{"id":867,"date":"2017-11-10T09:30:12","date_gmt":"2017-11-10T09:30:12","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.proftesting.com\/blog\/?p=867"},"modified":"2017-11-10T16:24:38","modified_gmt":"2017-11-10T16:24:38","slug":"certification-and-document-control","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.proftesting.com\/blog\/2017\/11\/10\/certification-and-document-control\/","title":{"rendered":"Can a Document Control System Help Your Certification Program?"},"content":{"rendered":"

We\u2019ve all noticed the change in the composition of companies today. Projects are completed by teams comprised of members located across the globe, working in different time zones, and on different device types. The trend of a remote workforce continues to grow, and team meetings involve less face-to-face collaboration and more and more web-based interactions. So what does this shift mean for your certification program? Likely, it means positive changes such as better work product through diverse viewpoints, but it can also have negative implications, like document versioning nightmares<\/em>!<\/p>\n

How many times have you opened a shared network folder and seen a multitude of versions of the same document, or tried to edit something and can\u2019t because another employee left the file open? Or worse still, invested hours in updating a document, just to find out your colleague made their own edits and you now have to consolidate two different versions?<\/p>\n

Controlling your program\u2019s documents is not only a necessity in order to maintain organization and accuracy, but also a requirement for any certification program with aspirations of gaining accreditation through ANSI against ISO\/IEC 17024<\/a>. 17024 identifies document control as an important component of the program\u2019s management system. But exactly what does document control mean, and what steps must you take to implement policies, procedures, or software that helps your certification program take back control?<\/p>\n

First, let\u2019s establish what is meant\u00a0 by \u201cdocument control system\u201d.\u00a0 In some cases this could mean specialized software designed to maintain all of a program\u2019s documents, but at minimum, it means having simple, but effective policies and procedures that ensure 1) proper reviews and approvals of controlled documents at creation and revision, 2) the correct versions of documents are readily accessible and legible for users, and 3) updates and changes are communicated to applicable parties.<\/p>\n

Second, let\u2019s think about implementation:<\/p>\n

Step 1: Conduct a Needs Assessment and Establish Parameters<\/h1>\n

If your company runs a small certification program with a small staff, your needs may be different than that of a large company with multiple certification programs operated by hundreds of employees located worldwide.<\/p>\n

Determine the types, volume, and needs of your company\u2019s documents and files. Start asking (and recording) as many questions and answers as you can, for example:<\/p>\n