ISOorganisaatio

ISOorganisaatio, officially the International Organization for Standardization (ISO), is an international standardization body that develops and publishes voluntary international standards aimed at ensuring quality, safety, efficiency, and interoperability across industries.

Founded in 1947, ISO has its secretariat in Geneva, Switzerland, and operates through national standards bodies as its members. It is a non-governmental organization whose governance includes a General Assembly and a Council, with a Secretariat headed by a Director-General.

ISO's work spans hundreds of technical committees and subcommittees; standards are developed through a consensus-based process involving experts from member bodies and stakeholders. The process typically includes proposals (NWIP), committee drafts, drafts for vote (DIS and FDIS), and publication as an International Standard (IS). Standards are voluntary unless incorporated into national law or regulation.

The organization collaborates with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) to form the ISO/IEC Joint Technical Committee on Information Technology, and conducts other collaborative work with various international organizations. Notable families include ISO 9000 (quality management), ISO 14001 (environment), ISO/IEC 27001 (information security), and ISO 45001 (occupational health and safety).

ISO standards support international trade by providing common criteria and vocabularies, and national standards bodies may certify organizations as conforming to ISO standards; such certification is voluntary and performed by accredited bodies. While ISO standards themselves are not law, many countries adopt them as part of regulation or reference them in procurement and compliance programs. ISO has member bodies from over 160 countries, reflecting its global scope and influence.