NOTES:
Abbreviations used within the titles of ISO standards are not included in this list.

 

Ad hoc group (AhG)

Group set up within a committee to look into a particular problem and report back to the parent committee at a meeting. The group is disbanded after the meeting at which it presents its report.

AWI

Approved work item

CASCO (Conformity Assessment Committee)

Committee whose secretariat is provided by ISO/CS that deals with conformity assessment and is responsible for the development of conformity assessment standards.

CD

Committee Draft

Certification

Assurance given by an independent certification body (ISO does not perform certification) that a product, service or system meets the requirements of a standard.

Chair

The person with overall responsibility for a committee, who leads experts and delegates to consensus, makes sure everyone's views are heard and remains neutral. They usually come from the sector concerned and act to promote ISO's work in that sector.

Code of Ethics and Conduct

Set of principles to be followed by people involved in ISO work, e.g. working within an international framework, upholding consensus, being ethical.

Committee

This could be:

• a Technical Committee (TC), which develops standards in a certain sector or industry;
• a Subcommittee (SC), which addresses a specialized area within a TC;
• a Project Committee (PC), which is created to develop one standard, after which it is disbanded.

Committee Manager

Administrative manager of a committee who ensures the smooth running of projects, prepares and manages meetings, circulates documents/communications and upholds ISO principles and practices. They are employed by the national standards body that holds the secretariat for that committee.

Conformity assessment

Process of determining whether someone or something meets the requirements of a standard. It can be done in one of three ways:

• first party (assessment by manufacturer/supplier themself),
• second party (assessment of manufacturer/supplier by user or purchaser),
• third party (assessment of manufacturer/supplier by someone independent).

Consensus

The goal of any technical committee: general agreement where there is no sustained opposition to substantial issues by any important part of the concerned interests, in a process that seeks to take into account the views of all parties concerned (see subclause 2.5.6 in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1).

Convenor

Person who leads a Working Group (WG) towards consensus, making sure projects are properly managed and delivered on time. Usually from the sector or industry concerned.

COPOLCO (Consumer Policy Committee)

Committee whose secretariat is provided by ISO/CS that promotes consumer interests in standardization, e.g. by selecting projects that are important to consumers and coordinating participation by people involved in these areas.

Council

Group that governs ISO operations. It consists of the Officers, Chairs of CASCO, COPOLCO and DEVCO and 20 elected member bodies. They also appoint the Treasurer and 14 members of the TMB and decide on the annual budget of ISO/CS.

Delegate

Person nominated by their National Standards Body to represent the agreed national position in the Technical Committee/Subcommittee.

DEVCO (Development Committee)

Committee whose secretariat is provided by ISO/CS that encourages developing countries to take part in standardization, e.g. by identifying needs and providing training and technical help.

Development track

Chosen timescale for developing a standard from start to finish. There are three options: 18, 24 or 36 months.

DIS

Draft International Standard

Editorial Manager (EM)

Main ISO Central Secretariat contact point for any questions related to drafting or editing of standards. EMs are responsible for managing the overall editorial development of the projects belonging to their assigned committees and they ensure that documents maintain the highest degree of quality, are delivered in a timely manner, and adhere to ISO’s drafting rules and policies.

Electronic applications

IT tools for people involved in ISO's work. These include ISO Documents for online committee management, ISO Projects for tracking the progress of particular projects, and the ISO Meetings platform. 

European Committee for Standardization (CEN/CENELEC)

European standards organization, which publishes some standards in parallel with ISO. Standards with the designation EN are mandatory for CEN members.

Expert

Person from a particular field or industry who contributes to the development of a standard.

Form 4

Form to be sent by the committee manager to the committee so they can vote for a New Work Item Proposal (NP).

Form 6

Form to be sent by the committee manager to the TPM showing the voting results for a NP. It has to be received before the project can continue.

FDIS

Final Draft International Standard

General Assembly (GA)

Annual meeting of the officers and representatives of member bodies. Items on the agenda might include the ISO annual report, strategic plan and a financial status report.

Global relevance

Policy stating that every standard must be able to be used as broadly as possible by affected industries all over the world. Only projects that meet this requirement can be accepted.

ISO Central Secretariat (ISO/CS)

ISO headquarters in Geneva where everything from IT helpdesk and editing to TPMs and membership are based.

ISO/IEC Directives

Rules covering the work of ISO and the IEC. Part 1 covers procedures for standards development; Part 2 deals with drafting.

International Classification for Standards (ICS)

Structure for cataloguing standards and classifying them in e.g. libraries and databases. It is organised according to sectors of the economy, technologies, activities and fields of science and can be updated when necessary.

International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC)

Standards body that publishes International Standards for electrical, electronic and related technologies.

Joint Technical Committee 1 (JTC1)

Joint committee between ISO and IEC that develops, maintains and promotes information technology (IT) standards required by global markets for business and consumers. Examples of JTC 1 standards are design of IT systems, performance and interoperability of IT products and security of IT systems and information.

Justification Study (JS)

Inquiry that must be carried out and documented before developing a MSS.

Lawrence D. Eicher award

Annual award (named after a former Secretary General) given to an ISO committee that excels in its work, using efficient and innovative means.

Liaison

Agreement which might be between two ISO committees, an ISO committee and a corresponding IEC committee or an ISO committee and an external organization where they share expertise and relevant documents. There are different categories of external liaison with varying eligibility criteria but all must be non-profit.

Maintenance Agency (MA)

Organization authorized to update parts of a standard which is subject to frequent changes, e.g. in an external database. An example of a standard with an MA is ISO 4217, Codes for the representation of currencies and funds.

Member

One of the national standards bodies that makes up ISO. Three types of membership are available:

• full (participate in developing standards and policy, selling ISO deliverables and participating in governing ISO),
• correspondent (as above but do not participate in governing ISO),
• subscriber (participate in developing standards but not in policy, selling standards or governing ISO).

Management System Standard (MSS)

A standard that provides a model for setting up a management system for a business or organization. MSS standards have a uniform structure which is then tailored to the specific sector

National delegation

One or more people selected by a National Standards Body and National Mirror Committee to put forward the national position at ISO committee meetings.

National Mirror Committee (NMC)

National structure set up to mirror the work of an ISO Technical Committee within a National Standards Body. The NMC brings together stakeholders to establish a national consensus position on the work.

National Standards Body (NSB)

Foremost standards body in each country. There is only one ISO member for each country.  

New Work Item Proposal (NP)

Idea for a new standard that is submitted for vote in the relevant TC or SC. To be accepted, a majority of P-members must vote in favour and a minimum number of those must commit to play an active part in the project. If accepted, it becomes an approved work item (AWI).

Online Browsing Platform (OBP)

Web tool for accessing extracts of standards, e.g. terms and definitions and bibliography, as well as ISO's collections of graphical symbols and country codes.

Officers

The ISO executive board, made up of the President, three Vice-Presidents (policy, technical management and finance), Treasurer and ISO Secretary General.

O-Member

Observer member of a committee who follows the work and can comment but cannot vote in Committee Internal Ballots and cannot nominate an expert in a Working Group.

PDC

Policy development committee

Plenary

Annual meeting (often the only physical meeting) where a committee discusses its projects and other matters e.g. membership, its Strategic Business Plan, or barriers to its work.

P-Member

Participating member of a committee who takes part in the work, is obliged to vote and can nominate experts in a Working Group.

Project Leader

Expert nominated by a committee to lead a particular project, i.e. prepare (or delegate) the draft, lead discussions and ensure that it progresses.

Project stage

Stage of a project’s development, corresponding to an associated document:

• Preliminary stage = Preliminary work item (PWI)
• Proposal stage = New work item proposal (NP)
• Preparatory stage = Approved work item (AWI) until there is a Working draft (WD)
• Committee stage = Committee draft (CD)
• Enquiry stage = Enquiry draft (ISO/DIS)
• Approval stage = Final Draft International Standard (ISO/FDIS)
• Publication stage = International Standard (ISO)

So, a document at enquiry stage would be designated e.g. ISO/DIS xxxx.

PWI

Preliminary Work Item

Regional Standards Development Organization

Standards body for a geographical area e.g. ARSO (African Regional Organization for Standardization), COPANT (Pan American Standards Commission).

Registration Authority (RA)

Similar to an MA but, rather than updating standards, they have a registration function e.g. ISBN numbers for books.

Resolution

Decision made by a committee in a meeting or as the result of a correspondence vote. At the end of a plenary meeting, the resolutions are drafted so that everyone can formally agree on them.

Standards Development Organisation (SDO)

Any organization whose main purpose is developing, coordinating or issuing mandatory or voluntary technical standards. These include HL7, ASTM, CIE, IEEE, IIW, IULTCS

Strategic Business Plan (SBP)

The mission statement of any TC, setting out why they exist, the work they are doing, how it will benefit their sector, how they will overcome obstacles and who is involved.

Task force (TF)

Group set up to act on future plans and/or standards development in a certain area, e.g. Management System Standards (MSS), committee performance, global harmonization.

Technical Management Board  (TMB)

Board responsible for the general management of the technical committee (TC) structure within ISO. It approves the establishment and dissolution of TCs, monitors progress of technical work and oversees the ISO/IEC Directives, Parts 1 and 2.

Technical Programme Manager (TPM)

Main ISO Central Secretariat contact point for technical committees. He/she oversees the work programmes of a portfolio of committees in related sectors and provides the leadership of these committees with guidance, support, and training. Identification, development and progression of new standardization opportunities within his/her field of action is also part of the role, as is promoting the ISO brand within his/her sector(s).

Technical Subject Proposal (TS/P)

Field of technical work awaiting approval as a new TC by the TMB.

Twinning

Scheme whereby a developing country partners with a country that is more established in standardization so they can learn the processes and take a more influential role. The "developed" country provides guidance and assistance to help their partner.

Vienna Agreement

Agreement between ISO and CEN to share information, attend each other's meetings and collaborate on standards at international and European levels.

WD

Working Draft

Working Group (WG)

Specialized group within a committee that is responsible for drafting a particular standard or set of deliverables. It is usually quite small, composed of experts and headed by a convenor.

World Standards Cooperation (WSC)

Union of standardization organizations, consisting of ISO, IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) and ITU (International Telecommunications Union).