Unmet objective - is it a nonconformity?

When a nonconformity occurs, we usually initiate correction and/or corrective action to prevent its recurrence. Typically, sources of nonconformities include audit findings, nonconforming outputs, customer complaints, problems with suppliers, and noncompliance with regulatory requirements. My question is, would you raise a nonconformity if an objective or target was not achieved?

 

Normally at audits in order to establish the situation with the objectives i would compare objectives of the last year and... one but last let’s say 2016 and 2017. if the objectives of 2016 were not met (or even one of it), I would see if internal corrective action has been raised and taken into 2017th review. If not - I would put it as a non conformity. Not an „unachieved goal“ but as „failure to address unachieved goals“

 

Good point Bev D. Thus, organization will refrain from setting innovative goals and might settle for mediocre objectives/targets.

 

Since you want corrective action for not meeting the 2016 objectives, does it follow that unmet objective/target is a nonconformity for you? Corrective action is defined as "action to eliminate the cause of a nonconformity and to prevent recurrence".

 

Hi Tony
Failing to meet an objective is a non conformity for a company itself (something went wrong with either planning or implementation). But itself it is not a non-Conformity for me as an auditor. The same as any customer complaint is not a non conformity for an auditor but is an NC for a company. What is an NC for an auditor is absence of action about this „internal NC“. Please let me describe it also in a slide attached

 

Nonconformity is an uncompliment, and the standard requires they have to be established, doesn't say is a nc, if they are not in compliance.

 

"Unmet objective/target" is different from "no action taken on unmet objective/target". Anyway, my post is about raising an NC on unmet objective/target.

 

I think it's not non-conformity as the definition of non-conformity is a violation between the planned workflow and the implemented but when the target couldn't been met, we are trying to find the root cause as the organization may comply with the defined procedures but the target not met due to market situation or shortage in resources.

 

I would say that an objective is simply something you are aiming for. Since business contexts change, it would seem unrealistic for an unmet objective to automatically be a non-conformance. What I believe should be a non-conformance is if an objective is dropped without addressing anywhere eg at a management review, why it was dropped or unmet.

 

The answer is NO. But if there has been inconsistencies with how they handle the objectives based on clause 6.2, I would certainly raised a NC.

 

Or we can just, in the first formulated objective is not achieved we may request it to repeat for the next year with changes in approach or activities in achieving the objective, but then again after a year the objective was not met again thus, we can impose it as a NC?

 

NC is defined as a "non-fulfillment of a requirement". ISO 9001 doesn't have a requirement that says "quality objectives shall be met". But you can create your own requirement and if you fail to meet it, then you have successfully brought upon yourself a nonconformity.

 

A lot of times we will write ourselves up internally if we see certain objectives not being met for several months in a row. If an auditor sees that you acknowledge the objective not being met, they are less likely to write you up for it come audit time. We are a small company, so we have to be very selective of how often we issue corrective actions internally because there just isn't enough staff to support the task of problem solving on a daily basis. If you can at least provide evidence that you are striving to improve upon that objective, I don't see how they can write it up as a nonconformance.