Are you currently searching for a reliable ISO 9001 certification consultant? Before randomly taking references and visiting online forums, make sure you know what to look for in a professional. The ISO 9001 is a globally recognized standard for quality management systems. The purpose of the certification is to enable a company to deliver quality products&services in order to meet customer expectations consistently. The best way to achieve this is by hiring consultants who make the gap analysis, audit, and implementation procedures easy.
Today, more than 80% of internet users hire a professional online. Only a few consider conducting a thorough background search before appointing a service provider. ISO certification is a critical criterion for business growth. Especially, when most organizations cannot afford to make errors while implementing the ISO 9001-mandated quality management system. To get reliable assistance, one must check whether their consultant is a certified agent or not. There are three certificates, an ISO consultant must have possess with the system implementation methodology.
What are the three certificates a consultant must have?
Experience makes a professional perfect. It adds knowledge, sharpens the existing, and increases the comprehensive abilities of the experts. To conduct the certification process, a consultant must be proficient in conducting analysis, audits, and implementation. The main responsibilities of an ISO consultant are:
- Conducting gap detection analysis to identify flaws in the present system and recommend strategies accordingly
- Simplifying the clauses and legal requirements for implementing a quality assurance and control system
- Offering support to the management for meeting all the requirements of the standard
- Conducting an internal audit to compare the performance with the investment
- Organizing review meetings to discuss the existing issues and taking corrective measures for constant improvement
Each of these steps are crucial for a systematic completion of an ISO certification. To perform these analyses and audits, certification in the following three aspects is necessary.
- Project management – Experience in project management is necessity as it increases a professional’s ability to understand different systems and their operational abilities. Each project that is completed will enhance a professional’s time-management, communication, and problem-solving skills too. To support a company’s efforts to get certified by an ISO standard consultant, one should have an abundance of knowledge and the expertise to handle projects and complete them within the deadline.
- Audit – ISO certification is incomplete without conducting audits. Your appointed individual must be a certified auditor who has been part of audit teams. He/she should have experience in organizing audits and review meetings for different companies. The consultant must have worked as an audit specialist under a reputed authority for a decent amount of time. Unless he/she cannot possess relevant market knowledge.
- Quality assurance system implementation – Probably, the most important one is the experience of implementing a quality assurance system. Each expert must have experience in leading teams for system modification or implementation. Without this certificate, it is recommended not to consider a service provider eligible on the basis of reliability.
Bottom line
To know whether a consultant has all these qualities, one should check the professional’s portfolio. Another way is to evaluate customer feedback given on the websites or pages of the shortlisted ISO 9001 certification consultants. It is always recommended to invest money in certified professionals rather than relying on randomly found professionals online.
