The International Organization for Standardization – or “ISO” – may have been founded in the profoundly different global sphere of the late 1940s, but that doesn’t mean ISO certification has ceased to be important for all manner of organisations.
The term “ISO certification” refers to when a given company’s internal systems, such as service procedures or manufacturing processes, have been deemed by a third-party body to satisfy internationally recognised standards for quality and consistency.
Your own organisation being ISO certified, then, is likely to be hugely important for cementing its operational integrity, reputation, and regulatory compliance. Indeed, there is a particularly strong expectation of compliance with ISO standards in high-risk sectors such as education, healthcare, and property.
It is also true, however, that if a given organisation seeks or already holds multiple ISO certifications – for example, in relation to such ISO standards as ISO 9001, 14001, 27001, and/or 45001 – these can be challenging to manage over time.
This, in turn, raises the question of whether the right cloud-based platforms could help modernise and streamline the process. So, let’s answer this question precisely.
What is cloud-based ISO management software and how does it work?
When you see mentions of “cloud-based ISO management software”, this is a reference to digital tools – based online, or “in the cloud” – that help organisations with the management of their ISO certifications and compliance processes.
A particular standout aspect of cloud-based ISO management platforms is the single, secure, and centralised location they provide for the storage and organisation of all ISO-related documents, policies, and procedures.
This centralisation allows for users of the software to access to it from wherever they are at the given time, while always benefiting from the same consistent real-time dashboards. This distinguishes a cloud-based ISO management platform from the manual, paper-based methods that have traditionally been used for ISO certification management.
If you are an organisational decision-maker on the lookout for a comprehensive, UK-based solution for the management of your company’s ISO certifications, Vision Pro Software could be an excellent choice.
Which ISO standards can be managed with cloud software?
Below are some of the ISO standards that are commonly supported by reputable software packages:
- ISO 9001 (Quality)
- ISO 14001 (Environmental)
- ISO 27001 (Information Security)
- ISO 45001 (Health & Safety)
- ISO 27017/27018 (Cloud-specific standards)
If your organisation is certified for multiple ISO standards, you will need to have an effective means of managing all these certifications simultaneously.
This is achievable when you put in place the right integrated management system (IMS), which combines many different management systems into a single, unified framework to help streamline processes, simplify compliance, and optimise performance.
What core features should you look for in ISO compliance software?
Whatever specific platforms you consider in your search for ISO compliance software, you are advised to prioritise the inclusion of the following features:
- Document management, encompassing such functions as version control, approval workflows, and expiration alerts
- Audit management features like custom checklists, the ability to easily find reports, evidence uploads, and dashboard tracking
- Risk management features and benefits such as risk registers, compliance task automation, and proactive mitigation
- Asset management capabilities including Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) and/or Near Field Communication (NFC) tracking, as well as remote/mobile audits and maintenance scheduling
- Compliance monitoring provisions like legal registers, live dashboards, and notifications of updates to relevant regulations
- Reporting and analytics features such as custom dashboards for leadership insight, site-specific data, and audit trend analysis.
How can cloud software help across different sectors?
Just like ISO certifications are relevant and helpful across a broad range of sectors, much the same can be said about the right ISO certification management software based “in the cloud”.
Here are a few examples of how this can be the case:
- In education, cloud-based platforms can be instrumental in the coordination of safety efforts in relation to risks like asbestos and legionella. Such software can also help make inspections across multiple campuses easier.
- In healthcare, cloud-based ISO compliance software can help manage compliance for fire risks, safety audits, and the maintenance of assets.
- In property and estates management, this type of software can provide real-time status information across such facets as building compliance, contractor activity, and site risk.
- In the public sector, the right software “in the cloud” can assist with demonstrating due diligence, regulatory transparency, and audit readiness.
What does the ISO certification journey look like with cloud-based software?
When your organisation invests in the most suitable cloud-based platform, you can look forward to a simplified, streamlined, and more effective process for getting ISO certified and subsequently managing those certifications over time.
- Gap analysis and planning: digital tools can play a greatly useful role in assessing your organisation’s current state, comparing that state with its desired or expected performance, and setting milestones to begin the journey towards improvements.
- Implementation: by drawing upon your chosen cloud-based platform’s templates, workflows, and task scheduling capabilities, you can develop policies, procedures, and management systems tailored to particular ISO standards.
- Internal audit preparation: the auditing features built into the leading cloud-based software – encompassing the likes of checklists, evidence collection, and readiness scoring – will help your organisation assess compliance and tackle areas of non-conformance.
- Certification audit support: you will be assisted in your preparations for an external certification audit when you have invested in cloud-based software that gives you quick access to relevant files, clear audit trails, and scope for easy real-time collaboration.
- Ongoing compliance and improvement: even once certification has been achieved for a particular ISO standard, a reputable cloud-based platform can support your efforts to maintain compliance. This can be achieved with the help of such measures as scheduled reviews, change logs, and continuous monitoring.
How does Vision Pro Software specifically support ISO certification?
So, now that you are familiar with many of the ways in which cloud-based ISO compliance platforms in general can support organisations’ efforts to achieve and maintain certification, what are some of the particular benefits of adopting Vision Pro Software?
Here are some of the most important points to bear in mind:
- Vision Pro Software incorporates tailored modules for ISO compliance, audit management, and risk, asset, and document control.
- Our solution is designed for the benefit of multi-site organisations such as schools, healthcare networks, and property estates.
- It is a mobile-friendly form of ISO compliance software, with offline support for remote audits.
- The centralised nature of Vision Pro Software means it can be counted on to provide a single source of truth across all your organisation’s departments.
- It is aligned with ISO 27001 for data security compliance.
What are the tangible benefits of using cloud software for ISO compliance?
There are various tangible advantages that your organisation stands to gain when it adopts a leading cloud-based platform such as Vision Pro Software for managing ISO certifications:
- Efficiency gains: embracing cloud-based software for ISO compliance could bring your organisation time savings of 50% or more on audit preparation, along with reduced administrative workload.
- Improved collaboration: the real-time updates that such a platform can provide, along with its provision for role-based access and cross-site transparency, can help ensure multiple users of the software work more effectively together.
- Reduced costs: with less paper involved, and lower expenditure on consultancy fees required, your organisation’s embrace of cloud software can also be its route to faster ISO certification.
- Audit confidence: your organisation can be better prepared for both internal and external audit reviews, with cloud-based software that brings easier access to audit-ready evidence, as well as automated workflows and consistent processes.
- Business continuity and resilience: a cloud-based software platform can give your organisation the convenience of remote access, and secure backups. Such measures can help greatly improve your organisation’s disaster recovery preparedness.
How do you choose the right ISO management software?
Giving careful thought to the following criteria will help ensure you make the right choice of ISO compliance platform for your organisation’s needs:
- How deeply can this software be integrated with the organisation’s existing systems?
- Is it user-friendly and mobile-accessible?
- What vendor support, onboarding help, and training are available?
- What is the cost structure with regard to such aspects as licensing, implementation, and support?
- Is the given software compliant with data protection standards such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and ISO 27001?
Conclusion: why cloud-based ISO management is a strategic advantage
Shifting your organisation’s ISO management efforts to the cloud with the help of a platform like Vision Pro Software, can greatly contribute to simplified compliance and reduced risk.
Amid a fast-evolving regulatory landscape, it is vital that your business constantly futureproofs its compliance processes – and the management of its ISO certifications should be no exception.
Commit your organisation to the evaluation of its current ISO management arrangements, and you will likely realise that cloud-based solutions can play a fundamental role in keeping your organisation competitive, compliant, and confident.
Why not, then, contact our team today to learn more about Vision Pro Software, and to request a demo of our system?
