ISO 9001 Clause 7: Support & Resources
Clause 7 addresses the supporting framework your organisation needs to operate and maintain an effective Quality Management System — from people and infrastructure to competence, communication and documented information.
Why Clause 7 Matters
Even the best-designed quality processes will fail without adequate support behind them. Clause 7 of ISO 9001:2015 recognises this by requiring organisations to identify, provide and maintain the resources, skills and information systems that underpin every other clause in the standard. Think of it as the foundation layer: if your resources are insufficient, your people lack the right competencies, or your documents are out of control, everything built on top becomes unreliable.
By systematically addressing each sub-clause below, you can be confident that your QMS has the structural support it needs to deliver consistent products and services.
Clause 7.1: Resources
7.1.1 General
The organisation must determine and provide the resources needed for the establishment, implementation, maintenance and continual improvement of the QMS. This means taking stock of what you already have internally and deciding what you need to obtain from external providers. Resource planning should not be a one-off exercise — it must be revisited as your business environment, customer requirements and strategic direction evolve.
7.1.2 People
You must determine and provide the people necessary for effective implementation of the QMS and for the operation and control of its processes. This goes beyond headcount: it includes ensuring that roles are clearly defined, workloads are manageable, and that temporary or contracted staff receive the same level of direction as permanent employees. Where skills gaps exist, you need a plan to close them — whether through recruitment, re-deployment or development.
7.1.3 Infrastructure
Infrastructure covers the built environment, equipment, transportation, information technology and any other physical or digital assets needed to achieve conformity of products and services. Practical examples include manufacturing machinery, laboratory instruments, warehouse facilities, vehicle fleets, enterprise software and communication networks. The standard expects you to determine what is needed, provide it, and keep it in a condition that supports consistent output.
7.1.4 Environment for the Operation of Processes
A suitable working environment is one where social, psychological and physical factors are managed so they do not adversely affect product or service quality. Physical factors include temperature, humidity, lighting, airflow, noise and cleanliness. Social and psychological factors cover aspects such as workplace culture, stress levels, discrimination prevention and ergonomic design. The right balance depends on the nature of your processes — a cleanroom has very different environmental controls from a customer-service centre, but both must be defined and maintained.
7.1.5 Monitoring and Measuring Resources
When monitoring or measurement is used to verify conformity of products and services to requirements, the organisation must determine the resources needed to ensure valid and reliable results. Equipment must be suitable for the specific type of monitoring or measurement activity, and it must be maintained to ensure continued fitness for purpose. Where traceability to measurement standards is a requirement — or where your organisation considers it essential for confidence in the validity of results — measuring instruments must be calibrated or verified at specified intervals against standards traceable to international or national measurement standards. Records of the calibration status must be retained.
7.1.6 Organisational Knowledge
This sub-clause requires you to determine the knowledge necessary for the operation of your processes and to achieve conformity of products and services. That knowledge must be maintained and made available to the extent necessary. When addressing changing needs and trends, you must consider your current knowledge base and determine how to acquire or access any additional knowledge required. Sources of organisational knowledge can be internal (lessons learned, intellectual property, process expertise) or external (standards, academia, conferences, knowledge gathered from customers or suppliers).
Clause 7.2: Competence
Competence is about ensuring that every person performing work that affects QMS performance and effectiveness is capable of doing so. The standard requires you to determine the necessary competence for each role, ensure that people hold that competence on the basis of appropriate education, training or experience, and — where gaps exist — take actions to acquire the needed competence. Those actions might include training programmes, mentoring, reassignment or hiring. Crucially, you must evaluate the effectiveness of the actions taken and retain documented information as evidence of competence. A training certificate alone is not enough; you need to verify that the training actually produced the desired capability.
Clause 7.3: Awareness
Everyone working under the organisation's control — including contractors and temporary workers — must be aware of four things: the quality policy, the quality objectives relevant to their role, their personal contribution to the effectiveness of the QMS (including the benefits of improved performance), and the implications of not conforming with QMS requirements. Awareness is not the same as competence; a person can be technically skilled yet unaware of the broader quality framework they operate within. Effective awareness programmes use toolbox talks, induction sessions, visual management boards and regular team briefings rather than relying solely on a policy document pinned to a noticeboard.
Clause 7.4: Communication
The organisation must determine the internal and external communications relevant to the QMS. For each communication need, you should define what will be communicated, when it will be communicated, with whom the communication takes place, how the communication is carried out, and who is responsible for initiating it. This structured approach prevents critical quality information from falling through the cracks. Think about how customer complaints are escalated, how process changes are notified to the shop floor, how audit findings reach top management, and how your organisation communicates quality expectations to suppliers.
Clause 7.5: Documented Information
7.5.1 General
Your QMS must include the documented information required by the standard itself, plus any additional documented information the organisation determines is necessary for QMS effectiveness. The extent of documentation will vary depending on organisational size, complexity, process types and the competence of personnel.
7.5.2 Creating and Updating
When creating and updating documented information, you must ensure appropriate identification and description (such as title, date, author and reference number), appropriate format and media (paper, electronic, or both), and review and approval for suitability and adequacy. Version control is essential so that obsolete documents cannot be used in error.
7.5.3 Control of Documented Information
Documented information required by the QMS must be controlled to ensure it is available and suitable for use where and when it is needed, and that it is adequately protected against loss of confidentiality, improper use or loss of integrity. Control activities include distribution, access, retrieval, storage, preservation, change control, retention and disposition. For documented information of external origin that the organisation determines is necessary for the QMS, you must identify and control it appropriately.
Requirements Summary
| Sub-Clause | Title | Key Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| 7.1 | Resources | Determine and provide resources for the QMS — people, infrastructure, environment, monitoring equipment, organisational knowledge |
| 7.2 | Competence | Ensure personnel are competent through education, training or experience; evaluate effectiveness; retain evidence |
| 7.3 | Awareness | All persons under organisational control aware of quality policy, objectives, their contribution, and implications of nonconformity |
| 7.4 | Communication | Define what, when, who, how and who communicates for internal and external QMS communications |
| 7.5 | Documented Information | Create, update and control documented information; ensure availability, suitability, protection and integrity |
Audit Questions for Clause 7
- How does the organisation determine and provide the resources needed for the QMS, and how are resource needs reviewed when circumstances change?
- Can you demonstrate that monitoring and measuring equipment is calibrated or verified at defined intervals and that calibration records are maintained?
- What process is used to determine competence requirements for each role, and how is the effectiveness of training or other actions evaluated?
- How does the organisation ensure that all persons working under its control — including contractors — are aware of the quality policy, relevant objectives and the consequences of nonconformity?
- What controls are in place for documented information to prevent use of obsolete versions, loss of confidentiality and unauthorised changes?
- How is organisational knowledge identified, maintained and made available, and what mechanisms exist to capture lessons learned?
Full Audit Checklist
Assess every Clause 7 requirement with our ready-made checklist
Document Templates
Competence matrices, communication plans and document control procedures
Training Records
Pre-built forms for recording and evaluating training effectiveness
Calibration Log
Track monitoring and measuring equipment calibration status
Ready to Audit Clause 7?
Our complete ISO 9001:2015 audit checklist includes detailed questions for every sub-clause of Clause 7, along with space for recording evidence, findings and corrective actions. Download it now and start your assessment today.