Bidfood improves quality management with FullyInControl
"We started three years ago with four critical deviations and eight other deviations in our ISO certification. Thanks to FullyInControl, we managed to get our processes in better order with the result that the deviations were structurally reduced and we renewed our certificate with only two minor points of improvement. That's exactly what you do it for."
Introduction
Sjoerd Snieder is responsible for quality and risk management at Bidfood, a large foodservice products supplier with multiple locations in the Netherlands. Sjoerd was closely involved in the implementation of FullyInControl within Bidfood. The company was looking for a way to get a better grip on the management systems for food safety, environment and working conditions, also in the context of their ISO certifications.
The challenge
Before implementing FullyInControl, Bidfood used a combination of Excel and Google Docs to manage their management systems. This way of working proved to be very fragmented, with each site using its own approach and documents. When a recertification for an environmental management system was rejected in 2021 due to multiple critical deviations, it became clear that a better way was needed to maintain oversight and ensure consistency across the organization.
Bidfood faced the challenge of finding a single system where the performance of all sites could be seen, where audits and corrective actions could be efficiently monitored, and that would help it achieve and maintain ISO certification.
Implementation FullyInControl
In 2021, Bidfood began implementing FullyInControl as their central management system. After an extensive selection process, in which several parties were considered, FullyInControl proved to be the best solution for their needs. By 2022, the time had come for the solution to actually be rolled out across all branches.
Bidfood chose to include each branch as a separate environment in FullyInControl. In addition to these branch-specific environments, two additional environments were set up: one for all central procedures and certificates that can be viewed by each branch, and one central group environment in which all information from all
branches comes together. As a result, each branch has its own environment but everything can be centrally totalized managed and monitored.
What does Bidfood do with FullyInControl?
Bidfood uses FullyInControl in multiple ways:
- Monitoring and Reporting: At the heart of Bidfood's use of FullyInControl is monitoring. Sjoerd cites monitoring as the solution's main strength, especially in a multi-site environment. He can see exactly which documents are available and which branches have done their work, such as performing tests, at the touch of a button. This gives management confidence that procedures are being followed.
- Audits and Compliance: FullyInControl is also used for planning and monitoring audits, both for environmental, food safety and occupational health and safety. Each site is responsible for inputting their data, which they receive through questionnaires and audits. This has allowed Bidfood to create consistency in how this data is tracked. The system also supports repetitive tests, such as inspections and annual activities, automatically creating new versions of tests.
- Process management: All process descriptions of the various management systems are captured in FullyInControl. For Bidfood's Warehouse Management System (WMS), for example, all process descriptions are put into FIC. This prevents employees from using outdated versions of documents, something that often occurred in the previous situation.
- Version Management and Feedback: When procedures are changed, Bidfood uses the comment feature in FullyInControl to notify users of updates. Through group notifications, stakeholders receive notification when something changes, so everyone always has access to the latest version of the procedure.
Satisfaction with FullyInControl
Bidfood is very pleased with the impact FullyInControl has had on their quality management. Among the improvements Sjoerd sees are the following
- Better certification process: The results speak for themselves: after the initial problems with the environmental certification, three years later, thanks to the implementation of FullyInControl, Bidfood achieved another ISO certification, this time with only two minor deviations. The tool helped them structurally improve their processes, which was clearly visible in the certification results. The current way of working with FullyInControl even led to a compliment from the auditor.
- Efficiency in auditing: For Sjoerd personally, FullyInControl has resulted in huge time savings, especially in his role as central KAM manager. With one simple filter, he can retrieve the results he needs. For the branches, the transition to FullyInControl meant that they now have to record tasks that were often not done before, or were done incompletely, in a structured and consistent way. There is no escape anymore.
- Improved quality and collaboration: The insight provided by FullyInControl ensures that Bidfood is now not only meeting requirements, but also actively working to improve quality. The solution supports group reviews and improvement sessions, allowing different sites to learn from each other and jointly strive for higher quality.
Future plans and challenges
Sjoerd and Bidfood's next goal is to obtain ISO 9001, a standard that is more focused on structured business and that will further involve the entire organization in quality management. They also want to make strides in improving working conditions by using the RI&E in FullyInControl .
A challenge remains the acceptance and adaptation of the system by employees who have less affinity for administrative tasks, such as account managers who are primarily focused on customer contact. Sjoerd emphasizes that it is important to show employees how the system can also have benefits for them, such as the ease of monitoring and keeping track of procedures.
Conclusie
FullyInControl helped Bidfood take their quality management to the next level, with a strong focus on monitoring, compliance, and efficiency. The tool allowed the organization to get a grip on its processes and make structural improvements, which ultimately resulted in positive certification results. The centralized overview and the ability to quickly retrieve information have made it easier for Sjoerd and his team to do their jobs well and ensure that the entire organization remains in control.