(ISO: Geneva, Switzerland) -- The International Organization for Standardization’s (ISO) just-published second edition of ISO/IEC 17021 sets new requirements for auditing management systems and for auditor competence in order to increase the value of management system certification to public and private-sector organizations worldwide.

The certification bodies that carry out management system certification (independently of ISO), are being given a two-year period to bring their operations in line with the new edition.

ISO/IEC 17021:2011—“Conformity assessment—Requirements for bodies providing audit and certification of management systems,” is intended to increase trust in certificates attesting conformity to management system standards (MSS) such as ISO 9001 (quality management), ISO 14001 (environmental management) and ISO 22000 (food safety management). Certificates to these and other MSS are widely used in global markets to establish confidence between business partners and between organizations and their customers, to qualify suppliers in supply chains, and as a requirement to tender for procurement contracts.

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