ISO 9001 is the international standard for a quality management system (“QMS”). In order to be certified to the ISO 9001 standard, a company must follow the requirements set forth in the ISO 9001 Standard. The standard is used by organizations to demonstrate their ability to consistently provide products and services that meet customer and regulatory requirements and to demonstrate continuous improvement.
An ISO 9001 Quality Management System (QMS) will help you streamline your processes, reduce errors, free up valuable management time, and improve internal communications. Companies adopting this approach benefit from increased employee morale, improved customer retention, and healthier revenues.
In short, through certification to ISO 9001, you demonstrate that your organization is customer-focused and committed to delivering high-quality services.
Here are the top benefits of using the ISO 9001 framework:
- Increased efficiency: by following industry best-practice and focusing on the quality you can reduce costs.
- Increased revenue: through the reputation of ISO 9001 you can win more tenders and contracts, and by being more efficient you will also retain more customers and experience more repeat customers.
- Higher levels of customer satisfaction: by understanding your customers’ needs and reducing errors you increase customer confidence in your ability to deliver products and services.
- Improved supplier relationships: the certification ensures best-practice processes are in place which can contribute to more efficient supply chains, meaning certification increases their confidence in your processes.
- Improved employee morale: by improving internal communications you ensure everyone works to one agenda.
What are the benefits of certification?
The ISO 9001:2015 Quality Management System specifies what your organization needs to do:
- To provide products and services that consistently meet customers’ needs
- To enhance customer satisfaction through a process of continual improvement
- To ensure it conforms with all applicable statutory and regulatory requirements
Becoming certified with ISO 9001:2015 can provide many benefits, both for your organization and your customers.
Benefits of ISO 9001 for your organization
- Increased efficiency – Implement processes and procedures which are based on a quality focus.
- Increased revenue – win more contracts and tenders, whilst streamlining your processes and identifying opportunities for cost savings.
- Greater employee morale – by ensuring that all employees are working to one agenda you can reduce errors and increase productivity.
- International recognition – recognized in approximately 188 countries, ISO 9001 can help you to access international trade.
- Factual approach to decision making – ensure the business decisions you make are beneficial long term by basing them on facts.
- Better supplier relationships – business has credibility through the reputation of ISO 9001, providing suppliers with greater confidence in what you do.
- Improved record keeping – as with any management system, ISO 9001 ensures you document your processes from start to finish. Helping you to handle customer complaints and improve process efficiency.
- Improved customer satisfaction – ensure you have a feedback system in place that will help you to understand your customer’s needs, identify areas for improvement and reduce wasted resources.
- Continuous improvement – using non-conformity reporting and trend analysis, you can spot areas for improvement and stay ahead of the competition.
Benefits of ISO 9001 for your customers
- Improved quality of service – this also comes with the benefit of increased on-time delivery
- Reduced need for returns – because issues are identified and resolved quicker, often without the customer knowing
- Assurance of service – certification acts as proof that the organization provides consistent, reliable, and fit-for-purpose solutions
- Improved experience – improving the relationship between customers/stakeholders and the organization will create a better customer experience and increase the chances of the customer returning again in the future.
