How to Become ISO 9001 Certified
As you know, ISO 9001 certification can have a lot of benefits for your business. However, what is the best approach to getting ISO 9001 certification with maximum rewards and minimal investment?
Preparation
You need to prepare how to implement ISO 9001 at your organization. For instance, you have to make a decision regarding the right approach to take. This is an important step that creates a foundation for the certification process and greatly affects the long-term success of the certification process.
As you know, ISO 9001 can benefit your organization in a wide range of ways. For instance, it can help improve internal operations, profitability, and efficiency. It will also provide various marketing advantages and allow you to tap into new markets. Your organization can realize these benefits if it pursues and identifies the right objectives for ISO 9001 certification.
Ensure you have a detailed plan for ISO 9001 implementation. Ideally, the plan does not have to include Gantt charts but shows a simple process for implementation. In this way, you can simplify your project plan.
Documentation
You should note that documentation is considered to be the most difficult step of implementing ISO 9001. That is because you ought to meet the technical requirements for this standard, which may be quite difficult to understand and interpret. Also, documentation ought to suit the circumstances and needs of the company. This is a vital issue that is overlooked when having consultants write procedures, yet they are not familiar with your organization.
Implementation
After documentation, it is time you implement ISO 9001 quality management system. During the phase, you will have to introduce new requirements for all concerned organization employees. That will help adjust their mode of working accordingly. It is vital that your employees understand the new requirements and processes and how it can benefit them. That requires that the new processes are efficient and user-friendly.
Internal Audit
Internal audits are inspections where your organization evaluates itself to determine whether it meets the requirements for ISO 9001 certification. These internal audits are not only done when implementing the QMS but also done periodically. You should note that the internal audits must be done by selected employees who have been trained in ISO 9001 auditing.
Certification
In this case, you ought to have an independent, external ISO 9001 auditor visit your company and carry out a site audit. This is done after completing the internal audit process.
