Understand the Basics of Audits for an ISO 9001 Quality Management System
Audits are an indispensable part of the ISO 9001 certification. They are necessary to ensure that the Quality Management System (QMS) implemented in your organization meets every requirement of ISO 9001 and is uniformly effective at maintaining the quality of products or services. Audits should be performed by experienced officials or quality managers with intrinsic knowledge of the quality management standards. They should meticulously check every area of the QMS as well as your processes and policies to discover any gaps, discrepancies or deviations from the ISO 9001 quality management requirements. As a result, any issue in the QMS can be identified and you can take corrective actions to eliminate them. Hence, an audit prepares your organization for the final certification stage. You should understand the real importance of audits to lay a competent and ISO-compliant QMS organization-wide. They drive continuous improvements of your processes and foster employee participat...