Quality in The Digital Age: Why you need an eQMS
Paul Hastings 
Date published: Sep 02, 19
The digital age has changed the way we act, think and communicate. Yet, in so many cases the world of quality and compliance is still managed and indeed hampered by manual, paper-based systems. Quality management needs to move into the digital age. By modernising legacy processes with an Electronic Quality Management System (eQMS) organisations can meet today’s quality challenges.
How quality has changed
These manual systems persist despite a more modern way of thinking about quality where a culture of ownership, responsibility and accountability of everyone has become the norm. One of the reasons for this is the new high-level structure of ISO standards such as ISO 9001 2015 and ISO 45001.
The changes have seen the need for organisations to have a much more open environment across all levels, where feedback is welcome, and employees need to be increasingly aware of what’s expected of them as a result. There is a much greater focus on quality and the associated risks, how to respond to these risks, and how to learn from them.
Where manual processes hamper quality management
An environment where employees are encouraged to say something when they see an issue and are supported by management will lead to a much stronger quality culture within the organisation. Yet, despite these culture shifts and regulatory changes, many organisations are fighting against themselves by continuing to use manual paper-based systems for areas such as:
- Document Management
- Audit Management
- Incident Reporting
- People and Training Records
- Asset Management
- Project Management
Using outdated systems for these key processes results in repetition of work, inaccurate information, lack of ownership and poor communication and notification. This leads to an organisation being uncompetitive, unproductive, inefficient and making losses in the long run.
The role of quality management software
All organisations will work to standards, be it regulatory, or simply your own internal expectations and requirements. Managing these effectively need an electronic quality management system
We’ve been helping organisations for over 25 years to achieve quality and operational excellence. With millions of users worldwide, Q-Pulse can help your organisation become more streamlined, effective and gain competitive advantage.
It’s time to adapt your manual processes for an eQMS. To find out how we can help contact, myself, Paul Hastings at paul.hastings@ideagenplc.com