Can I implement ISO 9001 without a consultant?

Yes, it is absolutely possible to implement ISO 9001 in your organisation without the help of a consultant. However, here comes the mind blowing fact that might change your decision to hire a consultant- there is no guarantee about the efficiency of your Quality Management System (QMS) if you implement ISO 9001 on your own. In this article, we will talk about why hiring an ISO 9001 consultant is beneficial for you and your business.

Who is an ISO 9001 consultant?

Simply put, an ISO 9001 consultant is an individual who has undergone specific training in the development of a QMS as per the requirements of ISO 9001. This individual also has real-life experience of implementing, troubleshooting, modifying and evaluating QMS in different organisations. Therefore, it would not be wrong to call them experts of quality management and ISO 9001 requirements.

Why should you hire an ISO 9001 consultant?

It all boils down to expertise. If you, as a business owner, are familiar with the requirements of ISO 9001, then you will have no trouble understanding the clauses and selecting the ones that are relevant to your organisation. However, if you are a novice, you will find the same task excruciatingly painful.

Similarly, if you are familiar with quality management principles, you will be able to build a QMS that focuses on the needs of customers, has a lean approach and is continually improving. Unfortunately, without the real-world experience, your QMS will have rudimentary functionality.

1.Save time and effort

Hence, if we have to summarise why you should hire an ISO consultant, it can be said that an ISO 9001 consultant will save you precious time and effort, allowing you to achieve first-time compliance. Without their expertise, the certification process, especially aligning the documents and identifying hidden non-conformances, can become time consuming as well as overwhelming.

2. Professional performance

In addition, advocates of hiring ISO 9001 consultants also push forward another compelling argument. They say that even if business owners have the expertise or experience with ISO 9001, they should still hire an ISO 9001 consultant, as it helps conserve energy.

See, as a business owner, you are already have to juggle a lot. It makes no sense to focus your energy on a certification process that can easily be delegated to someone with expertise. Your energy is better utilised in envisioning your future aspirations.

3. Experience identifying opportunities

Lastly, the advocates of hiring ISO 9001 consultants also have another argument, stating that an ISO consultant will bring with them a “fresher set of eyes.” To understand the importance of this statement, it is necessary to know that a QMS is just not focused on identifying risks, but it also uncovers hidden opportunities.

So, something that is not so apparent to you, will be extremely evident to a consultant who has immense real-world experience in your industry. As a result, you will be able to explore opportunities and expand your business.

Benefits of ISO 9001 consultant

There are many benefits to hiring an ISO 9001 consultant, including:

• Faster implementation: ISO 9001 consultant saves you precious time and speeds up the implementation process of your QMS. In fact, many ISO consultancy services claim to help you achieve certification in less than a month.

• First time compliance: Due to their expertise and experience, there will be no non-conformances in your QMS, thereby guaranteeing first time compliance.

• Identification of skill-gaps: ISO 9001 consultants conduct a gap analysis within your organisation to identify any inherent skill gaps. Additionally, they will suggest training programmes so that these skill gaps can be appropriately mitigated.

• Better documentation: Their expertise helps you align your documents as per the requirements of ISO 9001.

• Troubleshooting: As your QMS is in its infancy, it will encounter small obstacles. This is the nature of any management system that is absolutely new. With the help of a well experienced ISO 9001 consultant, you will be able to troubleshoot, modify and improve your QMS.

• Better performance of your QMS: ISO 9001 consultants will suggest you industry-specific corrective actions that will further improve the efficiency of your QMS.

How to choose an ISO 9001 consultant?

With so many ISO 9001 consultancy services, it can become overwhelming to select an ISO consulting service that is a perfect fit for your organisation. Before you even begin your search, we recommend that you sit down, take a breath, and clarify your expectations.

Do you want an ISO 9001 consultant who acts as a leader and coordinates activities between your team members, or would you prefer someone who is willing to get their hands dirty and actually sit with you in every step.

This is highly dependent upon the current nature of your management system. If you already have a decent management system, you would require a consultant who acquires the role of leadership, whereas if your QMS is still rudimentary, you would need a subject matter expert. Additionally, the criterions that you should factor in include specialisation, experience and ethics. ISO 9001 consultant should have considerable amount of experience in your industry and should not be willing to take any shortcuts.

Conclusion

Yes, it is absolutely possible to implement ISO 9001 without a consultant, however, there is no guarantee about the efficiency of the QMS. Hiring an ISO 9001 consultant saves business owners time, effort and energy. Focus on the specialisation, experience, ethics as you select your ISO 9001 consultant and ensure that you have a good idea about what role you want the consultant to play in your business.

If you are looking for ISO 9001 consulting that has expertise, experience and commitment, we suggest you to use ISO Counsel services. For more information about cooperation, costs and time required for ISO 9001 implementation, visit isocouncil.com.au website.