ISO norms

Z Encyklopedia Administracji Publicznej

ISO NORMS – a system of international standards in all areas of life, developed by the International Organization for Standardization. It is an independent non-governmental organisation that brings together national standardisation organisations (162). Its members are not delegated by governments. ISO’s activities are financed from own resources coming from membership fees. An important element of the ISO revenue structure are funds from the sale of ISO standards, the publication of textbooks, guides and other industry periodicals. The Polish Committee for Standardisation has been an ISO member since the beginning of its operation (1947), has the status of a founding member. ISO is the official name of the standards – regardless of the language. The first ISO standard was published in 1951. ISO is a global network, created by several hundred technical committees and working groups, and the Main Committee, in which the member states have one vote. Projects for new standards or changes to existing standards may be submitted by any member organisation. Such proposal – draft – is discussed in working groups, and after obtaining a general consensus, obtains the status of a project that is subject to opinion – it gains the status of the official standard if 3/4 members of the Main Committee give their positive opinion. Respecting ISO standards is voluntary, because an NGO, which ISO is, has no legal or factual ability to impose and enforce their application. Meeting the conditions set out in the ISO standard is confirmed by a certificate (in Poland it may be granted by an entity accredited by the Polish Centre for Accreditation). Popularisation of ISO standards in Polish public administration offices is associated with the implementation of quality management systems. Standards from the ISO-9000 group represent a set of good management practices, the purpose of which is to ensure that customer requirements are met (the organisation provides the service in accordance with the client’s expectations). ISO 9001 is a management standard that allows offices to design documentation of procedures and their repetition, which affects the quality of services provided. On the ISO forum, the IWA 2005 standard has been developed, which provides guidelines for the implementation of ISO in administration. It is a standard used in administration all over the world [ J. Itrich-Drabarek, K. Mroczka ].

Literature: T. Borys, P. Rogala, Systemy zarządzania jakością i środowiskiem [Quality and environmental management systems], Wrocław 2007 ■ International Organization for Standardization website, https://www.iso.org/about-us.htmlWspółczesne koncepcje zarządzania publicznego. Wyzwania modernizacyjne sektora publicznego [Contemporary concepts of public management. Modernisation challenges in the public sector], ed. M. Ćwiklicki, M. Jabłoński, S. Mazur, Kraków 2016.

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