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The Institute of Management Consultants has all its members pledge in writing to abide by their Code of Ethics. The standards of conduct set forth in the Code provide basic principles in the ethical practice of management consulting. The purpose of the Code is to help the IMC members maintain their professionalism and adhere to high ethical standards in the conduct of providing services to clients and in their dealings with their colleagues and the public.

My Commitment to My Clients

My Commitment to Fiscal Integrity

9.0 - I will agree in advance with a client on the basis for fees and expenses and will charge fees that are reasonable and commensurate with the services delivered and the responsibility accepted.

My Commitment to the Public and the Profession

11.0 - If within the scope of my engagement, I will report to appropriate authorities within or external to the client organization any occurrences of malfeasance, dangerous behavior, or illegal activities.

ISO recently won another round in its fight to prevent its name from being misused on the Internet and having people be mislead into buying products or services that they believe are endorsed by ISO. The Arbitration and Mediation Center of WIPO (World Intellectual Property Organization) ruled that the following Internet domain names, which had been registered by companies with no connection to ISO, be transferred to ISO:

• iso1stop.com
• iso9000commerce.com
• isoeasy.com
• isoeasy.org
• isoeasy.info
• isonet.net
• isotraining.net

WIPO upheld ISO’s contention that the inclusion of “iso” in the domain names gave the misleading impression that the Web sites were sponsored by ISO, or affiliated to it. The WIPO arbitrators found that the domain names had been registered with a view to commercial gain by the registrants since Internet users could be attracted to the sites mistakenly believing them to be connected to ISO. The success of ISO’s standards has been accompanied by the growth of organizations offering related products and services such as certification of conformity, consultancy, training, publications, and software. The majority operate in a business-like manner without infringing ISO trademarks, but some make use of ISO’s name in a way that could confuse potential customers into believing that these organizations are part of ISO, or that they, their products, or services are endorsed by ISO. This has led ISO to take even more vigorous action in recent years to protect Internet users and to pursue organizations that refuse to comply with ISO’s policy on the use of its name and logo. ISO’s policy on the use of its name and logo can be consulted on its web page, along with guidelines on publicizing certification to its ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 14001:2004 standards.

Can you trust financial planners? ISO has published the first International Standard that will help people decide whether or not they can be confident about the ethics and competence of professionals that give advice on planning their personal finances. ISO 22222:2005, Personal Financial Planning, is aimed at increasing client confidence by providing an internationally agreed benchmark for a high global standard of service.

Up until now, people seeking advice on how to plan their retirement, or best invest their savings, have been confronted with similar problems all over the world. There is a vast choice of investment schemes, legal frameworks vary from country to country, and investments can go wrong. With so many financial planners to choose from, how can you know who to trust and how should you compare the different schemes being offered? For example, according to the technical committee that developed the standard, the number of financial planners in the United States alone ranges from 800,000 to several million, depending on the definition of “planner”.

An International Standard for financial planning will provide simplification for the client by setting forth requirements to assure that the client is well served by financial planners who have met the highest ethical and educational standards. The standard defines six steps in the personal financial planning process:

1. Establish client/planner relations;
2. Determine goals and gather data;
3. Evaluate the client’s financial status;
4. Develop and present the financial plan;
5. Implement recommendations;
6. Monitor the plan recommendations.

At the heart of ISO 22222:2005 is a framework that applies to all aspects of the personal financial planner’s ethical behavior, and requires compliance with applicable rules and regulations. It states the requirements for competence performance and assessment methods, and obliges the financial planner to demonstrate continued competency by following the necessary training programs and maintaining records of them.

The standard also specifies the requirements, content, and length of experience a personal financial planner must have, and is applicable to all personal financial planners, regardless of their employment status. Experts from a variety of legal, economic, and cultural backgrounds from more than 17 countries began work in 2001 to author this unique and pioneering goal-oriented standard. ISO 22222:2005 is expected to become an internationally accepted benchmark for providers of personal financial planning.

The standard can be ordered at the ANSI e-Standards Store for $93.00

Auditors should verify that the resources needed to implement, maintain, and improve the quality management system are adequately managed. This means that appropriate resources are to be identified, planned, made available, used, monitored, and changed as necessary by the organization.
 
It is recommended that the management of resources not be audited in isolation. Irrespective of the way the organization is structured and identifies its processes, auditors should be able to verify the adequacy and effective management of the resources to achieve planned results. It is important for auditors to verify whether the organization has evaluated past and present performance (e.g., using cost-benefit analysis and risk assessment) when deciding what resources are to be allocated.
 
Management of resources can be evaluated by interviews with top management and other responsible personnel to check that suitable processes are in place. This needs, however, to be supported by objective evidence collected throughout the audit.
 
Evidence can be obtained at different stages of the audit: reviewing inputs, process performance, and outputs. This has to be carried out when auditing all the processes and related system and process documentation, such as:

• Management commitment and responsibilities;
• Management review process;
• Product realization processes, including the control of nonconforming products, corrective and preventive actions, and continual improvement.

Auditors should avoid making subjective judgements on the adequacy of the resources allocated by the organization and should limit their role to the evaluation of the effectiveness of the resource management process.
 
Auditors should verify that the human resources, infrastructure (e.g., energy, water, facilities and equipment maintenance, communications, and information technology), and the work environment (e.g., temperature, lighting, vibration, and noise) have been provided and maintained in a way consistent with the quality policy and objectives, as well as, contributing to conformity to product requirements.
 
If it is found that effective management of resources has not been taken into consideration by the organization, which may result in not satisfying product-related requirements, this should be treated as a nonconformity, the magnitude of which should be related to the associated risk.

Note: This article is based on the guidance provided by the ISO 9001:2000 Auditing Practices Group in the Auditing Kit at the ISO web site.

Robert King, Jr., head of the ANSI/ASQ National Accreditation Board (ANAB), says customers should complain to their ISO 9001:2000 certified suppliers if they are dissatisfied with the quality of their purchased products and services. If their complaints fail to gain satisfaction, they should then contact the organization's certification body (registrar). If the issue remains unresolved, it's time to complain directly to ANAB, the accreditation body.

When you complain to certification bodies, they have several options for a closer scrutiny of your suppliers. They can conduct a special onsite audit as a result of your complaint. And, they can change the audit surveillance time and frequency until the issue is resolved.

Customer satisfaction is a key part of ISO 9001:2000. If any of your suppliers aren't meeting your specified requirements, it is time to give them some clear feedback on the improvements you expect as their customer. In all likelihood, they will resolve the issue promptly. If not, then don't hestitate to notify their certification body. Stop whining about poor quality ... and do something about it.

Does your organization understand the differences between a Vision, Mission, Goal, and Objective?

• You SEE a Vision (images of what we ultimately want to achieve)
• You HAVE a Mission (your type of business and industry)
• You PURSUE Goals (the results we choose to accomplish)
• You ACHIEVE Objectives (measurable targets along the path to our goals)

• Why are you in business? (Vision)
• What business are you in? (Mission)
• What are your principles? (Values)  

• What is your dream or vision of the future?
• What is the loftiest picture you can imagine?

• Integrity in all our actions
• Commitment to employees
• Quality of our products
• Technology innovations
• Continual learning

What do you hold dear and inviolate? What core values guide your activities? Express these values for an improved work environment and allow the organization to prosper.

Strategy Development
Your vision, mission, and values play an important role in developing your business strategy. They provide the framework for generating and screening strategic options. The provide an organizational identity and understanding of business directions.

Goals and Objectives
Goals are conditions to be achieved in the future. They must be defined consistent with your vision and mission. Goals are established to guide your decisions and actions. However, they usually do not involve measurable results, and therefore, do not change as often as objectives.

Objectives are focused on critical issues and milestones. They describe the activities and targets to achieve your goals. They identify the dates for completing the activities. They are measurable in terms of being achieved, or not. For example, a general goal might be to reduce waste. The specific objective might be to reduce waste from 4% to 3% by the end of 2006

To enroll in these public classes, you can click on the course title, go to Class Schedule at our web site, or call us at 800-404-7585.

Classes taught by Larry Whittington are shown in yellow.

Quality Management System Courses

ISO 9001:2000 Lead Auditor (RABQSA Certified) - BSI Management Systems
Initial course version developed by Larry Whittington 

ISO 9001:2000 Internal Auditor (RABQSA Certified) - BSI Management Systems
Initial course version developed by an Associate at Whittington & Associate

Implementing ISO 9001:2000
Course developed by Larry Whittington

Information Security Management System Courses

ISO 17799 / ISO 27001 - Understanding an Information Security Management System

Environmental Management System Courses

Understanding ISO 14001:2004

Implementing an Environmental Management System

Automotive (ISO/TS 16949) Courses

ISO/TS 16949:2002 Internal Auditor

Understanding and Implementing ISO/TS 16949:2002

Aerospace (AS9100) Courses

AS9100:2004 Internal Auditor

Medical Devices (ISO 13485) Courses

Understanding ISO 13485:2003

ISO 13485:2003 Internal Auditor

ISO 13485:2003 Lead Auditor

On-site Courses
The above public courses can be offered on-site at your facility. In addition, we offer these on-site courses:

• ISO 9001:2000 Auditor Update - The Process Approach (1 Day) - Course developed by Larry Whittington
• Understanding ISO/TS 16949:2002 Requirements (1 Day) - Course developed by Larry Whittington
• Internal Quality Auditing (2 Days) - Course developed by Larry Whittington (based on ISO 19011)
• AS9100B: Requirements Beyond ISO 9001:2000  (1 Day) - Course developed by Larry Whittington

Copyright © 2000 - 2007  Whittington & Associates, LLC.
All Rights Reserved.
242 Highlands Drive, Woodstock, GA 30188
770-517-7944 or fax 770-517-7945

 
Whittington & Associates provides training, consulting and auditing services for quality systems based on
ISO 9001, ISO/TS16949, TL9000, AS9100, ISO 13485, as well as, ISO 27001, ISO 20000, ISO 22000, and ISO 14001.