Quality Culture and Ethical Behaviour in ISO 9001:2026

Management says quality matters. The budget says something else. The project needs to ship on time, so the verification step gets skipped. Nobody argues, because everyone understands there’s not enough time.

This is not a policy problem. It is a culture problem. And ISO 9001:2026 makes it clearer than before: management is responsible for creating a culture where quality and ethical behaviour are actually demonstrated, not just described in a policy.

The new edition (FDIS out, publication expected October 2026) provides guidance on how an organisation can demonstrate that it promotes quality culture, not just that it should. This guide shows how to do it in six steps: from identifying the right behaviours, through anonymous surveys, to action plans that actually strengthen the culture.

What Quality Culture Is (and Isn’t)

Quality culture is often confused with related concepts. The quality policy describes your intentions. Your values express what you say you value. Your processes describe how work is supposed to happen. But culture is about something else: what employees actually do when nobody is watching, how managers act under pressure, which behaviours are rewarded or ignored in practice.

A practical definition:

Quality culture = The behaviours and attitudes actually demonstrated in the organisation related to quality

It is the gap between what the organisation says and what it does. ISO 9001:2026 expects you to demonstrate that this gap is small.

What Is New in ISO 9001:2026

ISO 9001:2026 does not formally define “quality culture”, but clause 5.1 (Leadership and commitment) gains additions. The standard’s changes are generally moderate, but quality culture and ethical behaviour get clearer focus with guidance on how leadership can demonstrate commitment. This means encouraging continual improvement, making ethical behaviour the norm, and actively engaging employees in quality work.

ISO 9001:2015 already required management to “engage, direct and support persons to contribute to the effectiveness of the quality management system.” The exact wording in clause 5.1.1 h) is “engaging, directing and supporting persons to contribute to the effectiveness of the quality management system.” The 2026 edition goes further and concretises what this means.

Step 1: Identify Desired Behaviours

Start with a workshop involving management and key roles: quality manager, production manager, HR, employee representatives. The goal is to identify which behaviours drive quality in your operation.

Questions to Answer

• What behaviours are needed to reach our quality objectives?
• What behaviours do we currently see that hinder quality?
• What behaviours do we want to see more of?
• What behaviours do we want to see less of?

Five Categories to Cover

Non-conformity handling and problem-solving. In a strong quality culture, employees report non-conformities immediately, analyse root causes, and share lessons with colleagues. The opposite: mistakes are hidden, temporary fixes are accepted, no learning is transferred.

Customer requirements and priorities. When time and quality conflict, what wins? A good behaviour is letting quality take priority over delivery time and always checking before delivery. A bad one: delivery time always wins and checks are skipped under pressure.

Improvement and innovation. Do employees regularly submit improvement suggestions? Are they followed up? Or are they met with “we have always done it this way”?

Rule compliance and consistency. Do people follow processes consistently? Is documentation kept current? Or is there an attitude that “experienced people don’t need to follow processes” with documentation nobody trusts?

Competence and learning. Actively participate in training, share knowledge generously. Or see training as wasted time and hoard knowledge for personal advantage.

Document 5-10 prioritised behaviours that are critical for your quality objectives, concretely observable, and apply at all levels: employees and managers.

Step 2: Analyse Behaviour Impact

For each prioritised behaviour, do a simple analysis. If the behaviour is shown: what positive impact does it have on quality? What risks are prevented? If the behaviour is not shown: what quality risks arise? What business impact: lost customers, costs, reputation damage?

This is risk-based thinking in practice, exactly what ISO 9001 requires in clause 6.1.

Step 3: Communicate Expected Behaviours

Communicating behaviours takes more than sending an email. It requires multiple channels and repetition over time.

Start by connecting the behaviours to your values and quality policy. Publish a document called “Our Quality Behaviours” with concrete examples of what each behaviour means in practice.

Write expected behaviours into job descriptions. When a new hire reads their role, it should state which culture behaviours are expected in that position.

Create a module on quality culture in your induction training, with scenario-based exercises where new employees practice applying the behaviours.

Build in ongoing reminders. Have managers raise culture behaviours at team meetings each quarter. Complement with an annual refresher training for everyone.

Think about rewards and consequences. Recognise employees who demonstrate desired behaviours. When undesired behaviours occur, handle them through coaching instead of punishment.

Step 4: Measure Culture with Anonymous Surveys

The classic problem with culture measurement: if you ask “do you follow processes?” you get socially desirable answers. Everyone says yes. Food safety culture assessment has a proven method that works just as well for quality culture: ask about others’ behaviour instead.

Ask: “How often do you see your colleagues follow processes?”, not “Do you follow processes?”

Survey Structure

For each prioritised behaviour, ask two questions:

Question A, Expected behaviour: “To what extent does management expect employees to [behaviour]?” (scale 1-5)

Question B, Demonstrated behaviour: “How often do you see your colleagues [behaviour]?” (scale 1-5)

Add open-ended questions: give examples of good quality behaviour, what prevents desired behaviours, what would make it easier.

Anonymity is critical. No IP logging. Merge small groups so nobody can be identified. Managers should never see individual responses. Use an external anonymous tool such as Google Forms, Mentimeter, SurveyMonkey, or Microsoft Forms for the measurement itself, and document the follow-up in AmpliFlow.

Process

1. Create survey in external tool
2. Run survey and collect responses
3. Export results to Excel
4. Document results in AmpliFlow
5. Create goals in AmpliFlow for KPI tracking
6. Create action plans for improvement measures

Measure annually as a minimum. The first year, semi-annual measurement can help establish a baseline.

Step 5: Analyse Gaps and Set Goals

Calculate the gap: expected average score minus demonstrated average score.

Example:

• Expected (question A): 4.8
• Demonstrated (question B): 3.2
• Gap: 1.6 (large gap, high priority)

Prioritisation:

• Gap >1.0: Action plan immediately
• Gap 0.5-1.0: Monitor
• Gap <0.5: Maintain current approach

Segment if useful: compare gaps between departments, tenure, roles. Sometimes management and employees see the same culture very differently.

In AmpliFlow Goals, create one goal per prioritised behaviour and track the gap as a trend over time. Connect goals to action plans so every measure has a clear link to the culture gap it aims to close.

Step 6: Create Action Plans for Culture Improvement

Once you know where the biggest gaps are, you need concrete measures. For each high-priority gap: root cause analysis, measures, responsible person, deadline, follow-up method.

Example: “Report non-conformities the same day” (gap 1.6)

Open-ended survey responses show causes:

• “I don’t have time to report during production”
• “Managers seem annoyed when I report”
• “The non-conformity system is complicated”

Measures:

1. Simplify non-conformity reporting (5 fields instead of 15)
2. Management development: workshop “How do we thank people for reporting problems?”
3. Set aside 15 minutes at end of shift for reporting
4. Monthly: highlight positive examples

In AmpliFlow, collect all culture measures in Action Plans with responsible persons, deadlines, and status.

Integration with ISO 9001:2026

Culture work connects to several clauses. Clause 5.1 is the most direct: management shall actively promote quality culture and ethical behaviour. Clause 7 (Support) requires employees to be aware of how their work contributes to quality objectives. Clause 9 (Performance evaluation) means culture measurement results go into management review. Clause 10 (Improvement) connects directly to action plans: surveys identify improvement areas, action plans drive change.

The practical result: when the auditor asks “how do you promote quality culture?” you can show documented behaviours, measurement results over time, and action plans that close the gaps. You don’t just have a policy, you have data.

FAQ

How often should we measure quality culture? Annually as a minimum. Semi-annual measurement the first year is recommended.

What is an acceptable response rate? Target >70%. Below 50% is not representative.

Can culture measurement be used for individual evaluation? No. That destroys anonymity and trust. Use only at group level.

How long does it take to improve quality culture? 12-24 months for measurable improvement.

Time investment the first year:

• Steps 1-3 (preparation): 8-16 hours
• Step 4 (survey): 2-week response period
• Steps 5-6 (analysis and action plan): 4-8 hours

Want Help with Culture Work?

AmpliFlow handles the transition to ISO 9001:2026 for you. Goals and Action Plans are updated so culture measurement and follow-up become a natural part of your daily work. Results from external culture surveys are documented in AmpliFlow, connected to goals and action plans. You see the trend over time without building your own spreadsheets.

Not an AmpliFlow customer yet? Contact us and we will show how we handle the quality culture requirement for you.