The ISO 9001 certification is a standard related to the quality management system with a focus on the customer. It defines how the organization must function to generate greater satisfaction for the consumer and for all those involved. Therefore, it is necessary that the suppliers in your industry have this certification to guarantee good results in the partnership.

Therefore, in this content you will see what the ISO 9001 certification is, the importance of this standard and the need for adaptation on the part of suppliers.

What is ISO 9001 Certification?

ISO 9001 certification is established by the Organization for Standardization (ISO). It is a company that aims to create quality and safety standards in conduct and processes for organizations, industries, and even public entities. This includes, for example, the production line, facilities, logistics and management.

Here in Brazil, the Brazilian Technical Standards Association (ABNT) also regulates and enforces these rules. However, it should be noted that this certification is recognized internationally.

The purpose of this standard is to ensure quality in organizations' processes, in addition to standardizing and indicating which procedures are necessary to achieve good management. Always seeking actions that will help your clients achieve their objectives.

The main characteristics and requirements of the standards are:

• Customer focus: the objective here is to offer greater customer satisfaction through efforts that exceed customer expectations;
• Improved leadership: it is necessary to have a leadership that is involved with the company's objectives and that is attentive to all levels of the institution;
• Involving people: the purpose is to establish a commitment with employees. It is necessary that they are competent, qualified, specialized and engaged with all sectors;
• Good processes: here the processes need to have coherent approaches that generate good results and design scenarios. It is worth noting that it is important that they are interconnected for greater automation and quality.
• Focus on improvement: the improvement of management processes or conduct must be a constant objective of the company and one of the main focuses;
• Intelligent decision-making: there is a need to make decisions based on data analysis and confirmation. Hence the importance of integrating processes, since they facilitate this study.
• Good relationships: developing good relationships with everyone involved in the business is extremely important for the company's health, since, consequently, it generates greater engagement.

In this way, the company that obtains the certificate is officially recognized as an institution that values quality and that thinks about the customer at every stage.

Importance of the ISO 9001 standard in the industry

Therefore, the importance of the standard lies in the aid in which it is acquired through management improvement methods. Thus, the industry now has greater credibility, security, trust and competitiveness in the market.

With the implementation of the standard, the company gains a more qualified view of risk management, improvements in business performance, and also has greater productivity and customer satisfaction. These advantages create quality in product delivery by focusing on the development of the end customer experience.

Thus, the industry becomes more efficient and agile by optimizing processes. With this, it automatically avoids waste, whether of inputs or time, and rework. Thus, the organization has better internal and financial control and greater cost reduction. In addition, the institution now has a reputation and improves its image, generating greater competitiveness in the market.

Compliance with ISO 9001 on the part of suppliers

Therefore, your suppliers need to be compliant with the standard. This way you will know their quality of performance. It should be noted that this certificate demonstrates a competitive advantage and represents credibility in the market.

Doing business with certified suppliers is extremely important because their interference may result in the suspension of your industry's activities. This is because a certified supplier is more committed to warranty, service, quality product and delivery time.

Remember that the processes of an industry work in a chain. The delay and the lack of an input for the production of your final product directly implies the satisfaction of your customer. So, choosing good suppliers immediately affects the quality of your delivery and your business.

Therefore, having ISO 9001 certification must be a fundamental requirement for negotiation. Since unqualified suppliers can cause more losses. With the trust established between the two parties, the partnership flows more smoothly.

The organization and suppliers: standards established by ISO 9001

If your industry is certified, you know that ISO 9001 requires an assessment from your suppliers. This is because, as already mentioned, their work well done directly impacts the performance of their production. Therefore, the organization must follow and establish criteria for evaluating, selecting, and monitoring the performance of suppliers.

This means that it is the organization's obligation to be attentive to its suppliers. According to By Taliso, it is the responsibility of the organization:

• Inform suppliers of the processes, products and services that must be provided;
• Approve products and services, methods, processes, and equipment;
• Provide competence, including any qualification of the requested person;
• Inform the supplier's interactions with the organization;
• Have control and monitoring of supplier performance;
• Explain the verification or validation activities that the organization intends to carry out at the supplier's facilities.

In short, ensuring quality for your business means ensuring the efficiency of your suppliers. This care demonstrates responsibility to the customer and to the success and performance of your industry's processes. It also generates more peace of mind, safety and productivity in industrial processes.

What are the next steps?

In this content, it was possible to realize the importance of having suppliers committed to quality so as not to delay the processes of your industry and to further improve the performance of your business.

In addition to this, the ISO 9001 Certification comes as a tool that ensures both the standards of the activities of your industry and that of your external suppliers.

And if you want to understand more about the importance of suppliers for your industry and want to know how to establish a good negotiation with them, just download our free checklist.

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