{"id":9434,"date":"2016-11-15T18:29:31","date_gmt":"2016-11-15T18:29:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/multiacademstg.wpengine.com\/9001academy\/?p=9434"},"modified":"2026-03-23T15:02:36","modified_gmt":"2026-03-23T15:02:36","slug":"how-to-become-an-iso-9001-consultant","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/blog\/2016\/11\/15\/how-to-become-an-iso-9001-consultant\/","title":{"rendered":"How to become an ISO 9001 consultant"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/what-is-iso-9001\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">ISO 9001<\/a> is the most popular management system standard in the world, and it helps many businesses to establish a <a href=\"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/iso-9001-documentation-toolkit\/?rel=context-and-interested-parties&amp;doc=scope-of-the-quality-management-system\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">QMS (Quality Management System)<\/a> and ensure quality products and services, as well as customer satisfaction. Given that this standard is used worldwide, there is understandably a constant demand by organizations who feel they need a consultant to help demonstrate both exactly what the clauses of the standard dictate, and how those specific requirements can relate and be applied to their particular business and its sector. Therefore, it stands to reason that many people wish to become a consultant, so what is the best way to go about achieving this?<br \/>\n<div id=\"middle-banner\" class=\"banner-shortcode\"><\/div><script>loadMiddleBanner();<\/script><\/p>\n<h2>What qualifications do you need?<\/h2>\n<p>I often receive the question: \u201cWhat qualifications do I need to become a consultant?\u201d It\u2019s a funny thing, but there are no formal qualifications needed, at least not in most countries. This basically means anyone can become a consultant, with no qualifications whatsoever. This might sound strange, but it makes sense if you remember that your work will be audited by a certification body, so if you are able to implement the standard properly, no one will care about your certificates.<\/p>\n<p>Of course, at the beginning of your consultant career, you will need to demonstrate your competence to your clients, and that is not an easy job if you don\u2019t have any references. So, at the beginning, you should have at least the following:<\/p>\n<p><strong>ISO 9001 certificates<\/strong> \u2013 you should at least get the <a href=\"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/training\/iso-9001-lead-auditor-course\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Lead Auditor<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/training\/iso-9001-lead-implementer-course\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Lead Implementer<\/a> certificate, but it would be better if you had both. Acquiring those certificates is not easy, so if you do not have previous knowledge about the standard, it is recommended to take some <a href=\"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/training\/iso-9001-internal-auditor-course\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">internal audit<\/a> or, at least <a href=\"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/training\/iso-9001-foundations-course\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">foundation<\/a> courses.<div id=\"side-banner-trigger\" class=\"banner-shortcode\"><\/div><\/p>\n<p><strong>Project Management certificate<\/strong> \u2013 since your work will be nothing but delivering projects, you should learn how to run them. For instance, you should get PMP, or some other similar certificate.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Experience<\/strong> \u2013 theoretical knowledge won\u2019t be enough, so you should get experience through at least one of the following:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Work as a certification auditor \u2013 performing certification audits will give you excellent insight into the do\u2019s and don\u2019ts of ISO 9001 implementation, or<\/li>\n<li>Work for another consultant \u2013 this is the best way to learn about the implementation methods and how to get new clients, or<\/li>\n<li>Work as a quality manager or quality assurance manager \u2013 working in a company is an excellent way to learn the client side of the story: What are the usual pains? What is the expert help needed for?<\/li>\n<li>Work as a <a href=\"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/iso-9001-documentation-toolkit\/?rel=policy-and-manual&amp;doc=quality-manual\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">QMS<\/a>\u00a0management representative \u2013 being responsible for the QMS in a company will help you understand the standard and see how its requirements are executed in real life, and lots of consultants have this starting point.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>ISO 9001: What skills do I need?<\/h2>\n<p>It is safe to say that a successful consultant will require a special set of <a href=\"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/iso-9001-documentation-toolkit\/?rel=human-resources&amp;doc=training-record\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">skills<\/a>, so let us examine them in more detail:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Knowledge of the standard:<\/strong> Obvious, but critical. An ISO 9001 consultant must have detailed knowledge of the standard and what is expected, and be on top of any changes that come around.<\/p>\n<p><strong>A keen eye for detail:<\/strong> A consultant is expected to pick up on things other employees may miss, which is why he\/she is being hired. As a consultant, you need the eye for detail to ensure that you bring extra value to any project you are hired to contribute to or manage.<\/p>\n<p><strong>A good leader:<\/strong> It is probable as an ISO 9001 consultant that you may have to bridge the gap between top management and the workforce, and \u201csell\u201d the merits of a project to both. Good leadership skills can be critical to achieving this.<\/p>\n<p><strong>A good communicator:<\/strong> The best plans can go wrong with ineffective planning, so ensure that your communication is timely, accurate, and concise. A lack of communication can lead directly to a lack of awareness and competence in the workforce, so it is critical to ensure that this gap is closed.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Good organizational skills:<\/strong> An ISO 9001 project can be complex and may not be linear: you may be working on several different strands at once. For more information, see: <a href=\"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/blog\/2015\/02\/10\/four-things-need-start-iso-9001-project\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Four things you need to start your ISO 9001 project<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>A good problem solver:<\/strong> Above all, you will be perceived as the person who has the solution to the problems in an ISO 9001 project, so the ability to solve problems and give good advice is key. If you don\u2019t have the answers, you will be expected to find them. Be measured, level, and organized, and research and prepare as well as possible.<\/p>\n<p style=\"padding-top: 15px;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-23986\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/\/sites\/3\/2016\/11\/9001-consultant-skills.jpg\" alt=\"ISO 9001 consultant \u2013 How to become one\" width=\"1000\" height=\"628\" srcset=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2016\/11\/9001-consultant-skills.jpg 1000w, \/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2016\/11\/9001-consultant-skills-300x188.jpg 300w, \/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2016\/11\/9001-consultant-skills-768x482.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/p>\n<h2>Focus on what\u2019s the best for the client<\/h2>\n<p>In this article I wanted to present the prerequisites for becoming a consultant \u2013 the methods for delivering the ISO 9001 project wouldn\u2019t fit in this article.<\/p>\n<p>But, in the end, remember that reputation is what will bring you new <a href=\"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/iso-9001-documentation-toolkit\/?rel=customer-satisfaction&amp;doc=customer-satisfaction-questionnaire\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">clients<\/a>. Make sure that everything you do, you do it in the best interest of the client \u2013 you shouldn\u2019t recommend some new technology to a client only because you have a partner selling it; you shouldn\u2019t hold back some information only to have your client use your services later on. What you should do is protect your clients\u2019 interests and exceed their expectations.<\/p>\n<p><em>Click here to see a <\/em><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/consultants\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">ISO 9001 Consultants White Label Toolkit<\/a><\/strong><em> that will help you with the detailed steps in the implementation project, as well as provide all the required templates.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>ISO 9001 is the most popular management system standard in the world, and it helps many businesses to establish a QMS (Quality Management System) and ensure quality products and services, as well as customer satisfaction. Given that this standard is used worldwide, there is understandably a constant demand by organizations who feel they need a &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":23986,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[186,691,133,169],"class_list":["post-9434","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-blog","tag-consultant","tag-implementation","tag-iso-9001","tag-qms"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9434","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/28"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9434"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9434\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":77242,"href":"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9434\/revisions\/77242"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/23986"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9434"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9434"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging.advisera.com\/9001academy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9434"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}