ISO 19001 esblishes international auditing guidelines.
The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) has established over 18,000 international quality standards that cover every industry. ISO 19011 is the ISO standard that governs the auditing industry.
Identification
ISO 19011:2002 provides guidance on manage auditing programs and conduct quality management and environmental management system audits. Its purpose is to standardize auditing concerns internationally.
Function
ISO 19011:2002 guidelines apply to all organizations that must either manage an audit or conduct audits of environmental or quality management systems. Compliant organizations know that their quality or environment management system meets international standards.
Significance
By using ISO 19011, organizations can save money, time and resources by avoiding confusion as to the objective of quality and environment audits. In addition, the standard ensures that audit reports adhere to the best formats and contain relevant information.
Considerations
Organizations could lose contracts by failing a quality or environment management system audit. Accordingly, companies must pay close attention to ISO 19011 guidelines when designing their quality and environment management systems.
