A certificate is worth exactly as much as the independence behind it. This is our public commitment to impartiality, how we manage conflicts of interest, and the declaration of our top management — as required by ISO/IEC 17021-1.
Skyeblanc Certification is committed to impartiality in all its certification activities. We understand the importance of impartiality, we identify and manage conflicts of interest arising from our activities and relationships, and we ensure that no commercial, financial or other pressure compromises our objectivity. Certification decisions are made only on the basis of audit evidence, by people independent of the audit — and we will not provide, or be seen to provide, management-system consultancy to those we certify.
Impartiality means acting, and being seen to act, without bias. Under ISO/IEC 17021-1 it is not a slogan but an operating requirement, and it shapes how we are owned, funded, staffed and governed.
We continually identify relationships and situations that could threaten our objectivity — across ownership, management, personnel, shared resources, marketing and finance — and we evaluate the risk each one poses. Where a threat cannot be eliminated or reduced to an acceptable level, we do not take on the work.
Our income does not depend on the outcome of any audit. Auditors and decision-makers are never rewarded for granting certification, and no part of a fee is contingent on a certificate being issued. The audit finds what it finds; the decision follows the evidence.
Above all, we do not audit what we have built. Skyeblanc Certification provides no consultancy — no design, documentation, implementation, internal auditing or training that would amount to advising a client on the very system we later assess.
ISO/IEC 17021-1 names the ways impartiality can be threatened. For each, we hold a defined safeguard.
The risk that financial or commercial interest could sway a decision — for example, fear of losing a paying client.
The risk of auditing your own prior work — the reason a CB may never consult for a client it certifies.
The risk that long or close relationships with a client erode professional scepticism.
The risk of pressure — commercial or personal — to reach a particular conclusion.
Our impartiality is overseen by a committee that is independent of Skyeblanc Certification's commercial management. It reviews our impartiality analysis, monitors for emerging threats, and has real authority — including the ability to require action if it believes our independence is at risk.
Its membership is balanced so that no single interest dominates, giving a voice to the parties that certification is meant to serve.
Anyone can raise a concern about our impartiality or a certified client. Appeals against a certification decision are handled by people not involved in it.
