DocQment, newsletter of the STC Quality SIG, June 2002.

Book Review

ISO 9000 Quality Systems Handbook (fourth edition) by David Hoyle

Amazon.com lists 243 titles related to ISO 9000; which book is best? If you want advice on how to improve the performance and quality of your organization from the leading expert on the subject, then you want the ISO 9000 Quality Systems Handbook by David Hoyle. If ISO certification is your goal, the book will help you with certification and implementation. If business improvement is your goal, you'll learn the framework to create an environment in which quality is achieved. If you have been volunteered to lead the ISO 9000 effort at your organization, you will learn about management responsibility, design control, purchasing, document data and control, process control, inspection and test equipment, and training.

ISO 9000 Quality Systems Handbook consists of eight chapters, a glossary, and a list of related Web sites.

• Chapter 1, Introduction, describes the perceptions that people have with ISO 9000. Among the perceptions are that the standard requires a written procedure for every task and certification by an auditing organization, and that an ISO 9000-certified organization produces problem-free products. The truth is that none of these perceptions is correct. Hoyle believes that these perceptions are a result of misunderstanding the intent and purpose of ISO 9000; the standard is a means to improve business performance not just to hang a certificate on the wall.
• Chapter 2, Basic Concepts, describes the principles and rationale for the requirements, and the important role they play in quality management.
• Subsequent chapters are dedicated to clarifying the roles, origin and application; the quality management system; management responsibility; resource management; product realization and measurement; analysis and improvement. The glossary is a particularly important part of the book because it clarifies common terminology used in ISO 9000.

What I especially liked about the book is that each chapter includes a questionnaire created from the requirements of the standard. The questions are not intended for auditors; they are intended for you to test the completeness of the system that you have formalized. A section called "Food for Thought" is intended for reflection on the previous chapter.

If you are familiar with ISO 9000, you know that the requirements are subject to interpretation. What I found particularly beneficial is that Hoyle describes the meaning of each requirement, explains why it is necessary, and tells how to implement it. As an added bonus, ISO 9000 Quality Systems Handbook (fourth edition) compares and contrasts ISO 9000:1994 and 2000. Important differences are that the scope has changed from activities that impact the product to embrace all activities in an organization that serve customer satisfaction.

David Hoyle has been involved with ISO 9000 as a user since the standards were first published. He contributed to the 1994 and 2000 revisions through the Institute of Quality Assurance. As a consultant and trainer since 1990, he has helped organizations across the world achieve ISO 9000 certification. Before that, Hoyle worked in the defense industry where the standards that ISO 9000 is based on were developed. He has 30 years' experience with quality management systems.

If you want to understand what ISO 9000 can do for your organization and how to create an environment in which quality is achieved, then I highly recommend the ISO 9000 Quality Systems Handbook.

David Dick, a senior member of the Belgium Chapter, is a Senior Technical Writer with the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications in LaHulpe, Belgium. By his efforts, the department of Worldwide Networks earned ISO 9001 certification.