The draft version of the ISO 9001:2026 revision indicates that the relationship between quality and daily business activities continues to be a significant focus. Quality culture and ethical behavior have been identified as key themes in the upcoming standard release.

Identified in five unique clauses, this topic will gain a lot of attention during external audits. Auditors will be looking to see that quality is integrated into every aspect of the organization. Leaders will be expected to demonstrate through evidence how they are committed to a quality culture and are conducting business in an ethical manner.

How an organization demonstrates quality culture and ethical behavior is up to the organization. However, objective evidence must be provided to auditors to meet the requirement. This may be challenging due to the nontangible aspect of quality culture and ethical behavior.

This topic is typically understood as a feeling rather than a formally recorded concept. Therefore, many struggle with knowing where to begin when gathering evidence for these requirements. There are a variety of approaches or formats that can be used. Outlined below are potential solutions that may be incorporated to close the gaps within your quality management system.

Quality Culture and Ethical Behavior

Quality culture is defined as a company-wide mindset that focuses on providing the best products and services to the customer while consistently working to improve. This can be difficult to define, as each organization has its own unique values, beliefs, and behaviors that make up its culture.

To ensure requirements are met, actions should be established to demonstrate the key elements of these requirements, including leadership commitment, customer focus, employee engagement, and continuous improvement.

Top Management Support is Key

The most important element of establishing a culture focused on quality and ethical behavior is top management support. Top management sets the tone regarding expectations at the site. A well-established culture does not occur overnight. It is something that requires consistency and reinforcement to ensure success.

Having well-established policies around quality and ethical behaviors is great first step. Once policies are defined, team members should be adequately trained and informed of consequences of noncompliance. Enforcement and follow-up will be vital for any newly implemented processes or procedures to ensure they are successfully adopted.

Aligning strategic goals and objectives around these principles will help to ensure that team members are focused on the right things. Other examples of leadership commitment include active participation in management system-related activities, such as management review, internal audits, or any other quality focused initiative. The records related to these events will provide a great source of evidence for auditors.

Remain Focused on the Customer

Customer focus is one of primary objectives of the ISO 9001 standard. The goal of the organization should be to always meet or exceed customer expectations.

Meeting these expectations is much easier within an organization that has a well-defined quality culture and ethical practices. When employees understand that the customer is the top priority, they are more likely to go above and beyond. They consistently strive to produce their highest quality work.

During audits this can be demonstrated through positive customer feedback reports and customer-focused continuous improvement projects. Highlighting areas of quality innovation, whether through investment in talent, tools, or processes, is an excellent way to show the organization is committed to customer focus. Maintaining a transparent, honest, open partnership with the customer demonstrates a strong ethical foundation.

Engage Employees

Employee engagement is vital to the development of a robust culture focused on quality and ethical practices.

Getting feedback on what’s working well and what needs improvement is a great way to start. This can be done through efficient communication via town halls, weekly departmental meetings, or daily team huddles. Other methods of engagement include training, educational opportunities, and recognition incentives for employees who are making a positive contribution.

When employees feel that their input is valued, they become more engaged and excited about being part of the team. Benefits are seen through enhanced quality, improved efficiency, better retention, and overall employee morale.

Strive for Continuous Improvement

Continuous improvement is defined as the ongoing effort to enhance products, services, and processes. Improvement is critical to maintain an efficient quality management system. Plus, adopting this practice will ultimately lead to improved efficiency and reduced costs.

An effective way of developing this practice across the site is to incorporate this mindset into the culture of the organization. Having well-developed processes and procedures will set the groundwork for a strong foundation.

The practice of proactively working to improve will significantly enhance productivity and improve customer satisfaction. This can be done by involving operators in root cause analysis or internal audits. This collaborative approach helps to cultivate a workplace of inclusion and appreciation, leading to happier employees who feel respected and valued.

Next Steps for Achieving ISO 9001:2026 Compliance

Preparation is key to ensure this complex topic is adequately addressed prior to undergoing the site’s ISO 9001:2026 certification audit.

As a first step, become familiar with the requirements and determine the internal stakeholders involved in the process.

Next, form an implementation team and work to develop a gap assessment checklist to be used to assess the current system. Schedule the gap assessment and thoroughly review the results to ensure all gaps have been uncovered.

Once identified, work with the team to develop a plan of action to address the gaps. Timing will be unique to each organization, depending on management system maturity and resources needed. Most systems will need several months to complete updates, so getting started early is vital to ensure a smooth transition.

Upon completion of all actions, conduct a pre-audit assessment to confirm the system is meeting all requirements. Once all actions are confirmed, work with your certification body to schedule your certification audit.

Developing a culture that emphasizes quality and ethical behavior will take considerable time and commitment from everyone involved. Creating the ideal environment demands consistent focus and intention. However, through hard work and dedication from the team, a culture grounded in quality and ethical behavior is well within reach.

Have questions about the new standard or how you need to update your quality management system to comply?