Politics and the legitimacy of political bodies is at the top of the news with the crisis in Ukraine. So it is fitting that ISO 18091 and ISO/TS 17582 have just been released by ISO to promote quality in two different aspects of political life. ISO 18091, “Quality management systems – Guidelines for the application of ISO 9001:2008 in local government,” helps folks improve local governance, which will be of interest to many local politicians and bureaucrats here in the U.S. and elsewhere. The ISO/TS 17582, “Quality management systems – Particular requirements for the application of ISO 9001:2008 for electoral organizations at all levels of government,” is more concerned with the process of vote-casting.
Let’s tackle these standards one at a time:
ISO/TS 17582, 1st Edition, “Quality management systems – Particular requirements for the application of ISO 9001:2008 for electoral organizations at all levels of government”
This new Technical Specification’s focus is on providing full and transparent implementation of the electoral process. It supports the democratic ideals of one-person one-vote, without consideration of race, gender, religion or social status. So it is written for the electoral bodies responsible for eligibility of voters and candidates, logistics, vote casting and counting, and accurate resolution of electoral results.
Consideration is given to the variety of regulations which exist in various jurisdictions. The goal is the use of the ISO 9001 principles to manage the process to give it legitimacy. The document covers the basics of the ISO 9001 system, and then provides a framework for implementing that system for the electoral process. For example, in the documentation section, minimum requirements for voter registration are provided, as well as for registration of political parties and candidates, the logistics of the voting process itself, vote counting and official results, campaign financing, public education of the voting process and of course, dispute resolution.
Two Annexes finish the publication. Annex A provides concept diagrams, a series of figures showing the flow of the processes for an electoral management system, electoral infrastructure and logistics, and voting itself. Annex B covers the basics of the electoral processes, detailing the activities associated with voter registration, the registration of parties and candidates, and so on.
ISO 18091, 1st Edition, “Quality management systems – Guidelines for the application of ISO 9001:2008 in local government”
This new standard cancels and replaces the IWA 4, “Quality management systems — Guidelines for the application of ISO 9001:2008 in local government.” This is a complement to the above ISO/TS 17582, with the leit motif being “Think globally, act locally.” It focuses on improving local government as a tangible method of improving the confidence of citizens in their political systems.
As such, the new publication covers implementing the ISO 9001 quality system in the provision of public services and infrastructure. Again, the document covers the basics of the ISO 9001 quality management system itself. And again, the format of the standard is to go through the ISO 9001 clause by clause and then expand on each to show how it can be applied in this situation.
Further support for government-specific applications is found in the 2 Annexes. Annex A covers typical local government processes. It’s 2 figures cover local government outputs and processes for the integral quality management of local governments. Annex B contains a methodology for performing assessments and diagnosis for evaluating the operating conditions, processes, and results of local governments. This methodology then can be used to implement the continuous improvement cycle so essential to improving service to one’s customers (in this case, the citizenry).
While the ISO 18091 follows the protocol of the ISO 9001, it is not necessarily intended to be used only for certification. Indeed, in the introduction to the document, the committee notes that the intention of developing this new standard is to help create reliable and sustainable governments at all levels.
If you’re involved in politics here in the U.S., this document will be invaluable to you. You can use it’s principles to improve the delivery of the services that comprise your mission. And you can follow it’s guidance to set up a system that is not dependent on a specific individual, but will be able to be supported over time due to the strength of the protocols it advocates.
If you’re interested in these documents and want to purchase them, please go to the Document Center webstore at www.document-center.com. We’ve been a licensed distributor of the ISO standards since the 1980’s and can assist you with any questions you might have. Contact our staff via phone (650-591-7600), fax (650-591-7617) or email (info@document-center.com). We’re here to help you! Make us your Standards Experts!
