Stage 1 is usually remote. From there, it depends on the standard, and on the size, scope and risk of your business. We'll do as much remotely and asynchronously as the standard allows, but some certifications need feet on the ground. Wherever we can be flexible we will be, and we'll always build the schedule around your team.

Our main point of contact is usually whoever owns the systems and processes we're looking at. Beyond that, we ask that your leadership joins the opening and closing meetings as a minimum, and who else we need depends on the standard, scope and size of your business. We start planning the audit with you three to four months in advance and agree together who needs to be involved and when. And if this is your first time going through certification, we'll walk you through the whole thing and make sure the right people are in the right place.

We also run our audits asynchronously wherever we can. We understand your business still has to run while we're auditing it, so we build the schedule around that, not the other way around.

That's exactly what Stage 1 is for - to catch gaps early, while you've still got time to fix them. It's not a fail. We'll show you where the gaps are and why they matter, and you'll have a window before Stage 2 to close them out.

Genuine non-conformities do happen, and they're not the end of the road. If something significant comes up, you'll get a clear window to address it, and we'll verify the fix, no need to start the whole process again. Nothing here is designed to catch you out.

Yes and it's usually the smart move. Combining standards like ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 into a single integrated audit is more efficient and less disruptive than doing them one at a time, and we'll price it that way.

Certification runs on a three-year cycle. We carry out lighter surveillance audits each year to keep you on track, then a recertification audit at the three-year mark. It's an ongoing relationship, which is exactly how we like it!