Integrated Management Systems: A Model for Maturity Assessment

Abstract

Maturity models are adopted to minimise our complexity perception over a truly complex phenomenon. In this sense, maturity models are tools that enable the assessment of the most relevant variables that impact on the outputs of a specifi c system. Ideally a maturity model should provide information concerning the qualitative and quantitative relationships between variables and how they affect the latent variable, that is, the maturity level. Management systems (MSs) are implemented worldwide and by an increasing number of companies. Integrated management systems (IMSs) consider the implementation of one or several MSs usually coexisting with the quality management subsystem (QMS). It is intended in this chapter to report a model based on two components that enables the assessment of the IMS maturity, considering the key process agents (KPAs) identifi ed through a systematic literature review and the results collected from two surveys. IntroductionIMSs are being developed worldwide by companies operating on the most disparate activity sectors. At the present, there is not an ISO standard to assist companies during the IMSs implementation like the ISO 9001 or ISO 14001 standards guide companies on the implementation of QMSs and environmental management systems (EMSs), respectively. This fact leads to similar companies achieving different integration levels and adopting different integration paths which infl uence IMSs effi ciency. Maturity models are being developed in several fi elds and are useful tools when aiming at the assessment of complex systems like the IMSs. These complex systems are usually characterised by a great deal of variables involved, often related to each other, but

International Symposium on Occupational Safety and Hygiene: Proceedings Book of the SHO2013

“…A 30 Question/Statement (Q/St) online survey was carried out focusing on Portuguese organizations with more than one certified management sub-system according to the following standards: ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001/NP 4397. The survey was conceptually supported on a Likert type scale, for categorical and multiple option answers being its structure reported elsewhere (Domingues et al, 2012d). A pre-test performed on three companies was used to validate the survey due to the reported limitations of using online surveys, such as sampling, representativeness, selection bias and response rate issues.…”