Are you interested in improving the quality management in your organization and becoming more effective? Realizing an ISO 9001 certification might be the answer. This is an ISO-based international standard that has been developed for enhancing the delivery of quality products and services through the implementation of the Quality Management System (QMS).
In this blog, we will learn in detail how to get ISO 9001 certification. You will receive information on what you need to do, plus additional tips and points to be aware of to help you smoothly navigate this important certification.
Want An ISO 9001 Certification For Your Business? Follow The Steps For Success!
Procuring ISO 9001 demands several processes, which include the following: ISO 9001 is an International Organization for Standardization, which is a QMS—a quality control standard—under which the organization garners certification that the products of a company or services offered are of certain quality.
Here's a general guide on how to get ISO 9001 certification:
Understand ISO 9001 Requirements: become conversant with the contents of the ISO 9001 standard, with an emphasis on the requirements of an organisation’s QMS. Analyze the clauses like leadership, planning, operation, performance evaluation & improvement.
Gap Analysis: The company should conduct a checklist to establish how near it is to implementing ISO 9001 by comparing the company’s practices and procedures against the provisions of ISO 9001:2008. This gap analysis makes it easier for you to tell what has to be done to meet the given standard.
Develop a QMS: Build and detail the current quality management system according to ISO 9001 guidelines. This also covers quality policy, quality objectives, quality process control, quality responsibility and quality performance measures.
Implement the QMS: Implement the QMS across your organization, giving training to your staff and making sure they are informed of the processes carrying out the documented procedure. Take proper records and report its performance.
Internal Audits and Management Review: It is necessary to establish internal audits to verify the company’s compliance and reveal necessities for optimization. All these should also be conducted on a regular management review with the aim of ascertaining whether the QMS has been implemented and further modified as necessary.
Certification Audit: Seek the services of an accredited certification body to undertake the third-party assessment. If the QMS and the elements of the organization adhere to the requirements of the ISO 9001 standard, the organization will be certified. It also meant that the certification body will be performing surveillance audits frequently in order to check compliance.
Corrective Actions: When the internal and certification audits are done, if there is any nonconformity, then correct these by developing corrective action plans. This implies constant enhancement of your QMS and meets the various issues considered as you audit your organization.
Continuous Improvement and Maintenance: Certification is not an end-point permanently to be complacent with your certification. Monitor performance on a regular basis to make necessary changes; periodically publish changes to the QMS. The certification body will also conduct surveillance audits to ensure that your organization remains compliant in the future.
Conclusion
All in all, we learned in detail on how to get ISO 9001 certification and getting an approval of ISO 9001 means understanding the requirements of the standard, designing and implementing QMS, carrying out audits and nonconformity, and hence focusing on continual improvement of the system and attaining the company’s conformity.
Searching for a consulting agency that would meet your needs and help you get ISO 9001 certification? KSQA provides clients with contacts to experienced consultants who are always ready to help carry out certification from the initial stages, such as the gap analysis, to the final ones, such as the audits. Call us today!
