1. What is the starting point for ISO 9001:2000?

There is no doubt that the implementation of the process-based approach in ISO 9001 tends to follow a hierarchical and siloed structure.

Here is how the process approach was defined in this version of ISO 9001 (§ 0.2 –Process Model):

"For an organization to function effectively, it must identify and manage numerous interrelated activities. Any activity that uses resources and is managed in such a way as to transform inputs into outputs can be considered a process. The output of one process often serves as the input for the next process."

"The process-based quality management system model shown in Figure 1 illustrates the relationships between the processes described in Articles 4...