Being accredited to a recognisable standard is the simplest way to demonstrate to a public sector buyer that you are committed to ensuring best practice in whatever field it may be; H&S, Environmental, Quality, Information Security, Business Continuity etc.
Yes, in some ways it might be a tickbox exercise, in that the accreditation is proof in itself without you having to go into full detail about your approach, for example to Quality Management or Information Security. However, by actively working behind the scenes to achieve and maintain the accreditations your business will have put into place some great, demonstrable processes and procedures that you can detail in your bid submission if requested which they often are.
Furthermore, as the accreditation itself is a recognisable, externally audited standard, ticking the accreditation box makes it easier for the buyer to understand the level at which your business operates (in the accredited area(s)). It provides them with confidence in your approach that has been externally audited and validated. They do not need to investigate further and ask you to demonstrate manuals and systems, if your business is accredited to a recognisable standard.
If you have an accreditation but don’t believe you could easily demonstrate examples of improvements or similar, we would recommend that before the next tender lands on your desk thatyou work with therelevant people across your business to document some of the key achievements or improved working practices that you have put into place since beingaccredited.
For example if you are certified to ISO 9001, Quality Management you could create case studies about how your business has made improvements in:
- Customer Focus
- Continuous Improvement
- Relationship Management
- Leadership
- Engagement of People
- Process Approach
- Evidence Based Decision Making
You can read more about this standard here: https://www.bsigroup.com/en-GB/iso-9001-quality-management/
We understand that time and money sometimes won’t allow all businesses to achieve an ISO certification; therefore often within a bid submission you will be asked to complete additional questions about how you ensure compliance, what processes and procedures you have in place to ensure good Quality Management, for example, across your business. Therefore we would recommend that you familiarise yourself with the standard you would like to be certified in and see what aspects you can put into place across your business without the huge investments in time and money that full accreditation requireshttps://www.bsigroup.com/en-GB/standards/
If you need further advice about standards and perhaps what the best ones are for your business, give us a call and we can advise how best you can get tender ready.