considered before choosing the ISO certification body, and most importantly the process to obtain the ISO certification.

Introduction to ISO certification

Certifying to ISO will surely bring lots of benefits to the internal management as well as it lets you outshine in the global market place. International Organization for standardization (ISO) is an independent, non-governmental organization, famous for developing and publishing international standards that help businesses in various sectors.

These voluntary standards provide requirements, specifications or guidelines to promote an organization’s management system performance and process efficiency.
Achieving ISO certification is only mandatory for the companies that require this certification by law or contractually. Otherwise, it’s your choice to establish the productive performance of your business through ISO Certification. Whatever the case, ISO certification helps an organization to demonstrate its ability in quality performance and the risks it takes to deliver high-quality products and services.

For software companies, the ISO certification ensures the system in place to provide exceptional quality of services to the customers/clients. It is a declaration of the business owners that their products are made by following the standardized requirements and best practices. However, obtaining the ISO certification supports a software company to ensure continual improvement in technology, product development and distribution of services.

Which ISO certification body is best?

To obtain positive results and experience the immersive benefits of the ISO certification, it is necessary for the company to select the right ISO certification body. What is a certification body? It is an independent body which is accredited for issuing certificates. The certification body evaluates the company’s involvement in ISO implementation and provides the requested ISO certificate. This certificate enhances the corporate image of your business and brings global recognition. So, before you start your journey with a certification body, you should verify certain qualifications such as:
• Check for accreditation
Accreditation is important for the certification body. The organization which provides ISO certification should get accredited by the accreditation body in their country or by the international accreditation body. Achieving the certification from the accredited certification body helps you to gain the confidence of the clients/stakeholders/business partners.
• Positive reputation
ISO certification not only enhances the process efficiency but also increases the confidence of the customers to trust in your business process and system. So, it is a must to select a reputed certification body to improve customer loyalty. Check which certification body is used by your business partners or competitors. It will develop your business image and get recognized easily by potential customers.
• Experienced auditors
It will be helpful if the certification body and the auditors have proven experience in the same process applied by your organization.
• Specialization
Make sure you have chosen the right one by verifying whether they provide certification for the scope you are applied. This will help you implement the requirements of your management system effectively in all phases.
• ISO certification cost
The cost of ISO certification is also an important factor. Each penny gives effective value for the certification you have achieved. The cost varies based on the reputation as well as the brand image of certification body. It also depends on the scope of the certification, your management system process, number of employees, etc.

Process to obtain ISO certification
1. Documentation
Prepare documents prior to the certification audit. Collect the record of your organization’s process, product’s software, distribution process, people involved in each project, etc. This helps you find the required areas which need further implementation.
2. Scope of the certification
Request a proposal to certification body. This proposal should describe the operational process of your organization. It helps the certification body to develop a plan to perform the audit.
3. Implementation process
• Preparation
Develop your management system in compliance with the requirements of the ISO standard. Drive betterment in the operational process, products and services by using the specification mentioned in the ISO standard copy.
• Awareness Training
Educate your organization’s employees who are involved in the implementation process. They should be professionals who have sufficient knowledge about your organization’s processes and scope of the applied certification. Also, it will be beneficial if you train the other employees about ISO standards and its role in the achievement of your organization’s goals and objectives.
4. Gap analysis/internal audit
You can easily find the flaws and errors in the implementation process by conducting the gap analysis and internal audits. The report of the internal audit helps you identify the parts that need betterment. Rectify them effectively before the certification audit. This internal can be managed by the internal auditors (who have better knowledge in the specific management system) in your organization.
5. ISO certification audit
The certification body will send a proposal which contains the cost and other necessary terms and conditions of them. If you accept their proposal, the certification audit will be performed by their proficient auditing team.
• Stage 1 audit
In this readiness audit, the documentation is evaluated by the team of auditors based on the proposal given by your organization. If there are any deviations, the auditing team will provide a deviation report with the report. Your business should develop those non-conformities before the stage 2 audit.
• Stage 2 audit
The effective implementation of ISO standards is verified in this audit. The auditing team will fully evaluate the requirements in compliance with ISO criteria. If your organization fulfilled all the specifications, the certificate will be issued.
6. Surveillance audit
The initial certification provided by the certification body is valid for 3 years. The surveillance audit will be conducted once in every 12 months until the validity of the initial certification is over. The surveillance audit and recertification audit does not include stage 1 and stage 2 process.
7. Re-certification audit
After the validity of the initial certification, the recertification audit process will begin to maintain the certificate.

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