Are ISO Templates Enough to Achieve ISO Certification?

Introduction

Templates offer a formalized base upon which policies, procedures and forms should be documented according to such standards as ISO 9001, ISO 27001, ISO 14001, and ISO 45001. These templates are often sought by organizations as they are intended to facilitate the paperwork. The actual purpose of ISO certification is, however, not to display documentation, but to portray an existing, running management system that is specific to the context and risks of the business. This is the reason as to why templates are not sufficient, when used alone and how they are most likely to be of effect on the certification highway.

The Role Of ISO Templates

Templates can:

1. Be structured: They consist of required sections, reference to clauses and formats that are mapped to existing versions of the standard.

2. Conserve time: Ready-to-use policies, forms and procedures allow organizations to not reinvent the wheel.

3. Drive consistency: Standardized documents provide consistent language, approach and control between departments.

Demystify what is required Templates clarify what each item or requirement desires to see, making the ambiguity less.

But: Templates are generic, and ISO certification is based on evidence of systems being customized, deployed and constantly enhanced to fit the specifics of the reality of the organization.

The Reason That Templates Are Not Sufficient In Order To Be Certified

a. Templates need to be tailored.

• Non-compliant generic content: Auditors do not want to find canned language or sample content but procedures, records and controls that are aligned with your processes, risks, and objectives.
  
  
• Application is reviewed but not completed: Certification is based upon the presence of written system, knowledge, and functionality, not paperwork.

b. Functional Implementation Is Crucial

The certification asks that procedures are not only written, but also being used:

• Records should be genuine: Documented records, training records, audit results, and management review minutes should not be blank filled in forms.
  
  
• The employees should be educated and knowledgeable: employees should be capable of explaining processes, pointing out where to access updated documentation, and explaining what has been improved recently.

c. Templates Lack of Organization and Subtlety.

• Industry or legal differences: Templates are normally focused on the lowest common denominator across industries. In the absence of adaptation, they tend to lack sector-specific legal, regulatory or operational requirements.
  
  
• Scalability and change management: Templating systems are a source of necklace that prevents efficient management and constant improvement as companies grow or evolve.
  
  
• Sustainability over the long run: The true strength of the ISO systems lies in dynamic review of management, corrective measures and culture of responsiveness- hardly ingrained in off-the-shelf templates.

d. Templates Do Not ensure Signs of Relentless Improvement- Norm-motivated organizations: ISO standards require plan-do-check-act; this requires more than documentation. Auditors search cycles of self-auditing, internal audit, and actual operational improvements, and not a set of documents.

Possible Dangers and Drawbacks Of Being Over-Reliant On Templates

1. Unmet specifications: A lot of template kits are not full, or are too old, or do not cover new standard updates.
   
   
2. Poor fit: The inability to customize results in the existence of nonconformities at audit--presenting the threat of failed certification and additional repair expenses.
   
   
3. Staff dis-engagement: Embedded templates that are not a part of daily work are ignored, resulting in last-minute panic prior to audits, their cursory knowledge and higher probability of significant nonconformances.

Getting Started With Templates On The Road To Certification

a. Use Templates, but Customize.

• Write documentation fast by using templates.
  
  
• Involve process owners and managers to modify templates to actual business processes, risks, and improvement purposes.
  
  
• Make sure that all the documents are owned, checked and renewed periodically.

b. Incorporate the Documents in the Operations

• Implement documentation through training and awareness exercises; reinforce through use of posters, frequently asked questions and e-learning where feasible.
  
  
• Bring procedures and policies to life and combine them with digital tools that your teams already utilize.

c. Show On-Going Use and Continuous Review

• Take and keep actual records--meeting minutes, audit reports, incident logs, corrective action records--of your working system.
  
  
• Periodically hold internal audit, risk registers and document management review. Take actions to improve findings--and document these.

d. Audit Beyond Templates Preparations.

• Before the certification audit, perform a gap analysis of all the standard requirements to make sure that the templates align with not only compliance requirements but also with your practices.
  
  
• Complete practice audits with external or internal auditors with your own customized documentation.
  
  
• Close up on pending assignments, record documentation and all the employees must understand and know how to use the management system.

Related Considerations

a. Support and Guidance

• There is no need to spend a lot of money on mistakes, so in case there is no internal ISO experience, it may be a good idea to combine templates with outsourcing an expert (consultants, mentoring, or outside audit preparation).
  
  
• Other providers will have update subscriptions or customization services, take these options into account in the long term.

b. The Integrated Management Systems

Companies that are undertaking several certifications (e.g., ISO 9001 + ISO 45001 + ISO 14001 or ISO 27001) need to consider integrated templates that reduce duplication and adjust the procedures to all the standards involved.

Conclusion

Templates - carefully chosen and tailored in detail - can be used to hasten documentation and reduce the initial cost of ISO certification. Templates are not sufficient however. The certification is obtained through proving that a management system is alive, operationally integrated, periodically reviewed and is continuously enhanced to fulfill the spirit and the letter of the relevant ISO standard.