ISO certification can add credibility to your business by showing that your products or services meet international quality standards. ISO applies to almost all industries as either a legal or contractual requirement. And although many organisations benefit from being ISO certified, some can still operate without the certification.
The International Organization of Standards is responsible for developing ISO standards but does not provide certification. Certification is usually done by independent bodies accredited by JAS ANZ, such as Best Practice Certification.
ISO Standards
There are several ISO standards, some of which are industry-specific while others are generic and can apply to any industry. Some of the most common standards include ISO 14001(Environmental management system), ISO 27000 (Information Security management system), ISO 50001 (Energy Management System), ISO 9001 (Quality Management System), and more. In this article, we’ll focus on ISO 9001.
Understanding ISO 9001
ISO 9001 is a series of Quality Management Systems (QMS) that help businesses meet customer expectations. An organisation must uphold the requirements and guidelines provided by the ISO 9001 standard for quality assurance.
That way, a company will demonstrate its ability to continuously create products or services that meet regulatory and customer requirements. It’s even recommended that organisations conduct continuous ISO 9001 auditing to check how their quality management systems work.
Typically, there are various provisions of the ISO 9000 family of standards, and ISO 9001 is the only standard that requires certification. ISO 9000 establishes the standards for quality management, while ISO 9001 defines the requirements for implementing these standards.
The ISO 9001 2015 certification and ISO 9000 2015 standards are the most current versions. They work around seven quality management principles that managers can apply to facilitate continuous improvement.
These seven principles are:
- Customer focus – This requires understanding your customers’ needs and aligning them with your organisational objectives.
- Leadership – This principle requires that you set a vision and direction for your company. Recognise employee contribution, establish trust, and set challenging organisational goals.
- Process approach – Ensure you deploy resources efficiently, identify and measure capabilities of activities, and manage operations effectively.
- Engagement of people – Use and value people’s abilities, evaluate individual performance, enable knowledge sharing, and make people accountable.
- Evidence-based decisions – Use the proper techniques to analyse data and make decisions based on analysis.
- Improvement – Improve organisational operations and capabilities and align these improvements with activities. Additionally, empower people to make these improvements.
- Relationship management – Ensure you create and manage valuable relationships with customers, employees, stakeholders, and suppliers.
ISO 9001 CERTIFICATION FROM BEST PRACTICE
Do You Need ISO Certification?
ISO certification is essential because it shows that you conform to international ISO standards. In this case, conformity means creating a proper QMS or performing regular internal audits. Similarly, ISO certification provides customers with the verification necessary to build confidence about information, control, and quality management.
ISO certification also proves to other people that your organisation complies with risk assessment and management, quality management system, information security management system, and other ISO standards. With so many ISO standards available, it’s vital to specify which standard your organisation has been certified for on the certification notice.
Certification will also enable your company to use a third-party representative’s opinion as proof of conformity. This helps eliminate the subjectivity associated with self-assessments.
Need ISO Certification for Your Company? Contact us Now
If you’re interested in getting ISO certification for your business, Best Practice Biz is your go-to institution. We will provide you with the necessary training to enable you to comply with your industry’s best practices. Please contact us online today to get started with your ISO certification process.
