In recent years, all companies have been faced with the demands of the national and international market, the concept of management systems and tools is applied and a question arises: what do you eat?
The reality is that with the modernization processes, all organizations, both governmental and private, have been "subjected" to national and international certification; implementation processes that have had to be addressed without adequate preparation and, with the highest inexperience of both the companies and it should be said without the intention of hurting susceptibilities, such as some consultants and advisers.
For this reason, it is natural for you, a manager of a public or private organization, to have the impression that management systems and tools are nothing more than a burden that is too heavy, too expensive or too unnecessary.
And your reaction is logical when after 1 or 2 years of implementation, an internal audit arrives and raises more than 30 non-conformities, or you perceive that although there has been a change in attitude, the work is not enough to that true work teams are formed and operated, or despite the great efforts of senior management, there is still no logical structure that evidences a real implementation, worse still within your organization, there is only talk of a system and although they have If the other (or the others) has made efforts to implement the integrated system, they do not seem to exist, or they are perceiving the first sign of defeat, their system enters a phase of lethargy that seems to lead inevitably to extinction and with it the feeling of having wasted time, effort and resources.
The truth is that the integration of management systems is also an art and requires a great vision, deep knowledge of the organization and above all a solid structure of the implemented system that allows supporting the weight of the new system without wearing down the organization, much less create a new management system.
And it is that integration is not as easy as it seems and less when the structure of the system that is operating is so basic that it requires profound changes.
Therefore, Mr. Manager, the first step in the formula for success is to believe in management systems. For example, the high profitability of oil companies is not a lie to anyone, who are obliged to implement integrated management systems in order to exercise their trade. This demystifies, but above all, unencumbers the implementation, makes it necessary to increase the productivity and profitability of your organization.
The truth is that integrated management systems are tools that facilitate the organization management, administration and control of all processes, improve the corporate image and increase the competitiveness of your business, in the medium term and if your system is effective, the investment made is recovered and in the long term increase the profitability of your business. It does not seem like a good alternative.
I present below some tips that facilitate the creation of a truly integrated management scheme, and that after believing, can help you make decisions regarding the implementation of your integrated system:
1. It is important to verify that the implementation of an integrated system is within the strategic objectives of the organization. It must not be forgotten that decisions must be in the hands of senior management, which is the one who has the responsibility, but above all the authority. It should be understood that all implementation requires resources (human, financial, technical, technological and physical), an implementation is a medium-term investment of the organization.
2. Make the comparison between the two (or more) systems that you intend to implement with those that are already implemented or between themselves. Generally within our organizations there are restless people who know about the subject and can be an important support for the implementation, but be careful, this activity must be developed by an expert on the subject, the fact of reading about suicide does not make us suicidal, right?.
3. Carry out the diagnosis: This activity will make it possible to identify if the existing platform really resists the new implementation and which are the strategies that generate the least impact within the organization and that guarantee a level of acceptance of the system such that it allows its implementation. Be careful gentlemen managers, this diagnosis must be carried out by a specialist and must necessarily be accompanied by people who know the organization and who, if it is the case, have been working on the implementation of tools or management systems within their organization. This teamwork between the specialists and the knowledgeable people of the organization, whatever their hierarchical level, is one of the milestones that will guarantee the success of its implementation with the minimum use of resources.
It is important to clarify that this activity lasts at least one month, and consists of several steps, such as: that the specialist knows the organization thoroughly, that a diagnostic audit is carried out, that an analysis is made by the specialist of the results of the audit, among others.
4. Carry out the implementation plan: This work is carried out by the same team that carried out the diagnosis, but the management representative, or the person with authority must also be involved here in order to direct the appropriate strategies for the organization from the managerial perspective.
5. Top management must approve the implementation plan and disclose it. This implementation plan must be strategic, tactical, and operational (this requires a high level of detail, scheduling, and resource allocation.
6. Publicize this plan. The entire organization must know its tasks in front of the implementation, when and how it must do them. Making this plan operational is the task of senior management as well as the organization's middle managers. At this point, the organization decides to what level it requires the group of experts; However, if the plan is detailed, it did not require more than a few hours a week and in training. This optimizes resources.
7. Implement the plan. If you have done a good job of planning, you have hired a good consultant, and you have your work team aligned, you should not worry too much at this stage. Your concerns will be limited to monitoring, controlling, and acting in the event that any activity deviates from the program.
It is very important that within your organization there is a team that is reporting during the march to senior management about the correctness or not of the strategies taken. Whenever a new management system or tool is implemented, the organizational culture is being impacted, so that the risk of failure is due to ignorance of the response of the human resources of your organization, a risk that must be mitigated, without However, the reality is that you can never create a strategy that eliminates it, so you have to keep it supervised.
Thus, an integrated management system, far from being a utopia, is a necessary tool that guarantees competitiveness for your organization, generates higher returns, improves corporate image, all through maximizing the control of your organization and the use of techniques that make effective decision-making.
It seems a lie but it is true, the tools and management systems are here to stay and with good advice they will become the best strategic ally of your business.
