|
|
 |
In December 2000, Mi8 became the
first organization in the U.S. to
receive ISO 9001:2000 certification, a newly updated version of the
highly regarded ISO 9001 standard for operations and services. Mi8
was audited and registered by
TÜV Management
Service, one of the world’s
largest ISO 9000 registrars. In October 2003, Mi8 was re-audited by
TUV as required by the standard, and the company's certification was
renewed for a three year period.
The ISO 9000 family of standards is concerned with "quality
management". This is defined as everything the organization does to
enhance customer satisfaction by meeting customer and applicable
regulatory requirements and continually to improve its performance
in this regard. In other words, ISO 9000 standards encompass all
processes and operations in a business, with standards for process
documentation, results measurement, analysis, and continuous
improvement. Some of
the most highly regarded businesses in the world utilize the ISO 9000
framework to ensure delivery of high quality goods and services to
their customers.
ISO 9001:2000 vs Microsoft Gold Certification
Some organizations ask why Mi8 chose to pursue ISO certification
prior to Microsoft Gold Certified status, and to us the differences
are clear, as detailed in the chart below. Microsoft is undisputedly
an expert in Microsoft Exchange Server architectures and system
design - they are, after all, the designers of the system - and Mi8
has followed the Microsoft Exchange Server Prescriptive Architecture
recommendations when building and updating our service platforms.
However, when researching the impact of standards on the performance
of organizations, Mi8 decided to seek a standard for company-wide
quality processes, rather than limiting the scope to our technology
systems. And the ISO 9000 family of standards is widely recognized
as the most important international reference for quality processes
in business, with a direct impact on efficiency and customer
satisfaction.After we built an ISO
9001:2000 registered organization, we easily won Microsoft Gold
Certified Partner status in late 2005, (after Microsoft revamped the
program considerably).
|
|
ISO 9001:2000 |
Microsoft Gold Certified |
|
Certification body: The International Standards Organization, or ISO, is
a network of the national standards institutes of 146 countries. Because of
it's unique status as a not-for-profit and non-governmental agency, ISO is
able to act as a bridging organization in which a consensus can be reached
on solutions that meet both the requirements of business and the broader
needs of society, such as the needs of stakeholder groups like consumers and
users.
|
Certification body: Microsoft Corporation is a publicly traded,
for-profit company based in Redmond, Washington, USA, with offices around
the world. Microsoft is the designer of Exchange Server, and is the world
leader in Exchange expertise and experience.
|
|
Certification Process: A formal application, plus a thorough on-site
review of virtually all employees, with yearly audits to ensure that all
systems continue to function as required and that the company achieves
continuous improvement. A recertification is required every three
years.
|
Certification Process: A formal application, plus
self-reporting of Microsoft certified staff, a review of client references,
and achieving a minimum level of sales of Microsoft products/services.
|
|
Impact on Business: ISO 9001:2000 impacts all processes within an
organization, from the sales process to service provisioning, from customer
support to billing, and including human resources, finances, marketing -
even facilities management.
|
Impact on Business: Microsoft Gold Certification focuses on the
technical expertise of the organization and the sales achievements of the
organization, with little long-term impact on the organization..
|
|
Certified Organizations: Technology organizations that have
received ISO 9000 certification include:
-
AT&T
-
Cisco
-
Computer Associates
-
Dell
-
EDS
-
Hitachi Computer
-
HP/Compaq
-
IBM
-
Lucent
-
Motorola
-
Nortel
-
Nokia
-
Sun Microsystems
-
Xerox
More than 80,000 organizations
around the world have been certified to the ISO 9000 family of standards, in
industries ranging from auto manufacturing to zoological laboratories.
|
Certified Organizations: Organizations that have received Microsoft
Gold Certification for Exchange include:
-
Interliant
-
NetStore PLC
-
Apptix
Additionally, dozens of
companies have become Gold Certified in other Microsoft technologies, such
as Windows, Active Directory, Commerce Server, etc. |
|
