Quality network for Chamber of Commerce

With isoware, the Chambers of Commerce have taken a further step towards uniformity of services, without the regional Chambers losing any of their effectiveness, flexibility, or creativity.

Every businessman is familiar with the Chamber of Commerce. The Chamber not only keeps track of statutory business information, but also serves as a source of useful data, as a regional consultancy, and as a partner in the development of the business community. Although the 21 regional Chambers are to a certain extent autonomous, they have been working with a single quality system since the spring of 2001. With Isoware, the Chambers of Commerce have taken a further step towards uniformity of services, without the regional Chambers losing any of their effectiveness, flexibility, or creativity. This is the result of a powerful, centrally coordinated network.
Within the Association of Chambers of Commerce VKK, Frank van Heeswijk is responsible for the implementation of Isoware. "Some Chambers already were ISO certified, others aren't yet. With this digital quality system, we have streamlined the quality process."

No later than 2004, all Chambers of Commerce and their umbrella organization should meet the quality requirements set for the internal organization. Obtaining the ISO certificate is one of these requirements. An important milestone was 1998. "In that year, a benchmark was carried out. It appeared that most primary processes were implemented differently by the various Chambers. This situation was undesirable. When this was clear, the Chambers began to streamline their primary processes," Van Heeswijk remembers the initial situation.

In view of the geographical distribution of the Chambers, they soon opted for a digital solution. Frank van Heeswijk: "It is virtually impossible to keep paper manuals up-to-date for all Chambers. Isoware allows all 2500 officials of the 21 Chambers to consult the system and to submit proposals for change from behind their computers; it also allows them to see how their colleagues elsewhere have implemented certain processes. Thus, they learn from each other without the quality system being overwhelmed with ideas."

In April 2001, the first version was launched. Two pilot locations, Groningen and Friesland, were the first to try out the new system. The Groningen Chamber had already obtained the ISO certificate; the Frisian Chamber was well on its way to it. "The system was greeted with huge enthusiasm in these regions. We have tried to integrate their experiences and ideas into the system as much as possible. We also notice how non-certified Chambers are inspired by the Chambers that already meet the ISO standards. Nobody wants to be the last to pass the post," says Van Heeswijk, who manages the entire process from the VVK headquarters in Woerden.

Project leader Van Heeswijk continues, "The introduction of Isoware has gone smoothly. The system is easy to understand and our people can work with it almost intuitively, especially since they already use Lotus Notes." Besides isoware, the Chambers of Commerce also use infoware and improware, the information management and improvement applications created by Metaware. This total package ensures that the Chambers continue to supply and improve their high-quality services, without the individual Chambers deviating too much from each other. Van Heeswijk: "We must make sure that we continue to provide added value to the business community. Quality, uniformity, and opportunities to learn from each other play a vital role in this process."