Management Systems
“Our management system can be our seeing eye dog that provides direction in times of uncertainty ...
or
It can be the dead dog that we pull behind us that creates bureaucracy and wastes resources!”
Operations Vice President from a major energy company
Implementation of a management system can lead to continual improvement or waste.
What determines the difference? It is the thinking of the organization and, most importantly, the leadership. Number one is their understanding of systems - their systems thinking capability. Second, also related is the motivation to implement or improve the management system. When leadership begins to question current and past efforts to address chronic long term problems - there is an opportunity to make fundamental changes in the organization. On the other hand, when management system initiatives, including certification, are imposed by a customer or external body, the result is often creating a "paper program" with binders full of crap ignored by the organization.
Binders full of crap that the organization ignores is not a management system
Three very important factors that influence the success or failure of efforts to improve management systems include:
Systems thinking capability. As Peter Senge says, “without the systems thinking the seeds of vision fall on harsh soil.” Without systems thinking, improving a management system is impossible.
Recognition that every organization has a health and safety management system.
Improvement begins with understanding the current state of your organization, where you are, not where you want to be.
What is a management system?
While the focus of this web site is workplace health and safety, no distinction is made between various management system areas. The principles, thinking and approaches covered apply universally to all management system, whether health and safety, asset management, environment, security, quality, etc.
A management system is, at its best, a powerful tool that leadership provides for all employees, consisting of multiple integrated processes and feedback loops. It maximizes the use of the organization’s resources and leads to continual improvement.
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Traditional gap analysis is very dangerous. The elements and requirements of a standard are listed and It is based on the invalid assumption that if all the parts (in this case system elements) are present the system will function effectively.