Most people in the "Quality" arena have completely missed the boat when it comes to the failure of ISO's Management System Standards (MSS).   Most will argue vehemently that the ISO management system standards will improve any business…   Well, after decades of being involved with these standards, I’m here to tell you, that whole opinion… is a façade. 

What these purveyors of ISOism will never tell you is what most folks in business will eventually figure out on their own.  The only reason businesses decide to register to ISO MSS’s is because it allows them to sell internationally without additional country or business specific auditing.  They therefore accept the flaws of ISOism, because its currently the only international pathway available, but it shouldn’t be. 

There are four basic flaws inherent to ISO management system standards (MSS).

1- ISO MSS’s do not allow for nor do the technical committees seem to understand, the concept of fluid tactics as a means of achieving strategy.   Without fluid tactics, business will become bulky and stifled by strict standardized methods, which most of the employees will not be able to follow.  Business needs responsive, adaptive, fluid tactics.  Such tactics find their cornerstone in employee product or service competence.

2- ISO Technical Committees do not understand the concept of the severity of variation as being what is often termed risk.  As a mater of fact, ISO MSS don’t mention variation, even though that was the primary focus which Deming taught (reduce variation).  Variation is the very cause of non-conformity and it becomes “risky” based upon its Severity.

3- The ISO standards are written by academia or academics, who understand ideas or concepts (including the bazar) but in most cases don’t understand down to earth, reasonable and practical application.

4- Hegelian dialectics, this is a soapbox I could stand upon for days on end.  However, suffice it to say, government who adheres to hegelian dialectics (most) have no idea what it means to run an effective business.  Therefore, they should NEVER have control of the means of production, and they should NEVER place themselves on equal plain with the Customer.   A customer is NEVER an interested party.   The customer is the almighty and business is its servant. Government employees are devoid of this concept as they only posses the concept of being responsible to a political party and its dialectic based ideals, regardless of what a customer might desire or need.  

Imagine being told as a customer, “I cannot tend to your needs because you represent a gender or racial makeup, which we do not support.”   However, in the political arena, which operates upon Hegelian dialectics, that is exactly what a customer representing the makeup of certain dialectic Thesis, might find themselves confronted with by government employees acting in Hegelian dialectic antithesis.  

In closing, these are the four prime reasons, why businesses should narrowly consider being registered to ISO MSS.  If necessity arises that a business need be registered, only conform to the very minimum of those MSS’s, which are necessary to receive certification.   Shop registers who are lenient in their auditing and certification and avoid the ISOism ideology trap.