Prepare for the certification

Answer:

Before you hire the certification body you need to implement the standard first. Usual first step in implementation is to conduct gap analysis to determine to what level your company is already compliant with the standard and what needs to be done to achieve full compliance with the standard. Here you can find free GAP analysis tool https://advisera.com/9001academy/iso-9001-gap-analysis-tool/

Next step is to create a project plan and define activities that need to be done, documents to be created and responsibilities for each activity. In case of bigger company with lot of locations, hundreds of employees, you will have to form a QMS team that will implement the standard, in case of smaller company , one man can be enough. For more information, see: How to choose a project manager for your ISO 9001:2015 implementation https://advisera.com/9001academy/blog/2016/01/12/how-to-choose-a-project-manager-for-your-iso-90012015-implementation/

Then you start implementing new procedures and documents into your existing company processes and create new ones. Once the system is implemented, you need to conduct internal audit and management review to make sure that your quality management system is compliant with ISO 9001. Finally, you can hire certification body to conduct internal audit.

For more information, see: Checklist of ISO 9001 implementation & certification steps https://advisera.com/9001academy/knowledgebase/checklist-of-iso-9001-implementation-certification-steps/