Learn More about ISMS ISO 27001 Certification

Have you ever wondered what goes into ISO 27001 certification? It’s a topic that’s likely to come up more and more in the business world, as more and more companies strive to improve their cyber security posture. In this blog post, we will explore what ISO 27001 certification is and what it entails. We will also debunk some common myths about the certification process. By the end of this post, you should have a better understanding of what ISO 27001 certification is and how it can benefit your business.

What is ISMS ISO 27001 Certification ?

ISO 27001 certification is an international standard that provides requirements for an information security management system (ISMS). Organizations that implement an ISMS can be certified by an accredited certification body.

An ISMS is a framework of policies and procedures that includes all legal, physical and technical controls involved in an organization’s information risk management processes. ISO 27001 certification demonstrates that an organization has implemented an ISMS in line with international best practices.

Organizations certified to ISO 27001 must undergo regular audits to ensure that their ISMS continues to meet the requirements of the standard. Certification is valid for three years and can be renewed indefinitely.

How to get ISO 27001 Certified

There are a few steps you need to take in order to get your organization ISO 27001 certified.

1. The first step is to develop your organization’s information security management system (ISMS). This system should be tailored to the specific needs of your organization and include all aspects of information security, from Policies and Procedures to Risk Management.

2. Once your ISMS is developed, you will need to have it audited by an accredited certification body. This audit will ensure that your ISMS meets all the requirements of the ISO 27001 standard.

3. Once you have passed the certification audit, you will be issued an ISO 27001 certificate, which is valid for three years. In order to maintain your certification, you will need to undergo annual surveillance audits and recertification audits every three years.

The Benefits of ISO 27001 Certification

There are many benefits to achieving ISO 27001 certification, including :-

As the world becomes increasingly digital, the need for robust information security grows. ISO 27001 is the international standard that provides a framework for an effective Information Security Management System (ISMS). ISO 27001 demonstrates that your organization takes information security seriously and is committed to protecting your data.

Achieving certification requires a comprehensive approach to information security, covering people, processes and technology. The ISO 27001 benefits of certification will be felt across your entire organization, from the boardroom to the frontline. Your customers and partners will have increased confidence in your ability to keep their data safe, while you reap the rewards of reduced risk and improved compliance.

What’s required for ISO 27001 Information Security Management System Certification (ISMS) ?

In order to be certified to ISO 27001, organizations must meet the requirements outlined in the standard. This includes having a documented Information Security Management System (ISMS) in place that covers all aspects of security, from risk assessment and treatment to incident management. The ISMS must be implemented and maintained according to the ISO 27001 standard, and the organization must be able to demonstrate its compliance through an external audit.

Tips for maintaining ISMS ISO 27001 Certification

There are a few key things to keep in mind when working towards and maintaining ISO 27001 certification :-

1. Keep your documentation up to date and accurate. This includes your security policy, risk assessment, and any procedures or controls you have in place.
2. Make sure all employees are aware of the importance of compliance and security, and that they understand their roles and responsibilities in relation to ISO 27001.
3. Regularly review your security posture and make sure you are taking steps to address any identified risks.
4. Maintain an incident response plan so you know how to deal with any potential security breaches.

By following these tips, you can help ensure that your organization remains compliant with ISO 27001 and keeps its certification status.

What are the major changes in ISO/IEC 27001:2022 in 2022

Some of the main new updates of ISO/IEC 27001:2022 include a major change of Annex A, minor updates of the clauses, and a change in the title of the standard. The latest version of ISO/IEC 27002 has been published at the beginning of 2022, and its latest changes have also impacted ISO/IEC 27001.

Requirements of ISO 27001 Certifications

Context to the Organization

Existing – Context to the Organization – It requires an organization to define the scope of ISMS and identify all the internal and external issues related to its information security and the expectations of the interested parties.

New – Context to the Organization – An organization must understand the context of the organization and define its scope to establish an effective Information Security Management System. The latest update requires an organization to identify only the relevant requirements, which will be addressed through the Information Security Management System (ISMS).

Planning

Existing – It requires an organization to define its information security objectives based on the risk assessment and implement appropriate controls listed in Annex A. It determines plans and actions to address risks and opportunities and prepares a Statement of Applicability (SoA).

New – An organization requires defining its information security objectives based on the risk assessment and implementing appropriate controls listed in Annex A. It also requires documenting the available information and determining plans and actions to address risks and opportunities and preparing a Statement of Applicability (SoA).

Support

Existing – It focuses on the competence of personnel, resources, people and infrastructure and establishes sound communication, including external and internal, to establish a sound ISMS. It provides necessary training to the employees and requires documenting information related to information security.

New – It aims to enhance the competence of personnel, resources, people and infrastructure and establishes sound communication, including external and internal, to establish a sound ISMS. An organization shall focus on “how to communicate” rather than “who will communicate.”

Operation

Existing – This clause works in line with Clause 6 and focuses on the execution of all the plans and processes. It outlines the outcomes of the risk assessment and requires maintaining all the related documents. It focuses on implementing risk assessment and treatment plans to establish an efficient Information Security Management System.

New – This clause works in line with Clause 6. The latest update replaces the requirements to plan how to achieve the information security objectives with establishing criteria for processes to implement the actions identified in the planning clause. An organization must control its external processes, products, and services related to ISMS.

Performance Evaluation

Existing – It requires an organization to monitor, measure, analyze and evaluate the ISMS to ensure its effectiveness and efficiency. It evaluates the organization’s performance to the defined objectives. This clause also requires an organization to conduct internal audits to review its Information Security Management System (ISMS).

New – An organization shall adopt comparable and reproducible methods to monitor, measure, analyze and evaluate the ISMS to ensure its effectiveness and efficiency. It evaluates the organization’s performance to the defined objectives. This clause also requires an organization to conduct internal audits to management review to measure its Information Security Management System (ISMS) and make necessary changes to meet the needs and requirements of interested parties.

Annex A Security Control

New – The number of Annex A Security Controls is reduced from 114 to 93 controls. These controls are further divided into 4 themes rather than 14 domains.

1. People (8 controls)
2. Organizational (37 controls)
3. Technological (34 controls)
4. Physical (14 controls)

The new ISO 27001:2022 version introduces 11 new controls to the Annex A Security Control list. These new controls are:-

1. Threat Intelligence
2. Information Security for the Use of Cloud Services
3. ICT Readiness for Business Continuity
4. Physical Security Monitoring
5. Configuration Management
6. Information Deletion
7. Data Masking
8. Data Leakage Prevention
9. Monitoring Activities
10. Web Filtering
11. Secure Coding

Existing –

ISO 27001 Annex A Controls or ISO 27001 controls . They are grouped into 14 domains. These are:-

1. Information Security Policies
2. Organization of Information Security
3. Human Resources Security
4. Asset Management
5. Access Control
6. Cryptography
7. Physical and Environmental Security
8. Operational Security
9. Communications Security
10. System Acquisitions, Development and Maintenance
11. Supplier Relationships
12. Information Security Incident Management
13. Information Security Aspects of Business Continuity Management
14. Compliance

PDCA Cycle

• Do – to execute a planned action which will help us achieve the required objective
• Plan – to think that what do we need to achieve in our organization
• Check – monitor against the standards) (policies, objectives, requirements)
• Action – finally implementing what has been rechecked.

How SIS Certifications can help you

ISO 27001 certification is a great way to show your commitment to security and demonstrate that you have implemented best practices. Getting certified can be a complex process, but it is well worth the effort to ensure that your organization is protected against potential threats. Our team of experts can help you navigate the certification process and ensure that you are prepared for success. Contact us today to learn more about how we can help you get ISO 27001 certified.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about ISO 27001

Question: What is the purpose of getting ISO 27001 Certification for Companies?

Answer: In the year 2022 the average global data breach cost was around $4.35 million which meant companies lack the necessary strategy to prevent their data from possible threats. ISO 27001 being a single part of the ISO 27000 family of security standards enables the integration of full-fledged ISMS within an organization. It addresses how organizations establish, maintain, monitor, and improve their ISMS to secure their data, documents, and other information assets.

Question: What is ISO 27001 Certification?

Answer: ISO/IEC 27001 is an international standard that helps in the effective implementation of enterprise-wide Information Security Management System (ISMS) which is an organized way to maintain confidentiality and integrity within an organization. Along the same lines, ISO 27000 is a series of best practices to help organizations improve their information security management systems.

Stage One (documentation review) – At this stage, the auditors from the certification body verify that your documentation meets the requirements of ISO 27001 certification.

Stage Two (main audit) – In this stage, the realities of your processes are matched with your statements in the documentation for their compliance to the requirements of ISO 27001 standard.

The certification process goes further. Click here to view the next steps to the ISO certification process

Once you have implemented the ISMS in your organization, it becomes necessary for you to get yourself audited in order to achieve the ISO 27001 certification. When you choose an external certification body to perform the audits, you need to first fill up the application form. Once you have reviewed all the requirements of the certification, you may plan your audits accordingly.

“At the core of Silicon Valley is a passion for ‘Yes.’”

The world’s renowned hub for Technology, Silicon Valley, is home to the headquarters of many of the world’s largest high-tech companies. During World Economic Forum, Marc R. Benioff said, “Speed is the new currency of business.” Companies face the biggest challenge in maintaining their momentum and profitability. Is there any provision or tool to fuel business continuity?

It is significant to safeguard an organization from unprepared incidents or events, such as power cuts, IT breakdowns, equipment failure, and supply chain issues. ISO 22301-certified organizations implement appropriate tools to protect their business and enable it to thrive in the long run. In this blog post, we will learn what is ISO 22301 Certification and how it helps organizations to obtain business continuity.

All about ISO 22301 Certification

An organization’s ability to respond effectively to the unexpected determines its capability to survive in the long term. ISO 22301 standard measures an organization’s level of preparedness to maintain critical functions even during a crisis or unexpected incident.

ISO 22301 certification outlines the requirements for a Business Continuity Management System (BCMS). It provides a comprehensive and systematic process for organizations to incorporate adaptive and proactive measures to eliminate the potential factors that might cause disruptions.

ISO 22301 standards follow a dynamic approach to identify the amount and type of impact it is willing to accept following a disruption and tailor a business continuity plan sized correctly for the organization’s needs. It is a set of interrelated elements that provide a holistic framework for organizations to build resiliency and agility.

A Business Continuity Management System BCMS is based on the organization’s legal, regulatory, organizational, and industry requirements to ensure that a business is not vulnerable to disruptions. ISO 22301- Certified organizations follow a High- Level Structure (HLS) and incorporate the Business Continuity Management System standard into core business processes to achieve the desired outcomes. It consists of four components.

Four Components of BCMS

1. Formulating a business continuity policy.

2. Assigning roles to competent people and defining responsibilities.

3. Defining management processes relating to –

• Policy
• Planning
• Implementation and operation
• Performance Assessment
• Management Review
• Continual Improvement

4. Documented information supporting operational control and enabling performance evaluation.

These components help organizations to determine the needs and the necessity to establish business continuity policies and objectives. It addresses the cause of disruptions to prevent business failure. BCMS standards offer ten clauses that are part of the requirements to maintain consistency.

The Ten Clauses of ISO 22301 Certifications

ISO 22301-certified organizations follow the Plan-Do-Check-Act methodology that provides a simple and effective approach to manage changes and problems. It is an effective management tool used to improve the performance of organizations.

List of Organizations that Can Apply for ISO 22301 Certification

ISO 22301 is not a sector-specific standard; moreover, it seeks to strengthen the resilience and ability of an organization through the effective application of the Business Continuity Management System (BCMS). A list of organizations that can go for ISO 22301 Certifications:

Any organization can become ISO 22301 certified, and the cost of ISO 22301 certification varies from organization to organization. The advantage it offers to an organization outweighs the cost incurred to achieve an ISO 22301 certificate.

Tips to Maintain ISO 22301 Certification Compliance

In order to maintain compliance with the ISO 22301 certification, an organization requires to keep a check on the following things:

• It requires implementing, maintaining, and improving a BCMS
• It measures compliance with the business continuity policy
• It reviews the preparedness and ability of an organization to continue its services during a disruption
• It focuses on making an organization resilient through the effective implementation of ISO 22301 standards.

ISO 22301 Standard at a Glance

“An entrepreneur reduces risk in many places in order to focus on what’s most important, which is the PRODUCT.”   – GUY KAWASAKI

Product is indeed the most significant element of any business, and it becomes essential to maintain business continuity to deliver goods and services to customers. ISO 22301 certification provides tools and techniques for organizations and strengthens an organization’s ability to manage the unexpected.

ISO 22301 Certification sets down the requirements for Business Continuity Management System BCMS. It enables an organization to take adaptive and proactive measures to ensure the survival and sustainability of the core business activities in the long run.

Is ISO 22301 Certification right for my Organisation?

ISO 22301:2012 was developed as the first international standard by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) for helping organizations to develop Business Continuity Management System (BCMS). The purpose of this standard is to ensure the operational continuity of the business even in the face of external threats, such as catastrophic weather conditions, Cyber threats, and so on. Recently, we have all been witness to the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic for businesses across the globe. Its impact on the global supply chain has impaired the economies of a majority of nations. This has hurt many businesses and even led to the closure of some of them.

By adopting the requirements of ISO 22301, you can make your organization resilient against any such risks and assure your customers and shareholders regarding the robustness of your processes. A Business Continuity Standard – ISO 22301 Certification is proof that your organization has a management plan in place that assigns roles and responsibilities to your staff in order to hold your fort in time of emergencies. The global acceptance of this standard ensures all the interested parties that the international best practices have been incorporated

Benefits of ISO 22301

We all have witnessed how Coronavirus has changed the dynamic of world economies and how business operations can be stopped due to incidents or crisis. In such scenarios, ISO 22301-certified organizations manage to pave their way and maintain to generate a minimum level of output. Let’s understand the other benefits offered by ISO 22301 Certifications:

It provides a comprehensive approach to ensure a minimum level of production even during a crisis.

ISO 22301-certified organizations save a significant amount of money and time by eliminating the negative impacts of a disruptive event.

It improves cyber security and aligns with ISO 27001 Certification to attain business continuity in the Information Technology Industry.

ISO 22301 Certification compliance protects an organization’s brand value and helps in winning new businesses, clients, and customers.

It enhances an organization’s assets, profitability, marketability, turnover, and reputation.

ISO 22301 Requirements

The business continuity Management System standard consists of ten Clauses. Out of these ten clauses, three clauses are introductory in nature, while the rest seven clauses define the mandatory requirements for ISO 22301 Certification.

Context of the Organization – Determining the scope of the Business Continuity Management System BCMS and ensuring compliance with all the legal and regulatory requirements. An organization shall identify both external and internal factors that might cause disruptions and affect its ability to achieve intended outcomes.

Leadership – The senior management should ensure the implementation of the business continuity policy and business continuity objective within the organization. The organization shall assign roles and responsibilities to employees and implement an effective communication system to measure ISO 22301 compliances.

Planning – An organization shall determine potential risks and opportunities to design appropriate plans and policies to address them accordingly. It requires an organization to establish its business continuity objectives and formulate policies to achieve them.

Support – An organization requires determining and providing the needed resources to implement BCMS successfully. It shall give necessary training and education to employees to increase their competency. ISO 22301 directs organizations to establish an active and productive communication system.

Operation – Clause 8 and clause 6 go hand in hand. Clause 6 comes in the domain of planning, while clause 8 is associated with the action. An organization shall conduct a risk assessment to detect weak areas and implement significant changes where required.

Performance Evaluation – An organization shall monitor, measure, analyse, and evaluate its BCMS performance. It requires an organization to conduct internal audits to identify non-conformities and eliminate them.

Improvement – It requires organizations to take corrective actions and implement necessary changes to achieve the desired outcomes. It follows the principle of continual development that promotes the sustainability, adequacy, and effectiveness of a BCMS.

• Stage One (documentation review) – At this stage, the auditors from the certification body verify that your documentation meets the requirements of ISO 22301.
• Stage Two (main audit) – In this stage, the realities of your processes are matched with your statements in the documentation for their compliance with the requirements of ISO 22301 standard.
  the certification process goes further. Click here to view the next steps to the ISO certification process

ISO 22301 Frequently Asked Questions about Business Continuity Management Systems (BCMS)

Question : What is ISO 22301?

Answer : ISO 22301 is an international standard for implementing business continuity management systems in an organization. It helps the organizations to identify risks to its business continuity and strategize measures for its prevention and mitigation.

Question : What type of organization can apply for it?

Answer : ISO 22301 can be applied to any type of organization, regardless of its size or sector. Any organization that aims to build its business for a long haul should implement the requirements of ISO 22301.

Question : What is the cost of ISO 22301 certification?

Answer : There is no predefined cost for ISO 22301 certification. It depends upon several factors, such as complexity of your business, total workforce, number of office branches, branch location, etc. Once you have made up your mind for the certificate, you must contact a certification body that will analyze the above factors and quote a price for you.

Question : How can I achieve ISO certification?

Answer : Once you have built and implemented your BCMS as per the requirements of ISO 22301, you must undergo internal audit and management review. After closing the gaps that were identified in these processes, you must invite a certification body to conduct the audit and award you with ISO 22301 certificate.

Question : For how long does the certificate remain valid?

Answer : ISO 22301 certificate is valid for three years from the date of receiving it. However, in order to maintain the certificate, you must undertake annual surveillance audits.

“EDUCATION IS NOT THE LEARNING OF FACTS, BUT THE TRAINING OF THE MIND TO THINK” – Albert Einstein

Education helps people to improve not only their living standard but also their community and helps us to become valuable citizens of society. It enables individuals to develop skills, broaden their horizons and gain a better perspective in life. Education is based on specific standards which are clear and measurable and prepares learners for the future, work and life. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has developed ISO 21001 Certification for educational institutions to improve and establish a more productive teaching-learning environment.

What is ISO 21001 Certification?

ISO 21001 Certification for Educational Organization Management System (EOMS) provides a framework for establishing flexible, transparent and inclusive classrooms and enables an organization to provide personalized learning to meet the needs and requirements of the individual learner. It helps educational organizations to implement the best practices and aims to improve the quality of education by providing the necessary training to the teachers.

ISO 21001 certification promotes a learner-centric approach and actively engages learners in their own learning. It was published in 2018 by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) to allow educational institutions to provide high-quality services. It promotes equitable and accessible education for all and offers more personalized learning for learners with special needs and distance learners.

Which Educational Organizations can apply for ISO 21001 Certification?

Any educational organization can apply for ISO 21001 certification, including private and private, regardless of size, nature and location. A list of organizations that can go for ISO 21001 certification for Educational Organization Management System (EOMS) is as follows:

1. Pre-schools
2. Colleges
3. Adult Education Centers
4. Vocational Education Centers
5. Tutoring or Coaching Centers
6. Training Institutes
7. Special Education Schools
8. Universities
9. K-12 Schools

Why is there a need for ISO 21001 Certification?

Education plays a crucial role in a child’s life, but today the education sector is facing many challenges. ISO 21001 Certification is important as it helps organizations to improve their performance and provides appropriate tools and controls to manage the various challenges related to an educational institution. These challenges are:

According to UNESCO, Around 263 million children, including adolescents and youth, are out of school.

Over 155 countries legally guarantee free education (9 years or more of compulsory education), but the global literacy rate is still 86.3%.

Only six children out of ten will be finishing secondary school in 2030.

Around 102 million youth lack basic literacy skills.

Capitalism of education.

Principles of ISO 21001 Certification

The Educational Organization Management System (EOMS) is not restricted to schools and universities, but organizations that use the curriculum to impart knowledge can apply for ISO 21001 certification. ISO 21001 Certification for Educational Organization Management System (EOMS) follows 11 principles. These are:

Focus on learners and other beneficiaries – It promotes student-centred learning and focuses on the needs and requirements of individual learners.

Visionary leadership – It focuses on engaging all learners and defines competence standards for all staff to achieve the mission, vision and objectives of the organization.

Engagement of people – It aims to provide training and develop competence to ensure that all the people involved are empowered, competent and engaged in delivering values.

Process approach – It aims to establish a coherent system to achieve consistent and predictable results. It reviews processes and focuses on adopting efficient and effective processes to improve the functioning of the organizations.

Improvement – It follows the principle of continual improvement to sustain growth and eliminates factors that might cause unintended outcomes.

Evidence-based decisions – Decisions are based on analysis and evaluation after reading the prior information and data to achieve the intended outcomes.

Relationship Management – It is equally necessary for an organization to maintain a relationship with customers, stakeholders and other beneficiaries to sustain growth.

Social Responsibility – An organization must behave in a socially responsible manner to ensure long-term success and sustainable growth. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has developed ISO 26000 certification solely dedicated to Social Responsibility.

Accessibility and Equity – ISO 21001 Certification aims to create flexible, transparent and inclusive educational institutions. It focuses on making education accessible and equitable for all, including differently-abled and distance learners.

Ethical conduct in education – It provides an ethical code of conduct to educational organizations and demonstrates an organization’s ability to eliminate incidents of conflicts of interest.

Data Security and Protection – An effective data security system enables interested parties and learners to interact with the organization freely and openly. An educational organization can apply for ISO 27001 Certification and ISO 27701 Certification to ensure data security and privacy.

PDCA Cycle

✓ Plan – to think that what do we need to achieve in our organization

✓ Do – to execute a planned action which will help us achieve the required objective

✓ Check – monitor against the standards, policies, objectives, requirements

✓ Action – finally implementing what has been rechecked.

ISO 21001 Benefits

ISO 21001 Certification for the educational organization management system (EOMS) offers the following benefits:-

Creates a better alignment of objectives with policies and enhances the reliability and credibility of the organization.

 Promotes personalized learning to make education accessible for all regardless of learner’s religious background, origin, gender and disability.

Promotes inclusive education and offers tools and techniques to educational organizations to fulfil learner’s desired expectations, including differently-abled and classrooms with linguistic diversity.

ISO 21001 certification compliance ensures a comprehensive education and enables educational organizations to demonstrate their commitment and ability to deliver quality education to exceed learner’s expectations.

Harmonizes various regional, national and international laws, regulations and standards in a single framework and provides a holistic approach to an organization.

Enhances the social responsibility of educational organizations by providing equitable, accessible and quality education for all.

ISO 21001 Requirements

The ISO 21001 certification consists of ten sections that follow the Plan-Do-Check-Act cycle. Out of these ten sections, three are introductory in nature, whereas the rest seven explains the mandatory requirements of the Educational Organization Management System (EOMS).

These seven sections are:-

Context of the organization – An organization shall define all the internal and external issues related to EOMS and formulate strategies to achieve the intended outcomes, including the purpose and social responsibilities.

Leadership – The top-level management is accountable and responsible for the effectiveness of the EOMS. It requires demonstrating commitment, leadership and communicating the significance of effectiveness EOMS. The senior management ensures the integration of EOMS requirements into the organization’s processes.

Planning – Every organization must adopt risk-based thinking and identify the potential issues related to EOMS. It must determine plans and policies to address the identified risks and opportunities accordingly.

Support – An organization should define and provide the resources necessary for establishing, implementing and maintaining the Educational Organization Management System (EOMS). It encourages learner engagement and promotes activities that improve learning. It enhances the staff competencies and helps in achieving learning outcomes.

Operation – This section works in line with section 6, which is planning. An organization should plan, implement and control the processes to meet the needs and requirements of learners, stakeholders and other beneficiaries. It requires reviewing the consequences of unexpected outcomes and taking corrective actions to eliminate any adverse effects.

Performance Evaluation – An organization shall adopt a reflective and constructive method for handling complaints and appeals. It offers tools to monitor, measure, analyse and evaluate to ensure intended outcomes.

Improvement – An organization must evaluate its actions to identify non-conformities and address them accordingly. The principle of continual improvement ensures sustainability, adequacy and effectiveness of the Educational Organization Management System.

Stage One (documentation review) – At this stage, the auditors from the certification body verify that your documentation meets the requirements of ISO 21001.

Stage Two (main audit) – In this stage, the realities of your processes are matched with your statements in the documentation for their compliance with the requirements of ISO 21001 standard.

the certification process goes further. Click here to view the next steps to the ISO certification process

Why should one get a 21001 (EOMS) Educational Organizational Management System?

As the name suggests it’s a management system that looks out in the educational organizational/institutional department which helps the employees to understand the standards so that they can work accordingly. Around the world, educational quality varies and if one wants to be innocuous and does not want to get deceived, an ISO 21001 certificate will give a mandate assurance by practicing:

1. Learned-centric approach
2. Good resources and the trained facility is provided
3. Curriculum and material is relevant to learners
4. Family and societal support is offered
5. Save and conducive learning environment is offered

Getting ISO 21001 certificate, one gets a vivid ideology about how to conduct themselves, since its inception the educational system has been developed a lot, we cannot evade the education system as it is about building our world’s future. The standards are suitable across the field of educational providers, public, or private educational sectors.

ISO 21001 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) EOMS

Question : How can I get an ISO 21001 certificate?

Answer : Achieving ISO 21001 Certification is not a big deal in today’s upgraded systems. The basic steps to become ISO 21001 Certified are as you need to prepare all the relevant information of your company in a systematized way (It is always best and safe to hire a legal consultant.) , then you need to document all the relevant information of your business. You have to implement all the documented information in your organization. Get ready for the internal audits which are performed first during the certification process and then periodically and lastly, if the certifying body approves your management system then you will be awarded with the required ISO standard.

Question : How do I get started with the ISO 21001 Training?

Answer : We are always ready to help you to start your journey towards obtaining ISO 21001 training for certification.

Question : What is ISO 21001 & Why is important for my organization?

Answer : ISO 21001 is an international standard developed by the International Organization for Standardization which provides management tools for organizations that offer educational products and services. It intends to help educational providers meet students requirements and needs.

Question : What is ISO 21001 Standard?

Answer : ISO 21001 is an international standard established by the International Organization for Standardization which renders management tools for organizations that offer educational products and services.

Question : How much does it cost for ISO 21001 certification?

Answer : The cost of ISO 21001 certification varies from one organization to another. Basically, when you approach an internationally accredited certifying body for ISO Certification and they approve your management systems and all your processes, they will then quote an amount for the certificate. Moreover, the cost for achieving ISO certification depends mostly on your organization, such as the no. of employees in your organization, No. of branches your organization has, and many more.

Question : How long is an ISO 21001 certificate valid for?

Answer : Basically, an ISO Certificate is valid for three years. And during this time period of three years, a surveillance audit is conducted on an annual basis to ensure that ISO quality standards are being maintained by the organization.

What is ISO 14001 Certification EMS Environmental Management Systems?

ISO 14001 Certification – make a step towards sustainable Environmental with Environment Management System

• ISO 14001, also known as (EMS) Environmental Management System. It establishes the standards and framework for an effective environmental management system. ISO 14001 Environmental Management System integrates environment management practices with ISO 14001 standards. It is a generic standard and applies to most industries regardless of their size, nature, and geographical location.
• It is an internationally accredited standard that enables to enhance environmental performance through using resources efficiently and reducing wastage. The environmental management system mainly focuses on the resources and meeting the commitments documented in the organisation’s policies.
• This standard is globally accredited, and its implementation helps organisations to add credibility by demonstrating their commitment to environmental protection. It helps in increasing the trust of the customers and stakeholders and promotes sustainable development. It includes reducing the negative environmental impacts of products, services and activities.

Why is Environment Management System – ISO 14001 Important?

It exhibits the organisation’s commitment to protecting the environment.

It can provide the organisation with a competitive edge in procuring green tenders.

Companies achieving ISO 14001 Certification demonstrate that their organisation encourages sustainable development.

It aims to minimise wastage and use resources efficiently.

It addresses social, economic and environmental aspects.

It helps organisations in reducing costs as it follows detect and prevent approach.

It creates a better impression of the organisation amongst the customers and businesses.

Evolution of ISO 14001 Certification

• ISO 14001 was developed by the International Organisation for Standardisation. It was first released in 1996 and then updated in 2004. The latest version of ISO 14001, also known as ISO 14001:2015, was released in September 2015.
• ISO 14001:2015 has significantly changed the provisions and requirements of ISO 14001. A continual improvement survey is conducted to understand the needs of the current, past and potential users.
• It focuses more on standards and facilitates integration with other ISO standards and provides a competitive advantage and helps to gain the trust of the entities.

What is the Purpose of ISO 14001

It defines the requirements of the organisation and guides the implementation of an effective environmental management system. This Certification offers to improve the organisation’s environmental performance.

The key elements of ISO 14001 Certification

An effective Environment management system clearly defines the policies and procedures. There are six core elements in an Environment Management System, it includes:

1. Environmental policy
2. Planning
3. Implementation
4. Checking and corrective action
5. Management review
6. Continuous improvement

PDCA Cycle

• Plan – to think that what do we need to achieve in our organization
• Do – to execute a planned action which will help us achieve the required objective
• Check – monitor against the standards) (policies, objectives, requirements)
• Action – finally implementing what has been rechecked.

Legal requirements of ISO 14001 Certification

ISO 14001 Environmental Management System designs the critical requirements to enforce an effective Environmental Management System. ISO 14001 is not a technical standard and does not replace any legal regulations.
These requirements are divided into ten different sections (Section 1 to Section 10) and work on Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) approach.
It is necessary to understand all the sections.

Section 1 to Section 6 is in the Plan stage
Section 7 and Section 8 are in the Do stage.
Section 9 is in the Check stage.
Section 10 is in the Act stage.

Section 1: Scope

It marks the Scope of the Environmental management system. It should meet the organisation’s environmental policies and strives to improve the industry’s environmental performance.

Section 2: Normative references

In ISO 14001, there is no normative clause.

Section 3: Terms and Definitions

This clause explains all the terms and definitions related to these four categories:

Organisation and leadership
Planning
Support and Operation
Performance evaluation and Improvement

Section 4: Context of the organisation

It deals with identifying all the factors that affect the industry and understanding the requirements of the business. These aspects broadly depend on the size and nature of the organisation. This clause aims to find internal and external factors that affect the industry and enforce best practices for an effective environmental management system.

Section 5: Leadership

It deals with allocating the roles and responsibilities within the organisation for an adequate environmental management system. It illustrates the importance of top-level management in executing and improving EMS.

Section 6: Planning

It focuses on examining any risk and opportunity that can impact the industry and formulates strategies to mitigate the risk and reap opportunities. It also analyses the industry’s interaction with the environment and compliance with legal obligations to establish an effective Environmental management system.

Section 7: Support

It addresses the needs and requirements of the management for an effective Environmental system. It promotes the flow of information, documentation and policies to ensure all the employees are well aware of the organisation’s objectives.

Section 8: Operation

This Section is related to Section 6 (Planning), which states that the organisation should evaluate all the activities hindering the organisation’s manufacturing and services. The organisation must formulate policies to meet the operational requirement for environmental control and deal with a potential emergency.

Section 9: Performance evaluation

It is crucial to ensure that the organisation’s environmental management system is adequate and efficient. It involves monitoring and measuring the organisation’s current practices and identifying the areas for advancement.

Section 10: improvement

It ensures the effectiveness of the environmental management system and commits to enhancing required process areas to establish an environmental management system.

Implementation of ISO 14001 Certification

It is essential to implement the ISO 14001 standards effectively. It includes:

Establish effective communication to ensure the support and commitment of the management to improve its environmental performance.
The top-level management should assign roles and responsibilities within the organisation for an effective management system.
The organisation documents all the requirements and compares them with the existing system.
The organisation needs to take feedback from suppliers, customers and workers.
Establish an implementation team.
Implement the policy with the basic principle.
Provide training and incentives to encourage employee participation.
Opt for internal auditor training and conduct internal audits annually.
Frequently monitor and analyse the performance for continual business improvement.

Internal auditor training

Internal auditing of the Quality management system accesses the level of implementation and provides the tools for improvement.
ISO 14001 offers a lead auditor training program that aims to deliver the required expertise to conduct an Environment Management System (EMS) audit.
It describes the individual regarding the roles and responsibilities of the internal auditor.
It provides you with all the major auditing principles, techniques and procedures and makes you a valuable employee in your organisation.

Cost of ISO 14001 Certification

ISO 14001 Environment Management System can enhance your image in the market and provides you with a competitive edge in the industry. The cost of the ISO 14001 Environment Management System can vary from one organisation to another, and it depends on various factors.

These factors are:

Selection of ISO certification body, the Certification body an organisation chooses will examine the management and processes. They quote an amount for the certificate after collecting all the necessary information.

It also depends on the size of your organisation, the number of employees in the organisation, and the number of branches your organisation has.

Benefits of ISO 14001 Environmental Management System Certifications

The world is increasingly becoming aware of the health of the environment. ISO 14001 Standards has proved to be the most successful among all for implementation of an effective EMS. It has helped the organizations in fulfilling their environmental responsibilities while keeping their financial health intact. Nearly any business can benefit from achieving certification to ISO 14001 standards.

Here are the prime benefits of ISO 14001 standards:

It is a hallmark of quality and safety. It ensures that the products are safe and healthy to consume.

It is a globally recognised certification and applies to most industries irrespective of their size, nature and geographical location.

It follows the principle of clean and green progress as it gives equal importance to nature. It promotes sustainable development and also contributes to achieving Sustainable Development Goals.

It demonstrates the organisation’s commitment to the environment and shows the organisation is serious and responsible.

It improves the impression of the organisation amongst its customers and other businesses. ISO 14001 environment management system ensures the quality of the products and services and expands the organisation’s customer base.

It is a cost-effective standard as it reduces the cases of environmental incidents and protects the company from paying fines and compensations. It also promotes clean and green energy, which again saves the extra cost of production.

Getting ISO 14001 certified ensures that the organisation complies with all the legal regulations.

It demonstrates that the organisation is concerned about the environment and builds trust in the customers.

ISO environmental certification helps to provide a competitive advantage to the organisation as it displays that you have an active commitment to the environment.

It reduces the amount of waste generated by the industries as one of the requirements of ISO 14001 is that the organisation needs to demonstrate that it complies and works to achieve the environmental objectives.

ISO 14001 EMS Certification Requirements Checklist

The organisation should maintain and follow the procedures that are part of the organisation’s environmental objectives, legal requirements and regulations related to local, national and international laws.

Let’s have a look at all the requirements checklist for ISO 14001:

Suitable environment policy

Specifying environmental objectives targets and programs

Determining an organisation’s environmental aspects and impacts

Transmission of policies and objectives within the organisation and management.

Designation of stakeholders for environment management system

Provision of environmental adherence

Strategy to observe and estimate the progress

Environment management system performance audit

Ceaseless improvement

Stage One (documentation review) – At this stage, the auditors from the certification body verify that your documentation meets the requirements of ISO 14001.

Stage Two (main audit) – In this stage, the realities of your processes are matched with your statements in the documentation for their compliance to the requirements of ISO 14001 standard.

the certification process goes further. Click here to view the next steps to the ISO certification process

ISO 14001 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about Environmental Management System Certification

Question : What is ISO 14001:2015 Certification?

Answer : ISO 14001 Certification is an internationally recognized standard for establishing and implementing an Environmental Management System (EMS) in an organization. It enables the organization to perform its environmental assessment, identify risks, and execute the right actions to prevent or mitigate the effect of environmental challenges so as to secure the organization financially.

Question : What kinds of organizations can apply for ISO 14001 certification?

Answer : ISO 14001 Certification can be applied to all kinds of organizations regardless of their size, type or sector of operation. Organizations such as rolling mills, hospitals, steel plants, those dealing with medical devices, paper mills, and so on, can apply for ISO 14001 certification.

Question :What is the main aim of ISO 14001:2015?

Answer : The main aim of ISO 14001:2015 is to focus on continual improvement of environmental performance and improving corporate image among regulators, customers and the other stakeholders, conserve energy consumption, managing waste material and lowering distribution costs.

Question : How can I get an ISO 14001 certificate?

Answer : Achieving ISO 14001 Certification is not a big deal in today’s upgraded systems. The basic steps to become ISO 14001 Certified are listed below: Firstly, you need to prepare all the relevant information of your company in a systematized way. Secondly, you need to document all the relevant information of your business. Thirdly, you have to implement all the documented information in your organization. Fourthly, get ready for the internal audits which are performed first during the certification process and then periodically after. Lastly, if the certifying body approves your management system then you will be awarded with the required ISO standard.

Question : Who can go for ISO 14001 certification?

Answer : Any organization, regardless of shape, size or sector of operation, who wants to demonstrate their seriousness for environmental issues.

ISO 13485 Certification(Quality Management System for Medical Devices) – let your medicine be secured with ISO 13485

The organizations that are involved in the manufacturing and handling of medical devices are required to adhere to the norms of ISO 13485 medical devices standard. ISO 13485 is a set of standards that helps in the implementation of the Quality Management System for Medical Devices (MD-QMS).

It demonstrates the competency of the organizations in delivering good quality and safe medical devices and relevant medical services that can fulfill the customer’s requirements as well as ensure compliance with the regulatory norms. The latest version of ISO 13485 Certification was published2016 and hence, it is termed ISO 13485:2016.

ISO 13485 certification involves building a quality management system for medical devices by identifying the potential risks and documenting them effectively. The threats may arise from contamination of equipment or errors during handling. ISO 13485 provides for analyzing those threats and planning appropriate actions to prevent those risks.

Our accreditation with IAS and IOAS, and our close links with the medical authorities enable us to meet your certification requirements effectively. In some countries, certain local certification is required ISO Certification for Medical Devices along with ISO 13485 medical devices in order to be eligible to manufacture and sell medical equipment’s. Our vast network of experienced auditors all over the world helps you achieve this certification in a time-bound and hassle-free manner.

ISO 13485 Certification Principles:

Customer focus – aiming to improve for the betterment of the interested parties and customer, this will help one sustain customer, increase customer base, makes sure to communicate their needs and expectation by monitoring throughout the organization.

Leadership – to achieve quality objectives leaders need to establish unity of purpose which is by aligning its strategy, policies, procedure and resource this will lead to better coordination of the organization’s processes one needs to establish a culture of trust and integrity, provide people with the required resource, training, authority to act with accountability.

Engagement of people – for efficiency involve people of all levels, this can be done by communicating with the employees their needs in the organization, sharing knowledge, and experience, recognizing people’s contribution, learning, and improvement.

Process approach – when activities are understood and then executed then the efficiency of the delivered output will increase, by understanding organizations’ capabilities and determining resource constraints prior to action.

Improvement – improvement is important for an organization to maintain the current level of performance and to even keep on developing, this can be done by giving proper training and letting them understand that how does a work happens with that track, review and audit planning, implementation, recognize and acknowledgment, which will result into anticipation of internal and external risks and opportunity, improved process performance.

Evidence-based decision making – learn from mistakes, it is simply that decisions should be driven from evaluation of data, this will help one take better efficient solutions adding more, intuitions should never be neglected.

Relationship management – manage relations with relevant interested parties such as providers, one can achieve by keeping a well-managed supply chain that provides a stable flow of products and services, determining interested party’s relationship that needs to be managed.

PDCA Cycle

✓ Plan – to think that what do we need to achieve in our organization

✓ Do – to execute a planned action which will help us achieve the required objective

✓ Check – monitor against the standards) (policies, objectives, requirements)

✓ Action – finally implementing what has been rechecked.

ISO 13485 Benefits

ISO 13485 is helpful for organizations in all stages in the product life cycle- starting from its design development, manufacturing, storage, and distribution of the final product. The applicability of ISO 13485 does not stop at that. It can also be applied for relevant services of medical devices along with associated activities that are in the form of technical support- both remote and on-site.

Since ISO 13485 is an internationally recognized standard, building your MDQMS in accordance with it has unfathomable benefits for your organization. It tremendously reduces your costs. Some of the many benefits of ISO 13485 certification are listed below:

An improved process results in reduced costs.

• Better reliability of the management results in stronger relationships with the stakeholders.
• ISO 13485 certification boosts your image and makes you trustworthy in the eyes of customers.
• Your QMS for medical devices will ensure the quality and consistency of products when strictly adhered to the ISO 13485 requirements.
• The global acceptability of ISO 13485 certification enables a wider market reach for your business.
• ISO 13485 is recognized by Global Harmonization Task Force (GHTF) as the standard for establishing model MDQMS for medical industries. In addition to that, ISO 13485 covers all legal and contractual requirements.
• ISO 13485 also covers the requirements of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

ISO 13485 Requirements

Define the scope – It is very important to understand the purpose and market of the medical device in order to define the scope. It is also important to consider the regional regulations related to the product.

Perform ISO 13485 Audit & analyze the gap – An audit validates the conformities of your management system against the requirements of the management system. Any gaps should be thoroughly examined.

Prepare a project plan – The gap analysis after the audit helps you in developing a corrective action plan that takes into consideration all the non-conformities and ensures that you are compliant with ISO 13485 requirements as well as with other regional regulations.

Maintain documentation – the mandatory documentation, i.e., Quality Manual, procedures, work instructions, and documentation with evidence of proof of implementation should be maintained for the ease of the audit.

Train your workforce – It is very important to educate your workforce involved in the production of medical devices, regarding the requirements of ISO 13485 medical devices certification. This includes both legal and procedural requirements.

Implementation – Once you have established your quality management system for medical devices, you must run it for a period of at least three months and document your processes.

Conduct an internal audit – This is necessary to check for any deviation from the ISO 13485 certification requirements. It can either be conducted by one of your qualified employees or by any third party.

Conduct a management review – A management review is necessary to ensure that your quality management system is functioning as per the requirements.

Apply for ISO certification – This involves inviting a certification body to conduct an audit on your management system. After the successful completion of the audit, you may be awarded ISO 13485 certification.

ISO 13485 FAQs

Why Choose ISO 13485 from SIS Certifications?

We provide global services in issuing the ISO 13485 medical devices certification that is IAS and IOAS accredited. Our presence in over 55 countries ensures that the audit of your organization will be carried out by your local-language auditors.

We can help you in:

Gaining IAS and IOAS accredited ISO 13485 certification.

Fulfilling your commitment to meeting your customer’s expectations.

Complying with the government’s regulations and gaining additional local certifications in order to be eligible for manufacturing and selling the medical devices.

The manufacturers of medical devices or their components, the contractual service providers, or the distributors of medical devices are all eligible for ISO 13485:2016.

To know more about SIS Certifications – Click Here

ISO 13485 Frequently Asked Questions about Quality Management System for Medical Devices (MD-QMS)

Question : What is the aim of ISO 13485 Certification?

Answer : ISO 13485 certification is globally recognized for the efficiency and effectiveness of the quality management system for medical devices on the basis of ISO 13485 standard. It aims to provide superior medical devices that meet and fulfill the customer’s requirements establishing a better relationship with them.

Question : How is the external audit of ISO 13485 done?

Answer : Your certification body follows certain procedures and checklists to make sure that you have implemented all the necessary requirements.

Question : What is the latest version of ISO 13485 Certification?

Answer : ISO 13485:2016 is the latest version of ISO 13485 Certification which was published in March of 2016. It focuses on providing superior medical devices and other related devices that consistently fulfills customers expectations.

Question : How can I get an ISO 13485 certificate?

Answer : Achieving ISO 13485 Certification is not a big deal in today’s upgraded systems. The basic steps to become ISO 13485 Certified are listed below: Firstly, you need to prepare all the relevant information about your company in a systematized way (It is always best and safe to hire a legal consultant.) Secondly, you need to document all the relevant information about your business. Thirdly, you have to implement all the documented information in your organization. Fourthly, get ready for the internal audits which are performed first during the certification process and then periodically after. Lastly, if the certifying body approves your management system then you will be awarded the required ISO standard.

Question : How much does it cost for ISO 13485 certification?

Answer : The cost of ISO 13485 certification varies from one organization to another. Basically, when you approach an internationally accredited certifying body for ISO Certification and they approve your management systems and all your processes, they will then quote an amount for the certificate. Moreover, the cost for achieving ISO certification depends mostly on your organization, such as the no. of employees in your organization, No. of branches your organization has, and many more.

Question : How long is an ISO 13485 certificate valid for?

Answer : Basically, an ISO Certificate is valid for three years. And during this time period of three years, a surveillance audit is conducted on an annual basis to ensure that ISO quality standards are being maintained by the organization.

Question : How do I maintain ISO 13485 certification?

Answer : Just because you received an ISO 13485 certification, your task is not complete. For proper functioning of the management system, you need to maintain the ISO 13485 certification. For that, your company has to continually undergo an annual surveillance audit for the period of three years. After completion of the validity period, you need to get recertified.

Question : Is ISO 13485 certification right for me? / Why become ISO 13485 certified?

Answer : Having an ISO 13485 certification is important for any organization because it helps you to lower your cost amount, maximize your profits ability in the organization. The benefit of a quality management system also helps you to earn new customers and retain those customers for a long period.

Evolution of ISO 9001 Certification

The latest version of ISO 9001 Certification is known as ISO 9001:2015 Certification. It was first published in 1987 and last revised in the year 2015.

What is ISO 9001:2015- Quality Management System?

ISO 9001:2015 certification is a quality management standard that demonstrates the organization’s ability to provide products and services that meet customer and legal requirements. It is a set of policies, procedures, and processes to implement and maintain a quality management system within the organization.

ISO 9001 standards provide management tools and techniques to improve customer satisfaction and assist organizations in increasing efficiency. Quality management functions to achieve Quality Assurance and Quality Control.

Quality Assurance aims to design processes to produce products and services of appropriate quality and focuses on every aspect of the system, including suppliers and customers.

Quality Control focuses on operations related to producing the product or services and intends to eliminate factors that might cause undesired outputs.

Importance of ISO 9001:2015 Certification

ISO 9001 Certification is a universal standard for Quality Management System and one of the most used ISO standards.

Over 1.1 million certificates have been issued in 178 countries.

85% of the certified organizations report benefits, such as higher demand for products and services, increased market share and improved business operation.

Organizations with ISO 9001 Certification are more competent and pay 7% more on average.

ISO 9001 certification is the only standard in the ISO 9000 family of standards that requires certification. An entire organization seeks Certification, but the scope of the QMS can be accommodated to improve performance at a particular facility or department.

ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management and its All Major Aspect in a Business

Quality management is a key to success, when we talk about business growth and its performance. That promotes client relations and plays a role for the wellbeing of business. To ensure the success in a business the quality of products and services will be maintained to all levels. This includes the planning, decision, and quality of procedure.

Quality is not only about ensuring the final product but also includes the process and the efforts behind the result.

Higher profitability is a crucial part of great quality. Higher the quality promotes higher profits. And for this it requires a high investment in a market. Minor failures in a company translate into the company’s manufacturing and service cost. And earning from this prevented the company’s expenditure and increased the market share and sales.

Efficient management grows the business and makes it more sustainable and promotes the productivity. This will help to make the changes with competitor’s business. and promotes customer satisfaction.

Customers expect the standard of product from the company they purchase, without the quality the customer will deny purchasing from you, because nowadays customers keep quality over quantity and don’t waste their hard earned money on the things which aren’t worth the same. Keep quality a priority that is maintained in each and every substance in a company and enhances customer peace of mind.

Higher standards of a product attracts the customer to purchase back, and for this the crucial part to make essential changes, improves the quality, update product as the time and affordable, this has resulted in the customer loyalty and customer come back to you for other products.

What is ISO 9001 and its principles?

The ISO 9001 Certification places the concept of process management at the heart of the standard. It consists of eight core quality management principles that act as a common foundation for all standards relating to quality management.

These are the eight principles :-

1. Customer focus – It evaluates the organization’s objectives and initiatives to meet customers’ needs and requirements. The principle focuses on product performance and customer service.

2. Leadership – This principle aims to establish a quality-minded culture. The top-level management plays a crucial role in establishing and maintaining work environments that engage people and achieve quality objectives.

3. Engagement of People – It is one of the essential principles of ISO 9001 certification and focuses on making employees more competent, dependable, empowered, and better. It helps in the personal and professional development of the employees by establishing effective communication within the organization.

4. Process Approach – It focuses on linking all the business processes in a single system and helps in achieving more predictable and consistent outcomes. It helps an organization to focus on operations that need improvement.

5. System Approach to Management – The process approach is a part of the system approach. It focuses on developing a cohesive system and improving individual performance by understanding, analyzing and managing interrelated business processes.

6. Continual Improvement – Improving business operations is an on-going process. It requires an organization to identify potential risks and opportunities and formulates strategies to eliminate risks and reap opportunities.

7. Evidence-based Decision Making – It follows an evidence-based approach to the decision-making process. It evaluates all the data and implements appropriate tools and methods. The importance is given to understand the cause-and- effect relationships and potential unintended consequences.

8. Relationship Management – Establishing good relations with relevant partners, business associates, vendors, stakeholders, and investors is significant for an organization to ensure the continuity of the supply chain. Sustained success is more likely to be achieved when the organization manages relationships with all of its interested parties to optimize their impact on its performance.

Checklist for ISO 9001:2015 Certification

ISO 9001 certification is an internationally accredited standard for Quality Management System. It requires an organization to establish effective quality management, and here is a checklist of 12 key steps that will guide you to achieve ISO 9001:

Step: 1- Leadership
Step: 2- Perform a Gap Analysis
Step: 3- Defining the scope
Step: 4- Implementation of Quality Management and Creating Quality Management System Manual
Step: 5- Establishing effective communication within the organization
Step: 6- Creation of an audit plan
Step: 7- Determining and assigning roles and responsibilities
Step: 8- Evaluating the Quality Management System and taking the corrective-actions
Step: 9- Conduction of an internal audit
Step: 10- Apply for stage-I audit
Step: 11- External audit
Step: 12- Successfully completing the Certification process

Cost of ISO 9001 Certification

The cost of ISO 9001 Certification varies from one organization to another. ISO 9001 standards apply to any industry, large and small, irrespective of nature and location. The cost of ISO 9001 certification depends on the certification body you choose. It also depends on many factors, such as:

Size of your organization

Number of employees in the organization

The number of branches your organization has and many more.

PDCA Cycle

✓ Plan – to think that what do we need to achieve in our organization

✓ Do – to execute a planned action which will help us achieve the required objective

✓ Check – monitor against the standards, policies, objectives, requirements

✓ Action – finally implementing what has been rechecked.

ISO 9001 Benefits

Boosting the image of your organization – ISO 9001 certification by a credible certification body enhances your reputation in the eyes of customers, clients, and other stakeholders regarding your capabilities to deliver quality products and services.

Meet customer’s expectations – ISO 9001 aims at meeting the requirements as well as expectations of customers in terms of quality. This helps in enhancing your customer base as well as retaining your old customers.

Integration of processes – the High-Level Structure of ISO 9001 enables the integration of various management systems within the organization. This helps in recognizing the area of improvement as well as resource conservation within your organization.

Evidence-based decision making – The key to an effective QMS lies in evidence-based decision-making that can take into consideration the identified risks and ensure appropriate action for an efficient QMS.

Continual improvement – the culture of continual improvement in your organization enables your staff in improving the processes that they are directly responsible for. This helps in saving a good amount of time, costs, and other resources.

Involvement of the workforce – Who the framework of ISO 9001 ensures the engagement of the entire workforce for the betterment of the processes that keeps them motivated, which ultimately benefits of Being ISO 9001 Certified for your business.

ISO 9001 Requirements

The structure of ISO 9001 consists of 10 sections, out of which the first three are introductory in nature, whereas the last seven specifies the requirements of QMS, against which ISO 9001 certification performed.

Clause 4: Context of the organization – This section deals with understanding the uniqueness of your organization and customizing ISO 9001 in order to implement a QMS that is most suitable for you.

Clause 5: Leadership – It underlines the importance of top management in implementation of QMS by proper risk assessment, planning actions, and assigning roles and responsibilities to the relevant staff.

Clause 6: Planning – through analysis of the risks and opportunities, the top management is expected to design a plan that enlists the quality objectives for your organization.

Clause 7: Support – It points out all the resources, such as human resources, infrastructure, and others that are required for an effective QMS. This section also deals with the requirements around competence, awareness, communication, and controlling documented information.

Clause 8: Operation – this section deals with the execution part of the planning for QMS. It includes product requirements review, keeping a check on external providers, reviewing the product before release, and so on.

Clause 9: Performance evaluation – This section deals with the ways by which you can ensure an effective functioning of your QMS. It involves regular management reviews, monitoring and measurement techniques, etc.

Clause 10: Improvement – this section ensures that your QMS is upgraded and able to meet the current market requirements. It involves regular reviews to identify gaps and performing corrective actions to close those gaps for continual improvement

Stage One (documentation review) – At this stage, the auditors from the certification body verifies that your documentation meets the requirements of ISO 9001.

Stage Two (main audit) – In this stage, the realities of your processes are matched with your statements in the documentation for their compliance to the requirements of ISO 9001 standard.

the certification process goes further. Click here to view the next steps to the ISO certification process

Make Sure

Quality manual procedures need to be preferably performed by the company, noncompliance of procedure can result in losing the certificate (quality manual is different form system procedure can be given to customer on demand)

Work instruction manual includes step by step carrying out of procedures, forms, quality records, specification, master lists, need to be properly maintained and if not it may become a major problem in ISO 9001 implementation

Quality management principles is a comprehensive and fundamental rule/belief, of leading grand operations of an organization, aimed at consciously improving performance over the long term by focusing on customer while addressing the needs of all other stakeholders

Is ISO 9001 Certification mandatory or a legal requirement?

Since ISO 9001 certification is proof of your commitment to the quality of your products or services, it becomes a priority for your clients to do business with you. Also, you may find those suppliers trustworthy who are certified with ISO 9001. Thus, ISO 9001 certification is not a mandatory requirement, but it sure is a preferable one. In addition to that, ISO 9001 is also not a legal requirement. In fact, there are many standards, based on ISO 9001, for the implementation of Quality Management systems.

Organizations of any size or sector of operation can apply for ISO 9001 certification. The cost of obtaining this certificate varies from organization to organization, based upon the strength of their workforce, the complexity of their processes, and many other factors. Implementing a QMS on the basis of ISO 9001 may seem like a difficult task, but with proper guidance, it becomes easier, in addition, that, ISO 9001 certification might seem challenging to many, but with an experienced certification body, like SIS Certifications, the process of certification can be made hassle-free.

ISO 9001 Frequently Asked Questions about Quality Management System (QMS)

Question : What is the latest version of ISO 9001 Certification?

Answer : The latest version of ISO 9001 Certification is ISO 9001:2015 Certification, published in the month of September 2015. It basically aims to meet and enhance customers’ and other stakeholders’ satisfaction through effective application of the processes and also any organization regardless of its type, size, or products and services it provides, can apply for it.

Question : What is the aim of ISO 9001 Certification?

Answer : ISO 9001 Certification is a globally recognized standard for Quality Management Systems (QMS) which basically aims to cut costs and optimize all the processes operating in your organization and helps your organization to meet all the requirements of the customers and other stakeholders.

Question : How can I apply for ISO 9001:2015 for my company for quality?

Answer: First of all, you need to choose an internationally accredited certification body meeting all the requirements of IAS Accreditation such as SIS CERTIFICATIONS. Then an application shall be created, where all the rights and obligations will be included and will be confidential between both the applicants and the registrar. After that, the ISO auditor will review the relevant documentation related to various procedures followed in your organization. The auditors will identify gaps, and if there are any gaps you have to prepare an action plan in order to remove these gaps. Then, there will be initial certification audits which will be followed by: Stage I – where the auditors will check the changes made in your organization according to requirements. Stage II – where the auditor will do their final audit for the certification. As the auditors will approve all your processes then they will make a report and send it to the registrar. They will then grant you the ISO 9001:2015 certification.

Question : Is ISO 9001 certification right for me? / Why become ISO 9001 certified?

Answer: Having an ISO 9001 certification is important for any organization because it helps you to lower your cost amount, maximize your profits ability in the organization. The benefit of a quality management system also helps you to earn new customers and retain those customers for a long period.

Question : How do I maintain ISO 9001 certification?

Answer : Just because you received an ISO 9001 certification, your task is not complete. For proper functioning of the management system, you need to maintain the ISO 9001 certification. For that, your company has to continually undergo an annual surveillance audit for the period of three years. After completion of the validity period, you need to get recertified.

Question : How long is an ISO 9001 certificate valid for?

Answer : Basically, an ISO Certificate is valid for three years. And during this time period of three years, a surveillance audit is conducted on an annual basis to ensure that ISO quality standards are being maintained by the organization.

Question : How much does it cost for ISO 9001 certification?

Answer : The cost of ISO 9001 certification varies from one organization to another. Basically, when you approach an internationally accredited certifying body for ISO Certification and they approve your management systems and all your processes, they will then quote an amount for the certificate. Moreover, the cost for achieving ISO certification depends mostly on your organization, such as the no. of employees in your organization, No. of branches your organization has, and many more.

Question : How can I get an ISO 9001 certificate?

Answer : Achieving ISO 9001 Certification is not a big deal in today’s upgraded systems. The basic steps to become ISO 9001 Certified are as firstly, you need to prepare all the relevant information about your company in a systematized way (It is always best and safe to hire a legal consultant). secondly, you need to document all the relevant information about your business. thirdly, you have to implement all the documented information in your organization. Fourthly, get ready for the internal audits which are performed first during the certification process and then periodically after. Lastly, if the certifying body approves your management system then you will be awarded the required ISO standard.