iso journal

Learned Publishing, 23:185192doi:10.1087/20100302

Gaining ISO 9001: the experience of Oxford JournalsMaxine SmithLEARNED PUBLISHING VOL. 23 NO. 3 JULY 2010

IntroductionOxford Journals is a division of OxfordUniversity Press, the worlds largestnot-for-profit publisher. Oxford Jour-nals publishes and develops over 230 titles inpartnership with some of the worlds mostprestigious learned societies and aims forexcellence, sustained by a responsible andprofessional approach to journal publishing.We are required to provide a quality of bothservice and electronic and print productionthat complements the quality of our contentand meets the requirements of the learnedsocieties with whom we publish.

We were aware that many printing compa-nies had gained ISO 9001 certification.However, despite the fact that many of oursuppliers (notably in India) were using thestandard to some advantage in their opera-tions, we were not aware of other publishersthat had implemented the standard to a sig-nificant degree. Yet this is a standard thatcan be transferred easily from a manufactur-ing to a publishing workflow, and we feltthat we should take advantage of this oppor-tunity for development and increasedprocedural rigour.

The overall objective of gaining the cert-ification was to create a standardized frame-work for the processes by which high-qualityproducts were created and service given, tothe satisfaction of all customers. ISO 9001specifies requirements for a quality manage-ment system (QMS) whereby an organ-ization can demonstrate its ability toconsistently provide product and servicethat meets customer and applicable regu-latory requirements. It aims to enhancecustomer satisfaction through the effectiveapplication of the system, including pro-cesses for the capture and analysis ofcustomer feedback and continual improve-ment of the system. The emphasis on elicit-ing measures of customer satisfaction has

Gaining ISO 9001: the experience of Oxford Journals 185

L E A R N E D P U B L I S H I N G V O L . 2 3 N O . 3 J U LY 2 0 1 0

CASE STUDY

Gaining

ISO 9001:

the experience of

Oxford JournalsMaxine SMITHOxford Journals

ABSTRACT. Whilst experience of ISO 9001 isrelatively commonplace in the printing industry, fewpublishers have implemented the standard to anysignificant degree. This case study explains why andhow Oxford Journals went about obtainingISO 9001:2008 certification. The overall objectiveof gaining this certification was to create astandardized framework for the processes by whichhigh-quality products were created and servicegiven, to the satisfaction of all customers. OxfordJournals wanted to demonstrate to societies, editors,authors, and subscribers that there was a robustmethodology in place for the management of qualityin relation to its operational processes. This casestudy documents what Oxford Journals had to do inorder to gain this certification, the timescalesinvolved, how the project was initiated, thepreparations for the external audit, and how theongoing maintenance of the certification is nowhandled. It also considers some lessons that werelearned during the certification process.

Maxine Smith 2010

refocused the business on providing a highquality of product and service in ways thatare important to our customers.

ISO 9001 is also a highly effective struc-ture for managing quality and engaging staffat all levels with full management supportand commitment. We believed that if doneproperly, we could empower all staff to playan increased role in improving quality.

All requirements of this internationalstandard are generic and are intended to beapplicable to all organizations, regardless oftype, size, and product provided. The ISO9001 QMS had to be effective for our busi-ness, and it had to be simple, whilst still fullyfunctional. We wanted to implement amethodology and systems to log and analysecustomer complaints and internal problemsso that corrective plans could be introduced.Quality metrics can be monitored throughregular reporting from the QMS. The abilityto see where the problems are means thatthe organization is able to take planned,proactive steps, rather than having to takehurried, corrective action.

We also wanted to deliver the ISO 9001certification on time and to budget.

The Oxford Journals division comprisesthe departments of production, customerservices, IT, finance, marketing, sales, andeditorial. The departments of production,customer services, and IT make up the Jour-nals Operations Group. As an initial ventureinto ISO certification, we decided to limitthe scope of the project to the Journal Oper-ations Group, with the possibility ofextending this to other Journals Divisiondepartments in time. The geographical loca-tions involved were Oxford, UK and Cary,NC, USA. The main operations manage-ment team is located in Oxford, with twomanagers located in Cary. Therefore theCary site had to have full access to all rele-vant QMS documentation, processes, etc.The management team had to ensure thatthe same approach was taken for both sites,Oxford and Cary. One of our concerns wasto ensure that staff in remote locations wereadequately trained and that internal auditsin Cary were correctly conducted. One pos-sibility was that Cary staff could be trainedin auditing while they were visiting Oxford.Another option was for the consultant to

visit Cary, though that would have been asignificant cost addition. In the end, trainingwas successfully completed via teleconfer-ence phones and online Webex conferences.

Why obtain ISO 9001:2008 certification?

Our key business driver was to demonstrateto all our customer groups (including societ-ies, editors, authors, and subscribers) thatthere is a robust methodology in place forthe management of quality and service inrelation to operational processes, and thatOxford Journals is committed to continuousimprovement of those processes.

By the end of the certification process, weexpected to have the following deliverablesin place:

A QMS tailored to both the operations atOxford Journals and the requirements ofISO 9001, hosted on our intranet site.

Oxford Journals staff trained in documen-tation and implementation of workingpractices consistent with ISO 9001.

Auditors (staff members) trained and ableto conduct internal audits.

We expected the following benefits fromgoing through the process of setting up theQMS and obtaining ISO 9001:

more satisfied customers (societies, editors,authors, subscribers, internal customers);

more productive staff; third-party accreditation of our QMSs; a framework for continual improvement

processes; greater staff awareness of the factors influ-

encing client satisfaction and qualitymanagement;

improved selection of qualified sub-contractors;

a rational basis for identifying staff compe-tency needs;

a rational basis for identifying key stafftraining needs;

reinforcement of good work habits andsharing of best practice;

reduced costs from rework or redressingproblems.

It was important that the ISO 9001 docu-mentation created was useful and wouldinfluence our day-to-day working practices

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ISO 9001 is ahighly effective

structure formanaging

quality andengaging staff

at all levels

beneficially, providing an effective method-ology for quality management and continualimprovement. For this to happen we had toensure that there was staff engagement andbuy-in, and that thorough training sup-ported the ISO 9001 process and effectivesharing of best practice.

We understood that this was going to be aresource-intensive project and were aware ofthe following notable risks:

The process, once implemented, wouldprove to be overly bureaucratic and toorigid. We were aware that ISO 9001 couldbecome an exercise in form filling to gainthe accreditation, potentially resulting inthe creation of a large amount of docu-mentation that was of little practicalbenefit. However, we felt, and it has beensubsequently shown to be the case, thatthe attainment of ISO 9001 does not haveto be overly bureaucratic, and can help toput in place feedback systems of real bene-fit to the accredited organization.

Lack of adequate staff resource to carryout the project.

We would fail the certification. The costs would exceed the budget.

Customer feedback systems

ISO 9001 requires that businesses continu-ally improve, and one source of informationfor potential improvements is customer feed-back. Production and Customer Servicesalready surveyed customers as part of theirpre-ISO processes, and although the datawas reviewed, there was no methodology foranalysis and deciding action points forimprovement. For example, in Productionmost of our authors were happy with our ser-vice and quality, but negative commentsfrom authors were not categorized so thatremaining problem areas could be identified.ISO 9001 requires structured systems forcustomer feedback, which enable us to lookat each comment, and then categorize andanalyse in much greater detail. Since thelaunch of the feedback system, we havemade a large number of minor changes inresponse to customer feedback, which hasimproved the quality of service that our cus-tomers receive but also has improved therobustness of some of our processes. Due to

the sheer volume of customer feedback(with ~25% response rates for proof surveysand ~35% for publication process surveys)we are currently in the process of transfer-ring to a more scalable database solutionthat we can use to develop additional waysof tracking and analysing feedback.

The resources involved in ISO 9001:2008certification

There were limited resources available forimplementing the ISO 9001 system. The fol-lowing groups of people were required toensure that the project was a success, as perusual project management practice.

The Project Sponsor was organizationallyand financially responsible for the project.This position was filled by our OperationsDirector. The sponsor ensured the necessarycommitment of business resources andwould become involved if members of theproject team could not resolve issues thatobstructed the smooth running of the pro-ject. The Project Sponsor controlled all theresources involved on this project, so couldensure the necessary level of commitment.

The Steering Committee or managementteam comprised Journals Operations Groupmanagers, the Project Manager and the con-sultant, and gave direction and input to theproject. Steering Committee meetings wereheld at regular monthly intervals for theduration of the project until one month aftercertification when they were changed tosix-weekly intervals. Project progress, issues,risks, and possible actions to mitigate riskswere reviewed at these meetings.

The Project Manager role was filled bythe Purchasing and Quality Manager. Theproject manager was responsible for theday-to-day management of the project andthe delivery of the complete solution inaccordance with the plan and budget. OtherJournals Departments were to be keptinformed of the projects progress by the Pro-ject Manager.

The Project Team comprised a representa-tive from each department and held separatemeetings, which mainly ensured that docu-mentation and audits went to plan.

Project Team meetings occurred on aweekly basis and involved the Project Man-



We were awarethat ISO 9001could becomean exercise inform filling togain theaccreditation

ager, the Project team as required, andinitially the ISO 9001 consultant.

We also formed a group of approximately16 internal auditors. These people wereselected from all three Journals OperationsGroup departments from all levels, mainlyshop-floor level. After receiving appropri-ate training, they would audit our processesfirst in advance of the external audit andthen on an annual rolling basis.

We employed a consultant to help us con-struct our QMS and prepare for the externalauditor. It is advisable to use a consultant toguide one through the preparation stage forobtaining ISO 9001:2008 certification,which can be quite complicated, with thepotential for time-consuming and costlymisunderstanding. The consultant wasinstrumental in getting the business to thepoint where certification was clearly achiev-able. This did rely on Oxford Journalscompleting any actions which arose. Onlyconsultants with experience in the printingbusiness, rather than publishing/production/pre-press, were available. We engaged a con-sultant who had been recommended byseveral sources. Whilst we looked at anumber of other potential suppliers, thisconsultant sent us a workable proposal thatbest fitted our business needs.

The consultant provided advice on thefollowing:

Understanding Oxford Journals opera-tions and documenting these.

Developing the full QMS system. Identifying the key procedures in the busi-

ness for the QMS manual. Writing procedures to meet the require-

ments of ISO 9001and Oxford Journals. Carrying out necessary support work such

as training and facilitating managementmeetings.

Training auditors and/or if required, carry-ing out key internal audits.

Working with Oxford Journals staff on set-ting objectives.

Liaison with Oxford Journals staff on theperformance of the system.

Liaison with the certification body. Attending (if requested) the stage 1 and 2

audits.

Providing post-certification ongoing sup-port.

Some of the systems, such as document con-trol, were compiled by the consultant. In thecase of operational control systems, thesewere written predominantly at Oxford as itrequired substantial liaison with OxfordJournals staff. It was essential that systemsreflect Oxford Journals practice (or desiredpractice) and that employees had ownershipof the systems.

The consultant had model elements thatcovered most of the required systems andthese were used as a starting point for sys-tems design and documentation.

In order for the external audit to occur wealso needed to engage the services of a cer-tification body and use one of their externalauditors. It was necessary to use a UKAS-accredited certification body, and site visitsto Cary were required. It is a requirementthat the certification body audits all sitescovered by the system. Therefore the certifi-cation body selected needed to haveauditors available in the UK and the US. Wechose our supplier as they provided a clearlypriced and well-structured auditing planthat fitted with our core requirements.

How did we achieve it?

The management team was brought to-gether in May 2008, with a target forcertification of December 2008. Apart fromsetting up the QMS and associated structurein accordance with the ISO 9001:2008 doc-umentation, UKAS require that the systemmust have been running for three monthsbefore the certification body can audit thesystem, and it is wise to allow a monthbetween stages 1 and 2 of the audits. Thismeant that the system would need to oper-ate from 1 September 2008. However,neither the process documentation nor thefeedback systems was complete until the fol-lowing January, and so in reality, we werenot ready to start the system until January2009.

The QMS and documentation

The QMS comprised two separate parts: thestandard ISO 9001 content (sections on

188 Maxine Smith


It is advisableto use a

consultant toguide one

through thepreparation

stage forobtaining

certification

management, policy, planning, implementa-tion, and feedback) and the processdocumentation section. The consultant puttogether the standard ISO 9001 content;Oxford Journals staff then put together theprocess documentation, with the consul-tants help. The process documentationusually comprises a flowchart showing theflow of the process (see example in Figure 1),and the policy, scope, and accountabilitiesby person involved in the procedure (seeexample in Figure 2).

In order to complete the ISO 9001 docu-mentation, we had to:

use internal staff to document the work-flow in their area of responsibility or usethe consultant to correctly documenttheir operations;

ensure that the documentation and imple-mentation was fully scrutinized for efficacyby the management of the OperationsGroup and key managers within Opera-tions and signed off;

sign off on all documentation with theconsultant.

Staff were keen to document their processes;however, due to some lack of understandingof what was required due to inexperiencewith ISO 9001 requirements, this becameone of the most time-consuming parts of thecertification, and one from which we learneda valuable lesson. We first gave the docu-mentation task to a group of people whotook time to reach agreement. A better planwould been to have given it to a smallernumber of people who understood howimportant it was to create clear and simpleflowcharts. We were initially unsure as towhat we could or could not change in theflowcharts.

Even though we experienced some delayswe were quickly able to complete the QMS,by hosting it on our intranet. The traditionalmethod would be to compile a hardcopymanual for the QMS; however, our staff areable to edit wiki intranet pages, and theQMS very quickly took shape once theflowcharts had been agreed. The QMS sitehad to be version controlled, and only theISO team were given permission to editpages. Even so, changes could be made tothe site quickly and anyone looking at thesite would know that they were looking atthe most recent version of the QMS, com-plete with audit trail and date of version.

Internal audits and training of internalauditors

Once certified, internal audits are requiredannually and must cover all documentedprocesses. It is suggested that these are con-ducted on a rolling basis, with a number ofprocesses to be audited each month, in orderto ensure this is part of general workingpractice. Training for internal auditorsoccurred in November 2008 and comprised



Figure 1. Example ISO 9001 flowchart.

once certified,internal auditsare requiredannually andmust cover alldocumentedprocesses

a half-day of theory training plus a mockaudit. The consultant led this training. Sub-sequent auditor training was done by theProject Manager. A refresher session washeld in January 2009 just prior to the start ofinternal audits. January and February 2009were an extremely intensive time for inter-nal auditors, having to audit a large numberof processes in a short space of time, eachaudit taking ~1 hour and then 3060 min-utes for writing up. Now that we havecertification, we have an annual rolling basisfor internal audits of ~3 per month.

One observation from the internal audit-ing process is that the quality of audits hasdramatically improved with the increasedexperience of the auditors. As the internalaudit process has occurred, we have had totweak how audits were set up and run:

It is essential that suggestions for improv-ing processes have to be specific and so wehave since provided training on writingobjectives.

We have also provided extra training onquestioning skills

190 Maxine Smith


Figure 2. Example ISO 9001 documentation.

suggestions forimproving

processes haveto be specific

We now follow the audit with an exit in-terview between the auditor and therelevant departmental manager. The pur-pose of the exit interview is to review thesuggestions for improvement arising fromthe audit and jointly agree what is practi-cable to carry forward.

The external audit

ISO 9001 certification involves internal andexternal audits. The external audit occurs intwo stages:

Stage 1, to confirm that the systems are fitfor purpose (2 days).

Stage 2 (approximately 1 month later) toconfirm that the systems are being fol-lowed (2 days).

Although our consultant was confident thatwe would pass the certification process, theProject Manager tried to ensure that wewere adequately prepared by:

briefing all staff fully on ISO 9001:2008and alerting them to typical questions thatthey might be asked at the external audit;and

attending departmental meetings to answerquestions on the external audit.

Once stage 1 was complete and we hadexperienced the level at which we wereexpected to operate, we felt more confidentthat stage 2 would be successful. There werea few observations that the external auditorgave us at stage 1; however, these were easilyput in place in time for stage 2.

Stage 2 was more relaxed as we had theexperience of stage 1, and we were againsuccessful.

Now that ISO 9001:2008 certification has

been achieved, there will be a 3-yearexternal audit cycle:

Initial Audit (IA) Oxford with desk-based audit of Cary (May 2009).

Periodic Audit (PA) 1 At Oxford (April2010) (2 days).

PA 2 At Oxford with desk-based audit ofCary (March 2011) (2 days).

PA 3 plus reassessment (February 2012)(3 days).

Lessons learned

Further training: be prepared to conductfurther training if feedback is receivedfrom any group involved in the ISO 9001process. We have run additional internalauditor training 5 months after we werecertified. This was requested by ourinternal auditors.

Internal auditor training: try to use a realexample in role-plays so that staff knowwhat the process should look like.

Flowchart construction: use a small groupof people who can express complex pro-cesses in a simple way.

Be clear in defining what should andshould not be included in process docu-mentation documents.

Use a platform for the QMS that has anaudit trail, version control, and is useableby all staff, e.g. an intranet platform.

Be realistic about the resource implica-tions (see Table 1). Table 1 details thetimes Oxford Journals spent on meetings.Additional time will be required to com-plete the process documentation andprepare the QMS, although our consul-tant significantly helped with both ofthese. The time required to prepare the



Table 1. Resources required (hours/month)

Activity Hours/month No. of peopleinvolved

Total time spent

Meetings with consultant 15a 2 30ISO team meetings 2b 4 8Management team meetings 2 9 18Internal audits 6 3 18Day-to-day running 5 1 5Total 30 79

aUntil May 2009, stage 2 external audit.

try to use a realexample inrole-plays sothat staff knowwhat theprocess shouldlook like

process documentation is dependent onhow many processes an organization has.The fewer the number of key processes,the fewer the number of audits required,therefore the amount of time spent onaudits can be reduced. The number ofpeople involved in meetings can also beadjusted and so the total time spent canbe reduced or increased accordingly. Forexample, if there were fewer managers inthe management team, it would reducethe time required.

Conclusion

Overall the project achieved its goal and wewere successful in obtaining certification,even though this occurred a few monthsbehind our original target date.

As well as the Operations Group havingdemonstrated our commitment to qualityand customer service, staff are more aware ofthe importance of quality, and the consis-tency and robustness of processes. This is ahuge business benefit.

Since the start of internal auditing in Jan-uary 2009 (10 months ago), nearly 180

suggestions have been made via the internalaudit process, with an average number of 5.4suggestions per audit. At the start of the pro-cess, most of these suggestions were quickfixes, but there were some long-term projectsinvolved. Since we adopted exit interviewsin May 2009, this has reduced to 3.5 agreedsuggestions per audit, again with a mixtureof quick fixes and long-term projects. Nowthat the internal audit process has matured,we are focusing on the future businessbenefits that can be achieved, includingincreased customer satisfaction, cost reduc-tions, time savings, improvements in quality,and increased efficiency. Most importantly,we hope that the internal benefits of achiev-ing ISO 9001:2008 certification will bereflected in increased levels of customersatisfaction and delight with our service.

Maxine SmithPurchasing and Quality ManagerOxford JournalsGreat Clarendon StreetOxford OX2 6DP, UKEmail: [email protected]

192 Maxine Smith


nearly 180suggestionshave been

made via theinternal audit

process

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