The final draft of the revised ISO 9004 standard is out for ballot. This means that it will hopefully be available before the end of this year. It’s radically different from the last version. For one thing, the title has changed. It’s now: “Managing for the sustained success of an organization—A quality management approach.”

What’s so special about this new version? Why should we care? The answer to both of the questions is in the new title. We all have a vested interest in the notion of sustainable success. Particularly in these days of globalization and outsourcing, the importance of the sustainability of organizations is becoming increasingly apparent.

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