An extract from the article “ The Role of Quality Management Systems in Environmental Innovation „by Dr. Mohammadali Farjoo – intellcert Office Australia / New Zealand
Quality Management Systems, even just ISO 9001, provide a structured framework for businesses to ‘systematically” enhance both their operational efficiency and innovation capabilities. According to El Manzani et al. (2019), QMS fosters incremental innovations by creating a structured, standardised environment conducive to continuous improvement. Furthermore, QMS integrates both social and technical components of organisational management, as well as the soft skills of the staff, helping to streamline environmental innovations in two critical ways:
1. Enhancing Process Control: QMS ensures that businesses adopt standardised product development and process management procedures, which is crucial when developing sustainable solutions or adopting innovative technologies. Continuous improvement, a core principle of QMS, drives organisations to refine their environmental practices, leading to innovations that reduce waste, energy consumption, and emissions according to their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) targets.
2. Fostering Incremental and Radical Innovation: Despite the misbelieves that QMS standardises and encapsulates operations and processes, research indicates that QMS impacts incremental and significantly radical product innovations. When social and technical practices within QMS are integrated, they provide a launchpad for innovation by promoting leadership, customer focus, and systematic approaches to management (Zhao, 2023), reducing risks of failure and improving customer adoption and satisfaction. This can translate into improved product life cycles, greener supply chains, and more sustainable resource usage in environmental sectors.
3. Aligning with ESG Goals: ESG metrics are increasingly critical for businesses seeking to remain competitive. A robust QMS ensures that environmental innovations are aligned with regulatory requirements and contribute to broader ESG goals. This structured approach allows businesses to improve their environmental performance and better report their sustainability outcomes to stakeholders.
Addressing Barriers through QMS
The integration of QMS can help overcome many of the barriers to environmental innovation:
- Advancing Technological Readiness: QMS enables companies to gradually integrate advanced green technologies by standardising processes and encouraging continuous improvement.
- Regulatory Compliance: QMS frameworks help businesses navigate complex environmental regulations by embedding compliance within their core operational processes. This reduces the uncertainty associated with changing environmental laws.
- Scaling Innovation: The process-driven nature of QMS allows innovations to be effectively scaled. Businesses can continually refine processes to expand their innovations beyond pilot stages to large-scale applications.
References:
- El Manzani, Y., Sidmou, M. L., & Cegarra, J. (2019). Does IS0 9001 quality management system support product innovation? An analysis from the sociotechnical systems theory. International Journal of Quality and Reliability Management/International Journal of Quality & Reliability Management, 36(6), 951–982. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJQRM-09-2017-0174
- Zhao, L., Gu, J., Abbas, J., Kirikkaleli, D., & Yue, X.-G. (2023). Does quality management system help organizations in achieving environmental innovation and sustainability goals? A structural analysis. Economic Research – Ekonomska Istraživanja, 36(1), 2484–2507. https://doi.org/10.1080/1331677X.2022.2100436
