If you’ve ever watched “Steve Jobs” (the movie) or have owned any Apple product, you’ll know one aspect that he and the company are obsessed with – integration. When you’re in the Apple ecosystem, everything integrates. It is a jail, albeit a very comfortable one! 

Airplay, Airdrop, photos, documents all sync between iPad, iPhone, MacBook seamlessly meaning that the integration makes leaving it a tough ask for many. 

Our team at HSEQ-360 are users of iOS and Android with split loyalties. 

But what interests us is not the pros and cons of two global operating systems (Android v Apple) but how environmental and societal concerns can be integrated in the burgeoning offshore wind industry. 

Accordingly, we’re thinking specifically of four main standards:

  1. ISO 9001 (for quality)
  2. ISO 14001 (for environment) 
  3. ISO 26000 (for social responsibility)
  4. ISO 50001 (for energy)

The challenge is not the what or the why of integration, but, as with Steve Jobs at a nascent Apple, especially the who and the how. Apple embedded integration from an early stage of hardware and software inception and continue it to this day, to remain a trillion dollar company. Buy into Apple Music and their Beats or Apple AirPods and listen to spatial audio. Forget this if you choose Spotify. Integration for Apple creates dependence. Dependence creates demand. Demand leads to huge sales revenues and profits. 

Enough about Apple though, as you may not be a fan!

Instead let’s look at Integrated Value Management. 

Dr Wayne Viser usefully pinpoints the six elements of Integrated Value Management as:

  1. Rethinking patterns – where trends, megatrends and socio-ecological changes are carefully considered to affect the longer term performance of a company. Useful examples include scenarios and systems mapping – all of which trigger transformation by rethinking patterns
  2. Realigning partners – looking at and strategising the role of key stakeholders. Exploring partnerships. Listening to the viewpoints of interested parties. All with the aim of improving a company’s performance.
  3. Renewing principles – checking on company values and reaffirming or changing these as new trends emerge. This is mainly done through dialogue (see point 2 above) and then re-establishing those desired, existing or renewed principles as a key culture component.
  4. Refining purpose – what are the objectives and aspirations of your company? How do you ensure they are aligned with values and stakeholder needs? Benchmarking and strategy workshops are useful tools for this. 
  5. Reassessing performance – honestly and transparently reporting metrics that show the impact of your company on the environment and society, for example. Again, benchmarking is useful, as are life-cycle analysis tools. 
  6. Redesigning portfolios – make research and development (R & D) a business priority. Apply smart design thinking to processes, products, business models with the ultimate aim of making these regenerative.

As you can see, with Android, Apple and other organisations, integration of standards for quality, energy, the environment and society should not form a vague wishlist of corporate aspirations, but  a foundation for success. 

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How our expert team can help you.

HSEQ-360 Ltd utilise a team with wide ranging skills, competencies and experiences; including chartered engineers, chartered health and safety and chartered quality professionals. HSEQ-360 can certainly review your company’s operations and management systems and implement sustainability strategies which are reasonable and practicable for your business.

We operate a management system which is certified to ISO9001, ISO14001 & ISO45001; and we are specialists in developing bespoke management systems for your business. We can complete an environmental impact on your behalf and can provide practical recommendations on how to proceed environmentally.

For further information, please see our website or contact a member of the team on info@hseq-360.co.uk