A Guide to ISO 9001 in the workplace

ISO 9001 demonstrates your commitment to quality. But that’s not all – the Standard covers many areas that bring even more benefits for your businesses! 

From streamlined processes, and reductions in errors, to increased efficiency and productivity across your business – the benefits are endless. If you want to grow your business and win new business, ISO 9001 could be a great option for you. 

In this extensive ISO 9001 guide, we’ll cover all there is to know about ISO 9001, with a detailed look at how it benefits your business, the different requirements for various sectors and how the Standard has evolved from its initial inception. 

So, sit back, relax and explore our ISO 9001 guide to find out just why ISO 9001 certification is certainly worth considering!

Why is ISO 9001 important?

So, what’s the importance of this Standard for businesses and why is it such a coveted certification for organisations to demonstrate? Quite simply, its global recognition and the framework contained within the Standard’s criteria means it provides the framework to ensure consistency, quality and efficiency across all areas of your business. 

By demonstrating your commitment to quality, there are many benefits your business can achieve with ISO 9001 certification including: 

• Boosting your profits and cutting costs.
• Enhancing the reputation of your organisation. 
• Increased business opportunities. 
• A customer base that trusts your business and is satisfied. 

With the ISO 9001 Standard, your business will demonstrate continual improvement across all areas of the organisation, increasing the quality of your service offering and helping you to meet conformance. 

Explore more about the benefits of ISO 9001 and check out our dedicated blog post to find out why ISO 9001 is important.

Finding and resolving ISO 9001 non-conformance issues

Carrying out corrective action is essential to prevent non-conformance issues. A non-conformance is an issue with a process or fault in the supply chain. Depending on the nature of the non-conformance, it can lead to a loss of faith in your business and damage your brand reputation. Therefore, it’s important to make sure the non-conformity is reported and corrective action is put in place. 

Examples of non-conformances can include: 

• Ineffective risk assessments
• A drop in quality standards for processes
• Failure to document corrective actions properly

Failure to address non-conformances can negatively impact your business. Want to find out more about how to find and resolve non-conformities? Then check out our dedicated blog post below. 

5 steps to finding and resolving ISO 9001 non-conformities

Combining ISO 9001 with other quality management systems

ISO 9001 is the world’s most comprehensive quality management system. Recognised globally as the go-to Standard to provide businesses with a platform to ensure quality across your service offering. ISO documentation is essential to the success of a quality management system, as it provides a basis of evidence and helps meet quality assurance standards. 

Here’s a brief overview of some of the ISO 9001 framework: 

• Setting and achieving objectives aligned with quality standards. 
• Ensuring staff are trained and aware of the ISO 9001 framework. 
• Control of documentation, records and activities within the business. 
• Monitoring and measuring quality performance. 

Gaining ISO 9001 certification or adding it to an existing quality management system that your business already holds provides many benefits for businesses. Other ISO certifications can help your business protect information security, comply with environmental standards and improve Health & Safety across your organisation. These include: 

• ISO 14001 – Environmental Management
• ISO 45001 – Occupational Health & Safety 
• ISO 27001 – Information Security Management

Take a look at how ISO 9001 compares with other existing quality management systems in our blog post below. 

ISO 9001 vs other Quality Management Systems

The evolution of ISO 9001

The ISO 9001 Standard has had several revisions since its inception, with the criteria of the framework evolving to align with changes in business operations and quality standards. It’s important to recognise the journey of ISO 9001, and how it helps inform the framework that we see today across many sectors and organisations. 

The initial ISO 9001:1987 Standard focused heavily on specific sectors, mostly businesses from the development, production and servicing sectors amongst others. Other ISO Standards were subsequently formed and released, with the major overhaul occurring in 2000 when a singular framework was established. Manual processes which were often convoluted and extensive were replaced by streamlined criteria that focused on how documentation would be produced and what it would cover. 

Since then, the ISO 9001 Standard has evolved even further to the latest version ISO 9001:2015. This revision adopted a new structure which makes it easier to integrate multiple management systems. Check out our blog post for a detailed history of ISO 9001.

Why manufacturers should consider ISO 9001

Quality is an important area for all sectors and businesses, but if your business sits within the manufacturing industry, then quality is arguably the most important aspect that defines your organisation. Errors tend to be costly and hard to rectify, so ensuring high quality across the supply chain is essential to make sure your customer base remains satisfied and your reputation doesn’t take a hit. 

However, with ISO 9001 certification, thorough due diligence can be achieved and maintained to highlight any inefficiencies across the production line. Any non-conformities can be highlighted and recorded to help meet the established requirements for efficiency. 

It’s essential for manufacturers to achieve consistency and quality to maintain the high standards customers expect. A strong production line equals healthy revenues and increases profits, which only helps to elevate the standing of your business in the short and long term. 

Discover more reasons why manufacturers should get ISO 9001 in our blog article.

ISO 9001 for recruitment agencies

Competition in the recruitment industry is fierce, with a huge number of recruitment agencies contributing to a well-populated sector where exploiting any opportunity is key to standing out. Your recruitment business needs to demonstrate high standards and consistent quality across its operations in order to increase reach and attract large organisations that employ lots of people. 

ISO 9001 offers the chance for recruitment agencies to demonstrate trust and commitment to these areas. As a recruitment business, there are likely to be areas within the Standard that you already adhere to, but further scrutiny of processes and procedures will only help to raise the level of quality and showcase to big businesses and people looking for work that your business is reputable. 

Want further information on how ISO 9001 can help your recruitment business stand out from the crowd? Then check our blog post on ISO 9001 for recruitment agencies.

ISO 9001 for sole traders

As ISO 9001 has evolved, the type of business it can help has too. A business of any size or type can become certified and reap the rewards, and that includes sole trade businesses. 

As a sole trader, you can implement ISO 9001 and start to understand the whole of your business better, highlighting areas that are strong to maintain the standards you have set and looking at any areas that could be improved. 

You can benefit from: 

• Better understanding of your business. 
• Increase customer trust. 
• Correct any non-conformities to improve performance. 
• Expand into new markets. 
• Scale your business through growth. 

Partnering with a company like Citation ISO Certification can help your business grow beyond what you imagined. If you’d like some further information on how ISO 9001 can help sole traders, then why not browse our dedicated blog post here?

ISO 9001 processes, procedures and work instructions

It can be difficult to keep track of the many different processes and procedures that form the framework of your quality management system. As outlined in ISO 9001:2015, effective document control is the best way to ensure all processes and procedures are clearly outlined and organised. It’s also a safe way to ensure data is protected and the expectations of customers are met. 

The hierarchical structure of ISO 9001 documentation is made up of three elements that all inform each other to ensure effective document control. These are known as processes, procedures and work instructions. Here’s a brief overview:

• Processes – A series of steps outlining what is required and the reasons why. 
• Procedures – Details how a process should be carried out and why. 
• Work instructions – A specific set of instructions that communicate how a particular task should be performed. 

There’s flexibility as to how you can implement the above without going against the mandate of ISO 9001. We also have a helpful article that goes into lots more detail about ISO 9001 processes, procedures and work instructions.

Get certified for ISO 9001 with our help

If you’re looking at gaining ISO 9001 Certification, then we’re on hand to help your business. With expert, professional guidance from our ISO 9001 auditors and consultants, we’ll work with you to create an insightful gap analysis report that identifies your existing processes and procedures and how they match up with the ISO 9001 Standard. 

You’ll also gain instant access to our bespoke online management platform, Atlas ISO, which provides you with all the tools you need to certify to ISO 9001. 

We offer a simple, cost-effective solution, and as one of the UK’s leading ISO certification bodies, we’re experienced in helping businesses improve quality and achieve consistency across your processes. 

So, if all this sounds beneficial for your business, then why not request a quote today, or contact our friendly, professional team directly at 0333 344 3646? Partner with Citation ISO Certification and get your business ISO-certified!