effective process management to produce desired outcomes (through leadership commitment and involvement)
• Reflect changes in increasingly complex, demanding and dynamic environments (through identification of the context of the organisation, its stakeholders and risk analysis) and facilitate sustainable business development
• Easier to implement new standards
• Easier to integrate different management systems

What is an example of an organisation using IMS and HLS in their operations?

An example of an organization that uses integrated management systems (IMS) and High-Level Structure (HLS) in its operations is a manufacturing company that produces consumer goods. This company wants to ensure that its products are of the highest quality, that its employees are safe, and that it operates environmentally responsibly. The company adopts ISO 9001 for quality management, ISO 14001 for environmental management, and ISO 45001 for occupational health and safety management. By using the HLS, the company can ensure that its management systems conform to a common structure and use a common set of terms and definitions, making it easier for the company to integrate different management systems and ensure that they are aligned with each other.

The company starts by identifying the common processes and procedures required to meet the requirements of all three management systems. These common processes include risk management, document control, and internal auditing. By identifying these common processes, the company can reduce duplication and ensure that all three management systems are aligned with each other.

The company also trains its employees on the new management systems, and the employees are made aware of the responsibilities and commitments of the company towards the quality, safety and the environment.

The company then develops policies and procedures that align with the requirements of all three management systems and establishes a procedure for monitoring and measuring the performance of the IMS. This includes setting targets and objectives, conducting internal audits and management reviews to ensure compliance with the standards, and taking corrective and preventive actions as needed.

By implementing an IMS, the manufacturing company is able to manage the quality, safety, and environmental aspects of its operations in a coordinated and integrated way. This allows the company to meet the requirements of multiple standards and regulations and improve its overall performance. 

Conclusion

In conclusion, by implementing IMS and aligning it with the common HLS structure, organisations can improve their overall performance by eliminating inconsistencies, conflicting requirements, and duplication in their management systems. This results in an efficient and effective way of addressing the requirements of different standards and regulations and ultimately helps the organisation achieve its goals.

Who We Are

At core, LMS TRG is a compliance consulting and training organisation that builds and delivers powerful and practical products for people and businesses. Born and bred in Melbourne, Australia with an amazing team of expert auditors, consultants, and entrepreneurs.

Our area of expertise lies in providing training and guidance on compliance with the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) and the International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO). We also assist organisations in implementing effective management systems that are tailored to their specific needs and requirements. Our comprehensive approach to compliance training and management systems ensures our clients have the knowledge and tools necessary to meet regulatory requirements and industry standards. We are committed to helping our clients achieve success and maintain a culture of excellence in their operations.

We Care for each other, our members, and our society.

We Dare to discover and experiment, trying to be different and be fearless, and innovative.

We share our knowledge and experience, work together and continue to support our members.