ISO 9001 is sometimes referred to as the...

Why should you have a quality management system according to ISO 9001?

Win contracts and attract new customers! Requirements for quality management systems according to ISO 9001 are found, among other places, in public procurement. The chance of winning a public procurement increases significantly if you have a quality certification or a quality management system in place.

Many companies also consider a quality management system and quality certification according to ISO 9001 as a minimum requirement to hire a supplier.

Increase profitability! By implementing and working according to the ISO 9001 quality management system, you not only get a structured way of working, but you also get tools to:

Prevent complaints through documented quality controls.
Report and address internal and external deficiencies (deviations), with the aim of ensuring they do not recur.
Monitor customer satisfaction and process efficiency.
Together, these elements contribute to reducing the company\'s quality deficiencies and increasing customer satisfaction, thus improving profitability.

Get better organization! A quality management system also means that you get better organization and clarity, as it becomes clearer who is responsible for what. You can also gain increased control over:

inspections, maintenance, and servicing of equipment
employees\' authorizations and skills
and more.

A quality management system includes that daily work should be directed to:

meet the requirements set by stakeholders
prevent risks from a quality and business perspective.

To ensure that daily work functions as intended, support is needed in the form of:

quality policy and quality objectives
responsibilities and authorities allocated within the organization
competent employees
effective communication, both internally and externally
deviation management to capture internal and external deficiencies
monitoring of customer satisfaction and key figures for processes
management review – a meeting where the company\'s management evaluates how the quality work is progressing and, if necessary, makes decisions to address deficiencies.

Common mistakes when implementing ISO 9001 certification in your company or organization as a management system include:

Starting from the structure of the standard – Instead, it is advisable to start from the flow of your business, then your quality management system will be built according to your company.
Describing how you want to work rather than how you work.
Becoming too detailed – Remember that what you commit to do in the management system, you must be able to show that you are doing! That is, be detailed only where there is a serious quality risk or stakeholder requirement.
Trying to do everything at once – Think of it as renovating a house, one room (process) at a time. Otherwise, you will never finish!
Being time-optimistic and thinking you can manage the implementation parallel to the regular work.

How can we help?
Our HSE and ISO consultants can assist with:

Conducting a GAP analysis to identify any shortcomings in the company\'s existing quality management system.
Developing and implementing a quality management system according to ISO 9001.
Providing support in daily quality work.
Conducting internal audits.
Training the company\'s internal auditors in audit methodologies or training the management on their responsibilities in quality work.

How does the certification process work?
Certification is carried out by an accredited certification body and the certification process occurs in two stages.

Stage 1: In the first certification stage, the focus is usually on documentation and the management\'s responsibility in the management system. In other words, stakeholder analysis, risk and opportunities analysis, quality policy, quality objectives, deviation management, supplier assessment and evaluation, internal audit work, distribution of responsibilities and authorities, competence development, management review, etc., will be revised. The aim of the audit is to check if there is a quality management system in place that is good enough (i.e., meets the requirements of ISO 9001) to obtain a certificate.

Stage 2: In the second certification stage, the certification auditor will review whether the quality management system is implemented in daily work, i.e., that daily work follows the routines in the management system and meets the requirements of the ISO 9001 standard.

If the certification auditor discovers deficiencies in the management system or in the daily work, they will report deviations. Deviations from stage 1 must be corrected before the stage 2 audit, and deviations from stage 2 must be corrected, and the corrective actions must be approved by the auditor before you can obtain the certificate.

Subsequently, the certification body will conduct audits on the company at least annually. The frequency depends, among other things, on the size of the company.

What happens after ISO 9001 certification?
Many people usually relax after obtaining their ISO 9001 certification, but that is when the actual quality work begins. You must continue to follow the procedures described in your quality management system