The Research and Inspections Branch (RIB) of the Service Quality Wing has been awarded with the ISO 9001:2015 Certificate for the "Design, Planning and Development of the Force Inspection Process (FIP)", with Deputy Commissioner (Management) Kwok Yam-shu receiving the certificate from Chief Executive Officer of the Hong Kong Quality Assurance Agency Dr Lam Po-hing at the Police Headquarters on April 30.

ISO 9001:2015 is an international standard that specifies requirements for a quality management system and is highly recognised as a benchmark for international organisations. The accreditation acknowledged that the "Design, Planning and Development of the FIP" has applied the most appropriate and effective quality management system.

Since 2003, the Force has adopted the European Foundation for Quality Management Excellence Model to promote local ownership of conducting inspection through self-assessment. The RIB has refined the next FIP to a dual-module approach comprising "Compliance" and "Self-Assessment", which covers six key performance areas including "Leadership", "Force Strategies", "Human Resources Strategies", "Partnerships", "Functional Processes" and "Results". Both Modules aim at making the FIP an effective health check tool to treat risks and drive service enhancement of the Force.

The Compliance Module is a new digitalised tool with real-time entries in the Case Management and Investigation System for officers to conduct supervisory checks on three identified high-risk areas, namely "Bail", "Property" and "Custody". The results of the health checks will be presented in a "Monthly Report" format to be tabled at Formation Monthly Meetings, with compliance rates calculated to reflect the performance of individual formations. This will help reduce manpower in data processing and enhance supervision by the Formation Command Teams.

The Self-Assessment Module has been refined to include 25 specific questions relating to 15 areas which are of concern to both the Force and the public. It is designed to elicit detailed responses from the Formation Command Teams on how to maintain a high standard of corporate governance that is aligned with the Commissioner's Operational Priorities and Force Strategies.

The upcoming FIP will be rolled out in the third quarter of 2019. The RIB hopes that it will help reduce the workload of frontline officers and at the same time maximise its effectiveness to treat risks and drive service enhancement.