Organizations and companies often want to get certified to ISO’s management system standards (for example ISO 9001 or ISO 14001) although certification is not a requirement. The best reason for wanting to implement these standards is to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of company operations.

A company may decide to seek certification for many reasons, as certification may:

• be a contractual or regulatory requirement
• be necessary to meet customer preferences
• fall within the context of a risk management programme, and
• help motivate staff by setting a clear goal for the development of its management system.

ISO does not perform certification

ISO develops International Standards, including management system standards such as ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 31000. However, it is not involved in the certification to any of the standards it develops. Certification is performed by external certification bodies, which are largely private. Therefore a company or organization cannot be certified by ISO.

When a company or organization is certified to an ISO standard they will receive a certificate from the certification body. Even though the name of the ISO standard appears on this certificate, it is not ISO that has issued it.

Although ISO does not perform certification, its Committee on Conformity Assessment (CASCO) has produced a number of standards that relate to the certification process. The voluntary criteria contained in these publications are an international consensus on good practice relating to certification. Companies and organizations usually operate their certification activities in accordance with these international standard.

Choosing a certification body

When choosing a certification body it is a good idea to:

• evaluate several certification bodies
• bear in mind that the cheapest could be more costly in the long run if its auditing is below standard
• ask whether the certification body implements ISO/IEC 17021:2011, Conformity assessment –Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification management systems, and
• ask whether the body is accredited. Accreditation is not an obligation and if an organization is not accredited it does not necessarily mean it is not reputable. Nonetheless, accreditation remains an independent confirmation of competence. Accredited certification bodies can be identified by contacting the national accreditation body in your country.