International Organization for Standardization (ISO)
ISO is a non-governmental, international organization with a membership consisting of 165 national standards bodies.
While it has no real authority over its members, it strives to (according to its website) “share knowledge and develop voluntary, consensus-based, market relevant International Standards that support innovation and provide solutions to global challenges.”
Its key standards are the ISO 9000 family for quality, and the ISO 14000 family for environmental management.
While ISO creates the standards, it does not offer certification in those standards. That is done by independent certification bodies. Certification is sought after because it provides companies a third-party verification of their processes, aiding in credibility.
