Ongoing compliance - ISO 9001
Ongoing support for your ISO 9001 quality management system: document control, quality objectives and KPIs, nonconformity and corrective action, supplier performance, customer feedback, internal audit planning and management review.
Built for service organisations as much as manufacturers. For a software house the measures are delivery and service quality; for a plant they are defects, rework and supplier lots. The calendar is set to your processes, not a generic checklist.
Who it is for
Nonconformities are corrected, not prevented, because nobody has time for root cause analysis.
Quality objectives were set at certification and are not measured or discussed since.
The approved supplier list grows, but performance is never evaluated.
Procedures describe how work was done three years ago, so staff work around them.
Why an external specialist
How it works
We review your process map, documented information, objectives, open nonconformities and last certification report, and agree what needs catching up.
Activities and KPIs are set against your processes and certification cycle, within the contracted capacity.
Document control, nonconformity follow-up and KPI collection each month, with a short status for management.
Internal audit programme planned with an independent auditor, management review prepared, surveillance readiness checked.
The changes in ISO 9001:2026 assessed against your QMS and scheduled so the transition audit is not a surprise.
Operating calendar
Cadences shift with your processes: a manufacturer with high lot volumes reviews nonconformities weekly; a consultancy may review KPIs monthly and suppliers twice a year.
| When | Activity | What it involves |
|---|---|---|
| Monthly | Document control | New and revised procedures, work instructions and forms reviewed, approved by the right owner, issued and the obsolete versions withdrawn. |
| Monthly | Nonconformity and corrective action | Nonconforming outputs, customer complaints and audit findings logged, root cause analysed with the process owner, actions tracked and checked for effectiveness. |
| Monthly | Quality objectives and KPIs | Process measures - on-time delivery, defect or rework rates, complaint volumes, service levels - collected and trended against the objectives you set. |
| Quarterly | Supplier performance review | Approved supplier list kept current, supplier performance evaluated against agreed criteria and actions raised for suppliers that slip. |
| Quarterly | Customer feedback and satisfaction | Complaints, surveys and other customer feedback analysed so trends feed into objectives and improvement, not just a filing system. |
| Quarterly | Risks and opportunities | Process-level risks and opportunities reviewed when products, customers, suppliers or capacity change. |
| On change | Change management | Planned changes to processes, products or the organisation assessed for their effect on the QMS before they happen. |
| Annually | Internal audit planning | Process-based audit programme planned on importance, changes and previous results, auditors assigned and findings fed back. The audit is performed independently. |
| Annually | Management review | Inputs prepared - objectives, customer feedback, process performance, audit results, supplier performance, risks - so top management records decisions and resources. |
| Annually | ISO 9001:2026 transition planning | Gap between your 2015-based QMS and the 2026 edition assessed, and the transition planned around your certification body's surveillance and recertification dates. |
The calendar is agreed at the start of the retainer and sized to the contracted monthly capacity. Activities that do not fit the capacity are scheduled across months or quoted separately - never squeezed in.
What you receive
What we need from you
ISO 9001:2026
ISO 9001:2026 replaces ISO 9001:2015. Certified organisations have until 30 September 2029 to transition, and from 31 March 2028 new certifications are issued only to the 2026 edition.
Inside a Managed QMS we assess your system against the new edition, agree with you which changes to make and when, and align the transition with your certification body's surveillance or recertification visit.
Last verified 16 October 2026 against Global ACI - ISO 9001:2026 transition and ISO - ISO 9001.
Responsibilities
A managed system is still your management system. The retainer covers the coordination, upkeep and expert work; decisions, approvals and the controls themselves stay with your people.
Audit independence
Auditors must remain independent of the activities they audit. Where Kellwick has supported implementation or ongoing management, any subsequent internal audit is subject to an independence and conflict-of-interest review. The assigned auditor must not have participated in the work being audited. Where sufficient objectivity and impartiality cannot be assured, Kellwick will decline the affected scope or recommend independent external assurance.
The retainer coordinates the internal audit programme - scheduling, scope, follow-up of findings. The audit itself is either a separate independent audit by another Kellwick auditor, or performed by your own trained auditors or another provider.
Capacity and pricing
Managed QMS retainers are scoped to the system: number of processes and sites, volume of nonconformities and documents, and how many onsite visits the calendar needs. The monthly days are stated in the proposal.
Retainer fees are Kellwick consulting fees only. Certification body fees, travel, taxes and third-party tools are separate.
Typical investment
Monthly retainerScoped on a call
Up to one advisory day per month (8 hours)
What changes it: Sites · Processes · Onsite visits
Capacity is a guide, not unlimited work. Onsite visits are agreed in the scope.
Delivery
Boundaries
Top management remains accountable for the quality management system under ISO 9001 clause 5. Kellwick runs the agreed support activities within the contracted capacity; process owners keep running the processes and approving changes.
Last verified 16 October 2026 against Global ACI - ISO 9001:2026 transition and ISO - ISO 9001.
Related services
Questions
No. ISO 9001:2026 was published on 16 September 2026 and accredited certification has a three-year transition ending 30 September 2029. From 31 March 2028 new certifications are issued only to the 2026 edition. The sensible approach is to plan the transition around your next recertification rather than rush it.
Yes. ISO 9001 applies to any organisation. For service businesses the work centres on service delivery processes, customer feedback, competence and supplier management, and most of it runs remotely.
Yes, as a separate engagement by an auditor who has no part in maintaining your system. ISO 9001 requires internal audits to be objective and impartial, so the person running your QMS never audits it.
It depends on the number of processes, sites and the volume of nonconformities and documents. We size the retainer after the baseline review and state the monthly days in the proposal.
No. Certification decisions are made by your accredited certification body. The retainer keeps the system operating and the records current.
Tell us your sites, processes and certification cycle. We will propose a calendar, the capacity it needs and a plan for ISO 9001:2026.
Kellwick is an independent consulting and internal audit practice. We are not a certification body and do not issue ISO certificates. Certification decisions are made only by accredited certification bodies.