Considering Changes to the EASA Operational Quality System - Compliance Management Techniques

Sofema Online (SOL) www.sofemaonline.com – considers the various techniques which can be employed to ensure an effective compliance audit

Introduction EASA OPS Regulation 965/2012 

The issue of OPS regulation 965/2012 moved the emphasis of EASA driven organizational systems further in the direction of assessing compliance related to performance. With adjustments to the audit schedule to include additional attention being given to the effectiveness of the business processes.

The Primary Role is Compliance!

We should understand that the primary role of EASA Compliant Quality Auditing is to

• Ensure both external and internal compliance with regulatory and organizational procedures.
• As a secondary objective, there is a need to demonstrate continuous improvement – which at the simplest would mean a reduction in findings over time for a consistent level of auditing activity.

Holistic Approach & Link to SMS

• The underlying concept is that for managing safety it is essential to take a holistic approach and to implement the new safety risk management (SRM) related processes while making use of and integrating these into the already existing management systems and articulate these with the way the organization is managed, addressing:

° Every facet of management, a

° Any organizational change and

° Any decision (even in areas such as Finance, Human Resources) will need to be assessed for their impact on safety.

° Such an integrated approach to management is much more efficient for monitoring compliance, managing risks, and maximizing opportunities.

EASA advises they require the following from the Operator

“The operator must implement and maintain a management system to ensure compliance with these essential requirements for operations and aim for continuous improvement of this system”

How to Deliver Continuous Improvement?

• Management Team Behaviour

° The support of an organization’s Management Team is usually cited as a major contributor to the success of any continuous improvement initiative.

° Evidenced by:

• Demonstrating Support both general and Specific;
• Providing Guidance;
• Ensure adequate resources and follow-up.
• Proactive Behaviour and Attitude to Positive Change

° Willing to invest time and effort to achieve a required change;

° Focus on long term solution not just dealing with the immediate issue;

° Addressing the Root Cause of a problem in a meaningful way;

° Work smarter not harder!

• Focus, Focus, and Focus

° It is of the utmost importance to ensure sufficient momentum to ensure the changes are not forgotten and we are able to deliver successful continuous improvement programs.

° We must understand that any improvement is most likely to succeed if it is developed into a long-term practice that needs to permeate everything an organization does.

• Looking more towards the Horizon

° Move the focus out from monthly or quarterly targets;

° Develop an appropriate mindset regarding long term objectives;

° Be able to accept “some” short-term pain where there is a long-term potential benefit.

Next Steps

Sofema Aviation Services (SAS) and SofemaOnline (SOL) provide EASA Regulatory Compliant and Vocational training including more than 50 courses specifically related to Quality Assurance and Root Cause Analysis - Delivered as classroom, webinar, and online certificated courses – for details please see the websites or email team@sassofia.com