ISO Standards provide a framework to help businesses manage various aspects of their activities. Whether that’s quality, risk, environmental or Information Security management, they provide invaluable guidance to establish an effective Management System. One element that is key, no matter the Standard or subject area, is Leadership. Without this driving force, your Management System will not get the momentum it needs to truly benefit your way of working. Today Ian Battersby will explain the integral role of leadership within the Implementation and maintenance of an ISO Management System, and how their active participation benefits the whole business. You’ll learn ·      What is Leadership? ·      Where is Leadership referenced in ISO Standards? ·      How do Leadership get involved with the Implementation and Management of ISO Standards? ·      How does Leadership participation benefit the business?   Resources ·      Isologyhub     In this episode, we talk about: [00:30] Join the isologyhub – To get access to a suite of ISO related tools, training and templates. Simply head on over to isologyhub.com to either sign-up or book a demo. [02:05] Episode summary: Ian will be discussing the role of Leadership within ISO Management Systems and how their active participation can benefit the business as a whole. [02:30] What is Leadership? – Leadership is central to success in achieving any goal in business. It involves motivating a group of people toward a common pursuit, and it certainly isn’t straightforward without leadership believing in what it’s doing. Without showing that belief, why would the workforce sit up and take note: ‘If it’s not important to you, why should it be to me?’ [03:30] Why should Leadership get involved? – The need for leadership has been recognised by Standards bodies, hence why it’s been made central to all Management System Standards. For many years, Management Systems were separate from the day-to-day activities of running a business, often boiled down to just a person in a room with manuals, getting through certifications and earning a nice shiny badge.But this had little to no impact on the bottom line (be honest)! But, a well-run Management System can have huge impacts and benefits on all types of organisation, and updated ISO standards aim to deliver that impact more readily, so leadership gets its own clause (Clause 5 – Leadership)  [05:25] Clause 5.1 Top management shall demonstrate leadership & commitment – This boils down to taking accountability for effectiveness of the system, but how do you do this? Firstly, the system can only be effective if it is designed correctly, so leadership must ensure it fits with its context of the organisation, which is required in Clause 4. There are ways of doing this, but we favour a SWOT and PESTLE. This is simply to ensure that those establishing context don’t do it in a vacuum, opening up the floor to get input from everyone effected by the Management System. This is key because Senior Managers need active involvement to understand how the system works, its resource needs and its performance. [07:25] Ensuring quality policy and objectives are established and compatible with context and strategic direction – The quality objectives must contribute to the business, so there's a role for senior managers to ensure that they are aligned and have a measurable contribution to the business. What measures are included in your objectives which can demonstrably show that they affect the business in some way in a good way? That's what senior management have to do to link quality objectives with strategic organisational business objectives. [08:20] Ensuring integration into the organisation’s business processes – The quality objectives must contribute to the business, so there's a role for senior managers to ensure that they are aligned and have a me