ISO 9001 Certification is a Quality Management System — The requirement of this standard is a generic requirement — which can be fitted to any type/ size of organization.
Most of the requirements given in ISO 9001 are very common and general business practices for the organization.
Why this QMS suitable for any type/size of organization because of the Objective of this ISO 9001 (Quality Management System)
– Enhancement of Customer Satisfaction
– Building the Credibility of the organization
– Enhancement of the overall performance of the organization
– Consistently supply products and services which meet the Customer Requirements
Looking at the objective of ISO 9001 — we can understand every organization has these common objectives of the organization.
As we know that — without customer and customer satisfaction — we can not even think for the organization.
Hope we understand — why ISO 9001 Certification is required and it applies to any organization.
How to get ISO 9001 Certification
In order to acquire the ISO 9001 Certification, here are the steps you must implement in your company/organization.
1) A clear outline of the goals you will achieve
This is a very crucial part of the whole process of ISO 9001 Certification. You must be clear about what your business/company will achieve by attaining the ISO 9001 certification.
2) Preparation
In this step, the organization must outline the approach that will be put in place in order to acquire the ISO 9001 Certification. This will serve as the whole basis of your ISO 9001 certification process.
3) Gap Analysis
This First Step of Planning for ISO 9001 Certification is to conduct the Gap Analysis — The Gap Analysis is the activity to benchmark the requirement of ISO 9001 vs the Current business practice of the organization.
Once Gap analysis is completed — you will find
– Your organization already in practice as required by the organization
OR
– Your organization is missing some of the requirements said in ISO 9001 standard requirements.
So, address those activities — which are not in practice as per ISO 9001 requirements. To address the activities — which are not in practice follow the steps
– Develop the required Policy/ Procedures/SOP/ WI to meet the requirements
-Make necessary changes in infrastructure ( If required ) to meet the requirements
– Provide Training to all concerned persons Involve in Activities
– Implement the New Changes and Monitor
4) Documentation of the QMS set in place
You need to implement a QMS that is efficient. The policies and procedures of ISO 9001 must also be set in place.
The documentation will outline the following:
a) The whole framework of the Company
b) The one recording information and the type of information being recorded
c) How the employees are expected to perform or work
d) How communication is carried out in the Company
e) Which action should be implemented
f) How to maintain continuity in case of a change in staff personal
5) A defined QMS should be set in place
It is important that you define the whole QMS process that is being set in place.
As such, it is required you to:
a) Identify who your customers will be for each department
b) Keep a record of all the activities in each department
c) Ensure that the ISO 9001 standards are being met
d) Determine any problems or obstacles and bring forth solutions to correct them
6) Communicate
It is very important that you communicate to your employees why it is important to maintain such documents.
This will ensure that the documents are correctly noted down and none of them are accidentally misplaced or lost. It will also ensure the appropriate use of the documents and ensure that the latest version of the documents is used which is required by the ISO 9001 standards.
7) Plan out a system of identifying problems and solving them
There are high chances that you will encounter some problems along the way. As such, it is important for you to already have a system of rectifying problems set in place.
In solving the problems, you should also note down what are the solutions you implemented in overcoming the problem.
8) Staff Training
It is crucial for you to train your staff members so that they will be able to carry out their job requirements without any problem.
9) Quality checks on a regular basis
ISO 9001 Certification required annual surveillance audits to be conducted to ensure the maintenance of continued compliance. Though it is recommended for companies to perform yearly internal audits or more frequently in those companies where very risky or highly dangerous processes are being carried out. Therefore, you need to audit your own system internally. This will also help the processes being carried out not to be exceedingly risky.
Once implementation is completed, find ISO Certification Bodies and apply for ISO 9001 Certification.
What is the ISO Certification process?
Many users have the question — what is the ISO Certification Process or How to get ISO Certification or ISO 9001 Certification?
The general steps of the ISO Certification process are
– Implement the ISO requirements in the organization
– Do the Internal Audit
– Do the Management Review meeting?
– Find the ISO Certification Bodies
– Apply for ISO Certification
– Get award ISO Certification
ISO Certification Cost
The ISO Certification Cost is not fixed like any other product / Service — ISO Certification cost is derived from the applicant client organization as per — Number of Employees, Number of Processes/Products/activities, Number of Branch operations of the organization, location of the organization, and many other factors.