ISO 14001 Navigator Pro™

Environmental management system guidance

ISO Navigator Pro™ is a free tool that provides practical, expert guidance for businesses wishing to interpret and better implement the requirements of ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015 and ISO 45001:2018.

Our range of templates cover the requirements of ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015 and ISO 45001:2018, and offer an easy way to implement your next management system.

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ISO Navigator Pro™ management system guidance

ISO Navigator Pro

ISO Navigator Pro™ management system guidance uses simple menus to help you navigate and interpret the diverse requirements of ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 via your internet browser.

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The ISO Navigator management system guidance is divided into sequential stages; Planning, Doing, Checking, and Acting. Click the links below to begin:

  1. Planning - Organizational context
  2. Planning - Leadership
  3. Planning - Management system planning
  4. Doing - Support
  5. Doing - Operations
  6. Checking - monitoring, measuring, analysing and evaluating
  7. Acting - implementing improvement actions

Each stage is linked to the relavant, underlying ISO clauses to explain them in plain English with plenty of practical examples.

More information on PDCA

Planning

4.0 Organizational context

This is the 'Plan' part of the PDCA process. Establish the objectives and processes necessary to deliver results in accordance with customer requirements and the organizational policies. This is often implemented using stated objectives, work instructions or procedures as required for consistent process output.

  • Identify external and internal issues relevant to the organization's operational purpose and strategic direction. Monitor and review these issues for change.
  • Identify interested parties (stakeholders), their requirements and their impact the quality, environmental or OH&S management system. Monitor and review stakeholder requirements for change.
  • Base the scope of the management system on the external and internal issues - 4.1, stakeholder needs - 4.2, and the types of operational activity that your organization undertakes - 8.1.
  • Define the management system processes, their sequence and interaction, and the quality, environmental or OH&S performance indicators needed to monitor process performance.
ISO 14001:2015
4.1 Organizational Context
4.2 Relevant Interested Parties
4.3 Management System Scope
4.4 EMS Processes 

          
5.0 Leadership

          
Make sure you have  Top management’s commitment before continuing the implementation project. Be sure that Top management are solidly behind implementation of the management system because without that commitment, the implementation process becomes almost impossible. 

          
    
            
  • Demonstrate leadership by encouraging positive commitment and providing direction. Ensure processes exist to achieve customer satisfaction.
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  • Ensure that any changes in context, or interested party requirements are reflected in commitments written in the management system policies.
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  • Develop and communicate an organization chart and job descriptions to define roles, responsibilities and authorities.
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  • Promote the  participation of non-managerial roles within the OHS management system  requirements, including incident investigations, risk assessments, plus control  and monitoring activities including internal auditing. 
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ISO 14001:2015

              

              

                5.1 Leadership & Commitment
              

              

                5.2 Environmental Policy
              

              

                5.3 Roles, Responsibilities & Authorities
              

            
          

          
 

          
6.0 Management system planning

          
Although risks and  opportunities have to be determined and addressed, there is no requirement for  a formal, documented risk management process. Confirm that your organization  has a methodology in place that enables them to effectively identify risks and opportunities  with respect to the planning of its management system. 

          
    
            
  • Risks and opportunities should be relevant your organization's context 4.1, and any interested parties 4.2. Integrate risk-based thinking into processes 4.4.
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  • Establish management system (quality, environmental or OH&S) objectives and targets, at each relevant function and level within the organization. 
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  • Identify risks and opportunities associated with change that could affect the management system. Deploy plans to monitor the effectiveness of the management system after change. 
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ISO 14001:2015

              

              

                6.1.1 Address Risks & Opportunities
              

              

                6.1.2 Environmental Aspects
              

              

                6.1.3 Compliance Obligations
              

              

                6.1.4 Planning Action
              

              

                6.2.1 Environmental Objectives
              

              

                6.2.2 Planning to Achieve Objectives
              

            
          

          
  

          
Doing

          
7.0 Support

          
This is the 'Do' part of the PDCA  process. Ensure the availability of resources and information necessary to support the operation 
            and monitoring of your  processes. This may be through management review or other methods that  define  resource requirements. 

          
    
            
  • Determine internal and external resources required for implementation, maintenance and improvement of the  quality, environmental or OH&S management system.
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  • Establish and document levels of competence, and that ensure staff are competent by undertaking competency-based training.
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  • Ensure all persons working under the remit of the management system are fully briefed on aspects such as the policy, objectives, and the overall management system.
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  • Undertake internal communication with employees, and external communication relating to the quality, environmental or OH&S management system with relevant parties.
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  • Create, update and retain documented information to demonstrate effective operation of the management system. 
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ISO 14001:2015

              

              

                7.1 Resources
              

              

                7.2 Competence
              

              

                7.3 Awareness
              

              

                7.4.1 Communcation - General
              

              

                7.4.2 Internal Communcation
              

              

                7.4.3 External Communcation
              

              

                7.5 Documented Information
              

            
          

          
 

          
8.0 Operations

          
For those risks and opportunities that your organization has identified, you should seek evidence that these actions have been integrated into the management system; as such, these actions should be verifiable at process level – for example, evidence of controls, acceptance criteria and resources to address the risks and opportunities. Review the acceptability criteria; this may include targets, measures, values, KPIs, specifications and other criteria as relevant to the output.

          
    
            
  • Plan, implement and control operational processes that generate customer output, e.g. planning, engineering, operations, purchasing, warehousing, and delivery, etc. Implement the hierachy of controls to mitigate impacts and hazards.
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  • Establish arrangements to provide the customer with product information, enquiry handling and orders, and a method for handling customer comments.
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  • Implement and maintain a design and development process, appropriate to the types of products or services provided.
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  • Ensure that externally provided processes, products or services meet quality requirements and monitor the performance of external providers.
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  • Control the manner by which your products are produced and services provided. This also relates to clauses 5.2, 7.1, 7.2, 7.4 and 8.2.
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  • Ensure planned arrangements are completed prior to the release of the product or service. Verify that product or service requirements have been met.
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  • Identify products or services that do not conform to their intended requirements. Records of product non-conformity should be periodically reviewed. 
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  • Emergency situations  may originate within your organization and have the potential to affect the  environment or the safety of interested parties. Ensure that emergency  plans take the needs of relevant third parties into account and are tested  periodically and are maintained and retained as documented information 
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ISO 14001:2015

              

              

                8.1 Operational Planning & Control
              

              

                8.2 Emergency Preparedness
              

            
          

          
  

          
Checking

          
9.0 Monitoring, measuring, analysing and evaluating

          
This is the 'Check' part of the PDCA process. Monitor, measure and analyse process performance. Monitor and measure processes and products against policies, objectives and requirements, and report the results. The methods 
            employed and the timing of such analysis should be based upon priorities established by the 
            organization. 

          
    
            
  • Develop a process to identify, collect and analyze management system performance data and information from both internal and external sources.
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  • Implement an internal audit programme to collect and analyze customer and management system data to ensure valid results and effective performance.
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  • Conduct management review meetings at planned intervals to ensure continuing quality, environmental or OH&S management system effectiveness. 
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ISO 14001:2015

              

              

                9.1.1 Performance Evaluation
              

              

                9.1.2 Evaluation of Compliance
              

              

                9.2 Internal Audit
              

              

                9.3 Management Review
              

            
          

          
  

          
Acting

          
10.0 Implementing improvement actions

          
This is the 'Act' part of the PDCA process. Implement the actions necessary to achieve the planned results, and for the continual improvement of those processes. Auditors will expect to see evidence that corrective action is taken when measurable objectives and performance indicators fall below target or a pre-defined action level. 

          
    
            
  • Ensure improvement is underpinned by meeting customer needs and enhancing satisfaction, improving products and services; including future demand and changing needs or expectations.
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  • Any non-conformities and subsequent actions to prevent the reoccurrence and the effectiveness of the corrective action, must be documented and retained.
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  • Use the outputs from analysis and evaluation (9.1.3) and management review outputs (9.3.3) to drive improvement. Monitor improvement activities and the effectiveness of their results. 
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ISO 14001:2015

              

              

                10.1 Improvement - General
              

              

                10.2 Nonconformity & Corrective Action
              

              

                10.3 Continual Improvement
              

            
          

          
 

          
How to apply the latest quality management principles

          
The latest and current quality management principles (QMPs), stated in ISO 9000:2015, are intended to provide the foundation by which any organization can continually improve its performance. 

          
You can learn to apply the latest quality management principles in the context of your business's own particular operations by reviewing and documenting its activities in the context of each quality management principle.

          
Want to know more?

          
          
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Free PDCA guidance

          
 ISO Navigator™ is our FREE online training tool that shows you  how to apply the principles of PDCA to your operations. We also offer many  helpful templates  that get you on the road to documenting your management system,  please visit the  download page.