ISO standards enable businesses and organizations to provide high-quality services and products that adhere to inquiry requirements. The task of ensuring that your company adheres to specific standards is one that require professionalism. Hence, selecting the right ISO Consultant is a critical decision that will determine how smoothly and efficiently your certification process will go.
The following factors should be considered when selecting ISO Consultants:
- Customized service
A good ISO consultant will help to prepare documentation that is tailored specifically to the specific industry and company undertaking the project instead of coming with a template and copy paste implementations from one organization to the next one. The consultant will ensure that the organization’s team is trained and understands the processes put in place to implement ISO. Hence, before hiring a consultant, it is important to hold a meeting to discuss and understand the company’s specific needs, scope and complexity to ensure the management system for the organization is set up for success. - Goal oriented
ISO projects typically have two goals: become certified or adopt ISO. At the end of the day, organisations that want to be certified are only interested in a piece of paper. Organizations that adopt ISO want to ensure that everything is in order and that the business is fully immersed in the ISO regulations.
The consultant should understand the objective that the organization has and should be willing to commit the time and effort to deliver a successful project to client within the available timeframe and budget. One more important point is that consultant should be able to explain to client using simple layman terms instead of using industry language so that clients have a clearer understanding and are more likely to adapt the process.
- Cost and timelines
The cost of ISO consultancy services varies depending on your organization’s size, implementation requirements, employee cooperation level, and timeline. Smaller businesses may take a few months to achieve certification and thus incur a lower cost. Larger companies and those that choose to implement ISO training from scratch may find that the process takes longer and is more expensive.
When looking for the best ISO organisation, keep in mind the saying “you get what you pay for”. Quality ISO projects do not come cheap as all the process take time and effort. If the organisation wants to go cheap, there are options, but those options do not always guarantee long-term success. When hiring a consultant, organisations must be realistic about the costs of adopting ISO, but they must also consider factors other than budget and timeline.
- Knowledge and Expertise
When choosing a consultant for the implementation of a standard in your organisation, consider their knowledge of the fundamentals of ISO Standards, specific requirements, common mistakes they have seen in their previous consulting experience, documentation support, and so on, because you will need to rely on them to be the ISO expert so you can remain the expert on your organization.
Conclusion:
Lastly, when selecting an ISO consultant, it is fundamental to consider the big picture. Factors as mentioned above need to be taken into consideration to ensure the desired results can be delivered to the company.
