What should I ask the ISO consultant?

If you ask the right questions while you are interviewing your shortlisted ISO consultant, you will have a greater chance of finding someone who is enthusiastic, well-experienced, knowledgeable, well-reputed, and within your budget. So, in other words, asking the “perfect questions” can help you select the “best ISO consultant.” In this article, we will provide you with a list of questions that you should definitely consider asking the candidates that you have shortlisted.

Questions to ask your ISO consultant:

The following questions are not written in a specific order or by prioritisation, and can be asked as per your preference.

1. What is your experience in our particular industry?

This is an extremely relevant question as it helps to match the consultant’s experience with your industry. It is futile to hire a consultant that specialises in another industry. This is because, in order for your management system to reap benefits such as better business opportunities, less wastage and a larger client base, you need to implement industry-specific best practises.

Hence, industry-specific knowledge is imperative when selecting a consultant. Additionally, when they are troubleshooting your newly developed management system, having industry-specific knowledge will allow them to identify hidden risks and implement corrective actions utilised by your peers. For example, if you are looking for an iso for manufacturing company, you should choose an ISO specialist in this field.

2. How many customers do you have? What kind of customers have you served? Can you provide a reference list?

This allows you to gauge if the shortlisted consultant has experience with companies similar to yours, with respect to size, working style and products/services. Additionally, this question will also allow you to gauge their experience in your industry. If their list is short, but crisp and filled with the giants of your industry, see this as a green flag.

Do not focus on the number of clients, rather on the size of the organisation. Similarly, if you do not see a single business that has repeated hiring them, see it as a red flag.

This is very important for large businesses such as the construction industry. Acquiring ISO for construction company requires a lot of experience, especially for companies with a large number of employees.

3. What is your reputation? What do your clients say about you?

A good reputation is imperative when you are selecting a consultancy service, as you do not want to be caught with an ill-reputed consultancy service, as it will damage the reputation of your certificate. Now, it is important to mention here that many organisations or consultants can simply exaggerate their experience and when you ask about what clients think about the consultancy service, they should be able to produce testimonials.

Do not be afraid to call previous clients as very often, they will be willing to openly share their experience and describe the performance of the consultant. Due to the popularity of ISO 9001, the number of customers of this certificate is usually high. Ask the previous customers who have been able to obtain this certificate using ISO 9001 consulting services about their satisfaction level.

4. What is your business experience beside ISO certificate?

Any individual who has varied experience will be beneficial to your organisation, as they will be well-versed in different types of operations and will be able to understand your processes as well as their unique challenges.

5. Do you have any conflict of interest?

When you ask this question, consultants are obligated to tell you their conflict of interest. Many consultancy services sell different types of tools and software, and if their company is selling some kind of a product, they will have to clarify if they are going to use the tools/software in your job or if they are trying to cross-sell?

6. What is your client certification rate?

This question is different from asking about customer experience, as any consultant can advertise the number of clients that they have worked with. However, sometimes working with a client and getting them certified are two different things. You must find out how many of the clients that the consultant claims to have worked with were actually certified.

Your organisation should ensure that the consultancy company you are considering has a successful track record of assisting its clients with certification.

7. What are your core values?

Core values are a vital part of any business as they reflect how the organisation treats their employees, but more importantly, how it views its clients. An organisation’s core values drive their day to day operations and future decisions. If the consultancy service that you are considering lacks core values, then consider it as a red flag. Examples of virtues that you should focus on include integrity, honesty, trust, respect, authenticity or commitment.

8. Are they ISO certified?

If you are in the process of pursuing ISO certification, it makes sense to hire a consultancy company that is already ISO certified. If you find a consultant that is already ISO certified, especially ISO 9001 and ISO 45001, that focuses on quality management, you will know that the company understands what it takes to be successful.