Accreditation provides independent confirmation of competence. Accreditation is not compulsory, and non-accreditation does not necessarily mean the certification body is not reputable. To find an accredited certification body, contact the national accreditation body in your country or visit International Accreditation Forum CertSearch. ISO survey Find out how many valid certificates there are in each country for the main ISO management system standards.
International organizations in cooperation with ISO for accreditation The International Accreditation Forum IAF is the world association of Conformity Assessment Accreditation Bodies and other bodies interested in conformity assessment in the fields of management systems , products, services, personnel and other similar programmes of conformity assessment.
This will give you all the details of the certification, including time frame and scope of the deliverables to meet specific ISO requirements. Once you have received a copy of the certificate, you need to make sure it is completely valid. One of the ways that certification may not be legitimate is through an expired date. Getting certified is a process in itself, but maintaining certification is just as difficult. Many firms go through the efforts of becoming certified in order to expand their business scope.
While this is the first step in acquiring new business, maintaining the certification is key in delivering the stated process improvements. Because improved efficiency is a key component of meeting the standards of the certification, standards must continue to be met. Check the date on the certification to ensure that they are still ISO certified. We may overlook this when we see that they have been certified once!
This is actually not always a negative as a business is being up-front about issues they need to resolve within the firm and that they are committed to fixing them effectively. Transparency and honesty is a strong quality in any upstanding business. ISO certification is unique in that the standards a business must meet are specific to the individual firm.
This allows for a company to improve metrics and processes that are catered to their business. A generic set of standards may not apply to all companies, so this ensures that a business is able to further their efficiency in ways that specifically benefit them. When looking at the certification, you should be reading through the standards and deliverables that the business sets themselves to.
If you know what the business aims to do and if they are hitting those goals, you can confidently believe their certification is valid. If these documents do not match the goals or functions of the company, they may not be adhering to their certification or this certification is not legitimate. An important example: An organization can certify one plant or location in their company but not another. Make sure the processes and all parts of the business you interact with are certified.
Just because a company holds a certification for the operation of a specific plant, does not mean it also holds this for another. You have to be very detail-oriented in this regard! Because ISO certified companies undergo an external audit to make sure their requirements are being met, there should be a stamp or indication from a registrar.
Approval and yearly audits are required in order for a firm to maintain their credential. If you see the name of the registrar on the certificate, the easiest way to verify is to call the organization. This list ensures that auditors and the companies they represent are trained and certified to complete this audit effectively. There are many organizations that are not certified and this forum is a good resource to check!
Businesses that want to closely abide by ISO standards will use a registrar that is verified. Not all certification bodies are accredited. This not always a problem. Being an accredited organization is not a requirement, but often times firms will choose to work with a body that has taken the extra step to become accredited.
Some non-accredited certification organizations have strong reputations in a specific industry or category. Just do some research into the organization to make sure it is legitimate. Being accredited may make you more comfortable as a client, but it is not required in knowing that a company has been certified by a reputable source.
Now that you have confirmed that the accreditation or certification body is valid and able to carry out valid audits, make sure the firm is listed in their database. Accreditation bodies will publish the businesses in which they have given certifications to.
If a company is listed, you can confirm that the company has been properly certified and is adhering to their ISO requirements. If you find out that issues arose with any of the above steps and these cannot be rectified, find another supplier who is certified.
There is no reason to work with a firm that said they were certified when they were indeed not. This could suggest deceitful business practices, inability to deliver upon set standards, or a lack of attention to detail. Firms that did not abide by their requirements may not instill the most confidence in clients who are looking for well-designed and delivered products or services.
Working with a fully legitimate and accredited firm poses less risk for problems in your business ventures. Following these steps will help you to confirm that a business is legitimately ISO certified.
Being very careful and paying close attention to every step will prevent any misunderstanding or oversights. Taking the extra time to check is worth knowing that you are working with a firm that is committed to operating at their best and supplying you with the deliverable you hired them for. Not all companies need ISO certification, but it does instill more confidence in a client or consumer. Because many firms only work with accredited businesses, many companies do need the certification in order to stay competitive and attract new business.
There is no legal requirement for a business to be ISO certified. But certification does pose specific benefits to the company. These are detailed in the next section!
These issues can be avoided or improved upon with certification! While no requirement for this certification is in place, these are major aspects to the success of a firm. For more information, visit our help section about how to search the Client Directory.
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