Page 9 - Enterprise Engagement and ISO Standards eBook

Enterprise Engagement and ISO Standards

Chapter 1

The Role of ISO Standards in Business and People Management

Standards have improved measurement and processes for thousands of years. From the
ancient Egyptian “cubit” – a crude measure of the distance from the bend of the elbow to
the end of the index finger (plus the width of the palm of the incumbent Pharaoh’s hand) –
to the width, or “gauge,” of railroad tracks, standards have grown in step with the
complexity of global economies and societies.1

Today, standards assist consumers, governments, manufacturers and service providers
across every conceivable industry and profession, from accounting to zoology. Standards
and specifications are needed to remove obstacles in trade, to ensure quality, to aid
organizations in compliance, to guide consumers in their choices and to ensure greater
interoperability among products. Imagine, for example, if there were no standard size for
batteries, or if buildings in North America used randomly-sized electrical outlets.

Though standards began as measures, quality checks and to make things like trains work
across state and national lines, their utility in other “softer’ arenas has grown too, including
standards for how people and organizations should behave. The ISO 14000 standard, for
example, describes how organizations should conduct themselves concerning their
environmental impact.2 The ISO 9001 standards, which address quality assurance, speak to
employee performance management as well. And, as of 2017, the process of creating new
ISO standards specific to engagement has begun, an effort based on a proposal from the
Enterprise Engagement Alliance, which is Project Leader for the effort and acting convener,
in conjunction with the United Kingdom.3

The ISO (International Organization for Standardization), headquartered in Switzerland, is
made up of the national standards bodies of virtually every nation on earth. With more than
21,000 published standards, it leads today’s international efforts. Since 1926, when it
operated as the International Federation of the National Standardizing Associations (ISA),
ISO has worked across national boundaries, navigating politics and diverse interests to
reduce friction and improve quality assurance around the world.

1 Standardslearn.org (see: https://www.standardslearn.org/lessons.aspx?key=26&okey=2)
2 University of Pittsburgh (see: http://www.sis.pitt.edu/mbsclass/standards/martincic/14000ovr.htm)
3 Engagement Strategies Media (see: http://enterpriseengagement.org/ISO-Engagement-Standards-Part-I-Why-
Now-Research-and-Potential-Implications/)

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