1. What is ISO?
2. What is ISO 9000?
3. Why should my organization implement ISO 9000?
4. How does the ISO 9000 family of standards work?
5. What's the difference between a Lead Auditor and an Internal Auditor?
6. What's the difference between ISO 9000 and Business Process Improvement?
7. How many countries use ISO 9000?
8. One of my suppliers has an ISO 9000 certificate from a body that does not appear on the list of accredited Certification Bodies - is it legal?
1. What is ISO?
ISO (International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards bodies, at present comprising 140 members, one in each country. The object of ISO is to promote the development of standardization and related activities in the world with a view to facilitating international exchange of goods and services, and to developing cooperation in the spheres of intellectual, scientific, technological and economic activity. The results of ISO technical work are published as International Standards.
The ISO 9000 family of standards represents an international consensus on good management practices with the aim of ensuring that the organization can time and time again deliver the product or services that meet the client's quality requirements. These good practices have been distilled into a set of standardized requirements for a quality management system, regardless of what your organization does, its size, or whether it's in the private, or public sector.
3. Why should my organization implement ISO 9000?
To keep customers - and to keep them satisfied - your product (which may, in fact, be a service) needs to meet their requirements. ISO 9000 provides a tried and tested framework for taking a systematic approach to managing your business processes (your organization's activities) so that they consistently turn out product conforming to the customer's expectations. And that means consistently happy customers!
Not only will ISO 9000 help meet customer requirements, it will enhance your company's image, reduce risk, and provide a basis for quality improvement. If you export to Europe, registration will help you comply with European Union directives.
4. How does the ISO 9000 family of standards work?
The requirements for a quality system have been standardized - but most of us like to think our business is unique. So how does ISO 9000 allow for the diversity of say, on the one hand, a "Mr. and Mrs." enterprise, and on the other, to a multinational manufacturing company with service components, or a public utility, or a government administration?
The answer is that ISO 9000 lays down what requirements your quality system must meet, but does not dictate how they should be met in your organization - which leaves great scope and flexibility for implementation in different business sectors and business cultures...as well as different national cultures.
5. What's the difference between a Lead and an Internal Auditor?
Lead Auditors are trained to audit both suppliers and facilities outside their own organizations and elements within their own organization. Internal Auditors are trained to audit their company's internal systems only.
6. What's the difference between ISO 9000 and Business Process Improvement?
The difference is that Business Process Improvement deals with the overall business systems of an organization, and can include an ISO 9000 quality management system. Business Process Improvement is a natural next step after ISO 9000 implementation.
7. How many countries use ISO 9000?
150 countries use ISO 9000. More precisely, as of December 31, 1999, ISO 9000 certificates were issued in 150 countries. This according to ISO's Ninth Annual Survey of ISO 9000 and ISO 14000 Certificates (Section 3.2). Since there are about 191 countries in the world, this means that about 78% of all countries have, to some extent, accepted the ISO 9000 Standard.
8. One of my suppliers has an ISO 9000 certificate from a body that does not appear on the list of accredited Certification Bodies - is it legal?
UKAS is aware of the existence of non-UKAS accredited certification bodies offering ISO 9000 certification. However it is not mandatory for certification bodies to seek UKAS accreditation.
UKAS is unable to comment on the way in which the non-UKAS accredited bodies carry out their certification activities since UKAS has not assessed or accredited those bodies. UKAS accredited CBs are required to meet internationally agreed criteria such as ISO Guide 62 and are, therefore, not allowed to offer consultancy, assessment and certification as a "one-stop shop" package. They are also required to carry out a contract review with their potential clients to ensure that they are able to supply the certification that is required by them.
Only UKAS accredited CBs and their certificated organisations are allowed to make use of the relevant UKAS accreditation marks incorporating the tick and royal crown.
