In recent years, the face of many professions has changed dramatically. Globalization, altered demographics and the explosion of innovations in information technology have created new opportunities and challenges, and new occupations have arisen to meet the demand. More and more, governments, businesses and an increasingly savvy public are seeking proof of competence through the certification of new and existing professions.

In response to this need for certification, the International Organization for Standardization, Conformity Assessment Subcommittee (ISO/CASCO) initiated the development of ISO/IEC 17024, General requirements for bodies operating certification of persons. This new standard provides a benchmark for certification bodies offering certification of persons in any occupation and facilitates accreditation by national bodies.

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This comprehensive standard lays out the general operating requirements for the certification body, including provisions for a management system. It describes conditions for application, examinations, surveillance and recertification. And, it specifies the requisites for independence of training from certification, confidentiality of information, competence of staff and subcontractors, and the need for stakeholder input into certification schemes.

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[CLB] Great news. Many organizations consider creating certification programs for their membership. Using an internationally accepted framework for creating these programs and the certification process requirements will assist potential certificate holders in choosing a prgram. In these instances, they will be able to rely at least on the process underlying the program, and hence better rely on the association maintaining it.I wish I'd thought of this!