Two-minute brief
ISO 44001 requirements explained: video brief
A two-minute brief on ISO 44001 and the eight-stage life cycle that makes it different from other management system standards.
Key takeaways
- ISO 44001 shares clauses 4 to 10 with other management system standards.
- Clause 8 is an eight-stage life cycle for each relationship.
- Its Stage 1 to Stage 8 are not the certification audit stages.
- A relationship management plan governs each relationship.
- Exit strategy activation is planned from the start.
A shared structure with a different clause 8
ISO 44001 is built on the common clause structure of ISO management system standards, clauses 4 to 10, as it stood in 2017, so much of it can be shared with ISO 9001 or ISO 45001. What sets it apart is clause 8, where operation becomes an eight-stage life cycle applied to specific relationships. The standard numbers these Stage 1 to Stage 8; they are not the certification body's Stage 1 and Stage 2 audits. This short film walks through the structure.
Clause 4 asks the organisation to determine relevant issues and stakeholders, assess where collaboration can bring benefits, set the scope and consider the creation of value, and, since Amendment 1:2024, determine whether climate change is a relevant issue. In practice that means a context analysis, stakeholder requirements and a scope naming the relationships covered. Leadership sets policy and governance for collaboration, and planning addresses risks and opportunities.
The eight stages
Clause 8 takes each relationship through eight stages: operational awareness, knowledge, internal assessment, partner selection, working together, value creation, staying together and exit strategy activation. The early stages establish why collaboration is worthwhile and whether the organisation is ready; partner selection and working together set up the joint arrangements; value creation and staying together keep the relationship productive; and exit strategy activation ensures it can end in a managed way. Each relationship is governed through a relationship management plan.
The standard applies to public and private organisations of every size, for one project or relationship, a group of partners or every relationship they hold. ISO 44001:2017 with Amendment 1:2024 is current, and a second edition is in draft. Certification is audited and decided by an independent certification body; accreditation for ISO 44001 exists in some countries, including the United Kingdom, but not all.
The standard calls for a corporate relationship management plan as documented information, then a plan for each relationship developed through the life cycle.
ISO 44001 at a glance
- Purpose
- Identifying, developing and managing collaborative business relationships within or between organisations, so that working together realises more value
- Relevant to
- Public and private organisations of every size, for one project or relationship, a group of partners or every relationship they hold
- Edition
- ISO 44001:2017 with Amendment 1:2024; a second edition is at draft stage, with no publication date announced
- Certification
- Audited and decided by an independent certification body; accreditation for ISO 44001 exists in some countries, including the United Kingdom, but not all
- Sterling's role
- Policy, governance and the first joint RMP with your team; training, internal audit and certification readiness, run in Effivity; then Sustain™
- Cost and timing
- Total investment for an ISO 44001 collaborative business relationship management system depends on the current maturity of your processes, the scope, locations and number of employees. The process typically takes 4 to 9 months
ISO 44001: questions people ask
Is ISO 44001 certification mandatory?
No. ISO 44001 is voluntary and becomes a condition only where a client, framework or partner makes it one. Interest is strongest among organisations that commission or deliver major projects, but it is just as useful without external demand wherever results depend on partners.
Can we certify one partnership or programme rather than the whole organisation?
Yes. ISO 44001 can be applied to a single project, programme or acquisition, to one relationship, to several identified relationships such as a consortium, or organisation-wide. The certificate reflects the scope of your system, so define it precisely and check it matches what the client needs.
Do our partners also have to be certified?
Your certificate covers your own system. The standard recognises that collaboration needs two or more organisations and that management systems must accommodate their joint activities, so from partner selection onward your partners take part in the joint RMP, governance, issue resolution and exit strategy. Whether a partner seeks its own certificate is its decision.
What is a relationship management plan, and why are there several?
An RMP sets out the governance processes, or references to them, that define how a relationship is managed and controlled. ISO 44001 calls for a corporate RMP held as documented information, an RMP established during operational awareness and developed through the next stages, and a joint RMP started with the selected partner and maintained together until exit.
Is accredited ISO 44001 certification available?
Yes, in some countries. In the United Kingdom, UKAS accredits certification bodies for ISO 44001 under ISO/IEC 17021-1, and ISO/IEC TS 17021-12 sets the competence requirements for auditing these systems. Accreditation is granted standard by standard: as of September 2026, the national accreditation bodies of the UAE and the Philippines did not list ISO 44001 among their management system schemes. Check that the certification body's accredited scope names ISO 44001, and ask whoever wants the certificate what they will accept.
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