Non-Conformance Best Practice

Non-conformance best practice

The best way to deal with non-conformances, is to not put yourself or the organisation in the situation to have a major non-conformity.

This means –

Make sure the standard has been implemented correctly
Ensure that the procedures are achievable, don’t make something 15 steps when 10 will do. This can not only over complicate the process, but it increases the chances of something being done incorrectly. (First ask - will more steps actually improve the process?)
Use the standard/system to benefit and improve the organisation not just to attain certification. This means you have a much higher chance of the system actually working for you and getting staff buy in
See non-conformances as opportunities for improvement
See improvements as a potential precursor to a non-conformance. For instance, if every month the same issue is identified and an improvement raised then this will likely mean there is an issue with the process.
Refer to the organisations Management Reviews, they will touch on most all of the above points as part of the agenda and help create a proactive as opposed to reactive response.