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Management System Certification

IT Service Management (ISO/IEC 20000-1) Certification

Management system certification
A moment from a certification audit

What Is the Certificate?

ISO/IEC 20000-1 defines service management system (SMS) requirements for planning, delivering and improving IT services. It is closely related to ITIL practices, but ITIL is a best-practice framework while ISO/IEC 20000-1 is a certifiable requirements standard. The current version is ISO/IEC 20000-1:2018.

Who Needs It?

  • Managed IT service provider (MSP) companies
  • Corporate IT departments and internal service providers
  • Data-centre and infrastructure service providers
  • Technology firms giving a service-level commitment (SLA)

Is It Mandatory?

Not mandatory. It can be requested by specification in public and large enterprise IT-service tenders; it is used to show the service-level commitment rests on a corporate system.

Scope of the Standard

  • Clause 4 — Context of the organisation: internal and external issues, requirements of interested parties, determining the scope of the service management system
  • Clause 5 — Leadership: top management commitment, policy, roles and authorities
  • Clause 6 — Planning: risks and opportunities, objectives and plans to achieve them
  • Clause 7 — Support: resources, competence, awareness, communication, documented information
  • Clause 8 — Operation: operational planning and control
  • Clause 9 — Performance evaluation: monitoring and measurement, internal audit, management review
  • Clause 10 — Improvement: nonconformity, corrective action and continual improvement
  • Service portfolio: service planning, service catalogue management, asset management, configuration management
  • Relationship and agreement: business relationship management, service level management, supplier management
  • Supply and demand: budgeting and accounting, demand management, capacity management
  • Service design, build and transition: change management, release and deployment management
  • Resolution and fulfilment: incident management, service request management, problem management
  • Service assurance: service continuity and availability management, information security management

Certification Process

  1. 1ApplicationThe organisation's field of activity, headcount, number of sites and scope boundaries are determined. The number of audit days is calculated from this information.
  2. 2Document Review (Stage 1)The management system documentation, scope definition, risk assessment and internal-audit/management-review records are examined; readiness for the on-site audit is assessed.
  3. 3Certification Audit (Stage 2)It is verified on site that the system is implemented and effective. Findings are classified as major/minor nonconformity or observation.
  4. 4Closing NonconformitiesThe organisation submits a root-cause analysis and corrective action plan. The certificate is not issued until major nonconformities are closed.
  5. 5Issuing the CertificateThe certificate is issued after review by an independent decision-maker. The audit team cannot make the certification decision.
  6. 6Surveillance AuditsA surveillance audit is carried out at least once a year during the certificate's validity. The first surveillance cannot exceed 12 months from the last day of Stage 2.
  7. 7RecertificationAt the end of three years, the entire system is re-audited; it must be completed before the certificate expires.

Period of Validity

Management system certificates are valid for three years. At least one surveillance audit is carried out per year during this period; the certificate is suspended if surveillance is not carried out. A recertification audit is completed at the end of the third year.

Required Documents

  • Trade registry record and operating licence
  • The organisation's organisation chart and headcount
  • The list of sites/branches within scope
  • The management system manual or process documentation
  • Internal audit and management review records
  • Legal permits, licences and operating documents, if any

Certification Cost

There is no fixed list price; the cost is calculated based on the following variables and provided in writing in the quote.

  • The headcount within scope (directly determines the number of audit days)
  • The number of sites and branches; whether multi-site sampling applies
  • The activity's risk level and process complexity
  • The number of standards to be certified — an integrated audit reduces the number of days
  • The three-year cycle: certification + two surveillance audits

Accreditation

Management system certification is carried out within the scope of ISO/IEC 17021-1. The certification body is accredited by an accreditation body party to the IAF multilateral recognition agreement (IAF MLA); This agreement establishes a chain of international recognition that ensures that a document issued in one country is accepted in other countries. EUROLAB has internationally recognized accreditation from IAF member accreditation bodies within the scope of ISO/IEC 17021-1.

The scope under which this scheme can be offered varies according to your product and activity; it is confirmed in writing at the quote stage.

Scope and authorisations

Related Certifications

Frequently Asked Questions

I have an ITIL certificate — does that count as having an ISO/IEC 20000-1 certificate too?

No. ITIL certificates are training certificates issued to individuals. ISO/IEC 20000-1 is a certificate issued to the organisation's service management system; the two are at different levels.

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