ISO 9001 Certification
Having an internationally recognized quality certification such as ISO 9001 or ISO quality management system can bring tremendous business value not only to your organization but also to your customers. The International Organization for Standardization based in Switzerland publishes business standards, such as ISO 9001, which generally help companies all over the world to have a benchmark in implementing and sustaining efficient and productive business practices. One of these standardizations is called ISO 9001 compliance which is focused on implementing quality management systems aiming to efficiently deliver quality products and services. ISO 9001 compliance certification is a quality management certification which can be obtained by an organization in order to prove to its customers that they comply to an internationally recognized quality standards in the production and delivery of products and services.
Though ISO is not the organization issuing the compliance certificates, there are country-specific organizations who audit and evaluate companies and issue compliance certificates. Contrary to common knowledge, ISO 9001 do not only deal in collecting documents of procedures, it covers a wider scope of quality management, including the actual implementation and sustainability of these processes in order to maintain a high level of quality in service and product delivery.
ISO 9001 requires you to formally document and define all your company procedures. This should coincide with the required standards from ISO. Documentation control, records control, internal audits, nonconforming product control, as well as corrective and preventive action are just the basic six procedures that ISO 9001 requires to be documented. This means that other work processes involved in the implementation of these documentation will have to be determined by companies themselves. This may involve standardizing forms, memos and re-engineering processes in order to efficiently adapt to the standard quality system. The next phase of implementation will focus on training employees to adhere and comply to your quality management system. Complying to ISO 9001 can be a tedious process and a good change management procedure in place can help a lot in the transition if it’s your first time to go through ISO 9001 compliance certification.
Based on the experiences of companies who successfully passed the ISO 9001 compliance assessment, one of the benefits of implementing a quality management system is having optimized and efficient processes within the organization. All tasks are measurable and therefore easier to gather results. These measurements not only help a company to strategize but also give them a great understanding on how to respond quickly to customer requirements. It also helped in the development of lean processes which actually improve productivity and manage cost efficiently. However, the biggest value of being certified as an ISO compliant is it elevated their credibility not only among their competitors but most importantly, to their customers. This, as expected, led to more business and market expansion. Generally, ISO 9001 compliance helps organizations achieve growth by adapting optimized business practices.
ISO Compliance
Getting an ISO 9001 compliance certification, especially for the first time, may not be a walk in the clouds. Most of the time, professional consultants who can help companies in the transition are often recommended. These professional consultants are highly experienced in guiding and providing inputs in the development of processes and documents, as well as employee training. The crucial role of professional consultants in implementing ISO 9001 compliant quality management systems can definitely save an organization a lot of time and money. For more information about professional ISO consultants, visit this link.
