Only days after it released the nonsensical ISO/TS 9002 “guidance document” on implementing ISO 9001 — a standard that’s not supposed to need any guidance documents in order to understand — the ISO publishing machine has churned out another garbage document, this one a 180+ page monstrosity called “ISO 9001 for Small Enterprises — What to Do? – Advice from ISO/TC 176“. Or, as I prefer to call it, “ISO 9001: WTF?”
ISO was so sure you’d hate it, they didn’t even follow their typical pricing model, which is based on page count. Rather than charge the regular rate of over 200 CHF for a 180 page document, they priced this in the gutter are a mere 38 CHF (about $40 US). That’s a bargain, but considering they shouldn’t charge people at all for what’s basically an advertisement, it’s still an insane ripoff. Don’t fret, though, no doubt in a few weeks it will be uploaded do the web, just like the Thai delegation did with their official copy of ISO 9001:2015 (Google it.) Idiots.
If you’re a standards nerd like me, you’d be interested to know if these craven attempts at needlessly wringing cash from users’ pockets violated any ISO rules or procedures, and of course the answer is yet. The ISO Directives Part 2 “Rules for the structure and drafting of International Standards” clause 4.1 clearly states that any ISO standards must be easily understood. Here’s the exact requirement:
4.1 Objective
The objective of documents published by ISO and IEC is to define clear and unambiguous provisions in order to facilitate international trade and communication. To achieve this objective, the document shall:• be as complete as necessary within the limits specified by its scope,
• be consistent, clear and accurate,
• be comprehensible to qualified persons who have not participated in its preparation
Clearly, if ISO has to publish dozens of additional standards, PowerPoint slide decks, official “N” publications, FAQ’s and endless seminars, the standard does not meet the requirements of being “clear and comprehensible.”
But remember: ISO is a publishing company, not a standards developer, and when you understand that, it makes perfect sense.
Ironically, the US TAG to TC 716 put up a half-hearted gripe about the need for these documents, but it was eventually overruled and now those same US TAG leaders are beating the pavement selling their own books and seminars — at grossly inflated prices — to anyone willing to listen.
I won’t even provide a link to this thing, since I don’t recommend you buy it.
About Christopher Paris
Christopher Paris is the founder and VP Operations of Oxebridge. He has over 30 years' experience implementing ISO 9001 and AS9100 systems, and is a vocal advocate for the development and use of standards from the point of view of actual users. He is the author of Surviving ISO 9001 and Surviving AS9100. He reviews wines for the irreverent wine blog, Winepisser.
