Published 13 Aug 2025
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What is an ISO 9001 Learned Lessons Log?
An ISO 9001 Learned Lessons Log is a documented record used within an organization’s quality management system (QMS) to capture, maintain, and share lessons learned from past experiences, both positive and negative. It serves as a tool to systematically store and update lessons learned as part of the ongoing quality improvement process.
What is a Lessons Learned Log?
A lessons learned log is a documented record that captures important insights, experiences, and knowledge gained from past projects, activities, or processes. It helps organizations identify what worked well and what didn’t, allowing them to apply these lessons to improve future performance and avoid repeating mistakes.
This kind of documentation can be tailored to follow standards or regulations, such as ISO 9001, to observe specific principles and highlight improvement. The log serves as a valuable resource for continuous improvement, knowledge sharing, and informed decision-making within an organization.
Importance & Benefits
An ISO 9001 lessons learned log is important because it helps capture and preserve organizational knowledge from past experiences. Not only does this prevent the recurrence of issues, but highlighting lessons learned can improve regulatory compliance and audit readiness within the organization.
Moreover, managing lessons learned lets organizations adapt faster to changes, maintain conformity to requirements, and foster a culture of learning and continuous improvement aligned with ISO 9001 Clause 7.1.6 on organizational knowledge.
What to Include in a Lessons Learned Log
A lessons learned log is a versatile tool that can be used for different quality needs within an organization, which is why the contents may vary depending on how it is used. However, a good lessons learned log usually includes core items such as:
Project Name and Details: Identifies the specific project or task the lesson applies to, including relevant dates and stakeholders.
Description of the Situation: A concise account of what happened, including the context and circumstances leading to the outcome.
Impact or Outcome: Explains how the situation affected the project, whether positive or negative, including cost, schedule, or quality implications.
Action Taken: Describes how the issue was addressed during the project and what measures were implemented.
Recommendation for Future Projects: Clear advice on how to replicate successes or avoid repeating mistakes.
How to Use an ISO 9001 Lessons Learned Log
In order to properly document lessons learned and account for the details recorded, it is important to know how to use the log template properly. Here is a step-by-step guide:
Start by filling out the details on the title page. This usually includes the document number, the name of the person completing the log, the location, and the date of recording.
Provide the information on the lessons learned. This involves the product or project name, the date it was released, project lead’s name, and the team members involved. It is important to be transparent and provide concrete data for the lessons learned.
Describe the lessons learned by including the context of the issue, the identified root causes, corrective actions taken, and the general impact of it on the organization and its operations.
After providing context for the lessons learned, complete the filled-out log with a sign-off from the team lead to acknowledge the information included in the document.
Sample ISO 9001 Lessons Learned Log Report
For reference, here’s an example of a filled-out ISO 9001 lessons learned log report:
