Integration of management systems - Towards more sustainable management systems

The development of the standards for management systems such as ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and OHSAS 18001 are moving towards a higher degree of compatibility. At the same time, organisations with more than one management system increasingly consider to or integrate these management systems. The paper discusses this development and presents different levels of integration. The aim is to suggest the next steps in order to improve integration that promotes more sustainable management systems. Expansion to stronger product-oriented management and stakeholder focus in the standards for management systems are suggested and the need for a common integrated ISO standard is discussed. Finally, the need for changes in lifestyle and needs is presented as the next step towards more sustainable management systems.