DM Hall, one of Scotland’s leading firms of independent chartered surveyors, has become one of the small number of businesses in Scotland to achieve ISO 9001:2015 certification in Quality Management Systems (QMS).
ISO 9001 is the international standard which specifies requirements for a QMS and is used by organisation to demonstrate the ability to consistently provide products and services that meet customer and regulatory requirements. It is the most popular standard in the ISO 9000 series.
Stewart Ritchie, Compliance Support & Development Manager at DM Hall, said: “The exciting part in planning for the new standard was that it gave DM Hall the flexibility to re-evaluate the best practices for the business and its clients.
“We have been planning and focusing on the new standard over the last 18 months. Our managing partner, Eric Curran, and I worked on developing the concepts, which were then rolled out to the management committee, and thereafter to all our branch managers.
“Our carefully thought-out plan allowed us to follow a procedure that initially altered behaviours, meeting structures, audit procedures and communication. Our process approach is now firmly embedded in a risk-based, thinking model.”
DM Hall now has new systems in place to assess client requirements and expectations quickly and easily. Communication throughout the firm has improved and is subject to continuous measurement of the effectiveness of vital communications.
Eric Curran said: “The transition to ISO 9001: 2015 has taken all members of the management team on a journey which renewed our focus on customer requirements and analysis of the risks and opportunities facing the organisation, now and in the future.”
DM Hall previously held ISO 9001: 2008, the previous revised standard. The 2015 release of ISO standards represents the first major revision of QMS systems in 15 years.
The firm has over 150 members of staff across 27 offices, from Aberdeen to Dumfries; each branch will be displaying the certificate to show its commitment to documented procedures, continuity and compliance, and efficient processes.
