Is it worth it for a one-person business?
Here's a question from the mailbag which applies to any 1-person or very small business.
Q: I am a Civil Engineering consultant and provide a range of services to mainly local government in traffic engineering,road, drainage design etc. I operate as a sole practitioner, but I have strategic links to other sole practitioners who assist me to complete projects.
If I have a certified ISO 9001 quality system in place I can be registered with the State authority to provide services to them, as well as being listed on they web site as a prequalified consultant.
My question is: can a sole practitioner who uses other practitioners (who aren't certified) have a quality system that is acceptable?
A: Yes.
In a word (& presuming that 'acceptable' means 'acceptable for certification to ISO 9001').
The Standard specifically states (clause 1.2) that it is intended to be 'applicable to all organizations, regardless of type, size and product' (my italics). That said, there's a few challenges in designing a system where you're a sole practitioner, but none are insurmountable.
Re. the other practitioners, they'd be considered as suppliers to you. They don't have to be certified (presumably they subcontract to you), but you'd definitely have to show how your system selects, monitors & manages them to ensure that your client gets the standard of work they expect and you agreed to supply.
But that, like so much of ISO 9001 is just sheer good business sense in any case.
The biggest issue is that there's an obvious cost involved, which can be a burden for a sole practitioner: the cost of certification itself, plus any other costs eg,consulting/buying a kit, work associated with developing your system.
So this is something you clearly have to weigh up to see if it's worth it to you and to your particular business. And only you can answer that question. It is not as simple as 'everyone should' at all.
For example, if it gets you no more work, and no more customers, I'd definitely query whether it's worth the cost & time. But if having it does get you work that you otherwise couldn't get, or keeps important business, then that would tip the scales strongly.
One of my clients was quite literally a one-man band - his main business was import & export, and he moved things around the world from his office, using email, phone & fax. He achieved certification. Was it worth it to him?
In this case, yes, because his largest customer (~80% of his business) had him over a barrel: no ISO 9001, no business from them any more.
If you do decide to go ahead, as always: keep it simple, workable & practical.
Good question!
Here's a cost-effective way to get ISO 9001 yourself, without struggle. Click here for details.
Q: I am a Civil Engineering consultant and provide a range of services to mainly local government in traffic engineering,road, drainage design etc. I operate as a sole practitioner, but I have strategic links to other sole practitioners who assist me to complete projects.
If I have a certified ISO 9001 quality system in place I can be registered with the State authority to provide services to them, as well as being listed on they web site as a prequalified consultant.
My question is: can a sole practitioner who uses other practitioners (who aren't certified) have a quality system that is acceptable?
A: Yes.
In a word (& presuming that 'acceptable' means 'acceptable for certification to ISO 9001').
The Standard specifically states (clause 1.2) that it is intended to be 'applicable to all organizations, regardless of type, size and product' (my italics). That said, there's a few challenges in designing a system where you're a sole practitioner, but none are insurmountable.
Re. the other practitioners, they'd be considered as suppliers to you. They don't have to be certified (presumably they subcontract to you), but you'd definitely have to show how your system selects, monitors & manages them to ensure that your client gets the standard of work they expect and you agreed to supply.
But that, like so much of ISO 9001 is just sheer good business sense in any case.
The biggest issue is that there's an obvious cost involved, which can be a burden for a sole practitioner: the cost of certification itself, plus any other costs eg,consulting/buying a kit, work associated with developing your system.
So this is something you clearly have to weigh up to see if it's worth it to you and to your particular business. And only you can answer that question. It is not as simple as 'everyone should' at all.
For example, if it gets you no more work, and no more customers, I'd definitely query whether it's worth the cost & time. But if having it does get you work that you otherwise couldn't get, or keeps important business, then that would tip the scales strongly.
One of my clients was quite literally a one-man band - his main business was import & export, and he moved things around the world from his office, using email, phone & fax. He achieved certification. Was it worth it to him?
In this case, yes, because his largest customer (~80% of his business) had him over a barrel: no ISO 9001, no business from them any more.
If you do decide to go ahead, as always: keep it simple, workable & practical.
Good question!
Here's a cost-effective way to get ISO 9001 yourself, without struggle. Click here for details.
posted by JaneB at 5:37 PM
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