ASSURIA Life (GY) Inc and Assuria General (GY) Inc, two companies which have been incorporated in Guyana in March 2012, have been awarded the ISO 9001:2008 Quality Management System Certification.Assuria Guyana was, on January 1, 2016, awarded the prestigious certification status by the certification body Kiwa Nederland BV. This certificate was, last Thursday, handed over to the General Manager of Assuria Guyana, Yogindra Arjune, at a simple ceremony held at the company’s main office on Church Street, Georgetown by Foreign Director Mr. Suniel Nandpersaud.

Assuria is the first financial institution in Guyana to become certified to this highly recognised International ISO 9001 Quality Management System Standard.

The Guyana National Bureau of Standards (GNBS) has played an integral role in providing technical assistance to the newly-certified company, enabling it to implement and satisfy all the requirements of the ISO 9001 Standard, which are premised on quality and customer satisfaction.

Through the unwavering commitment of the Assuria team, the company was able to complete the process within seven months, thus achieving a notable record.

COMPETITIVE EDGE
Speaking at the handing-over ceremony, Executive Director of the GNBS, Evadnie Enniss, lauded the management and staff of the company for their dedicated efforts employed towards attaining the remarkable achievement. Enniss said that becoming certified can only augur well for Assuria Guyana and its clients. She added that certification will provide the company with a competitive edge, increase its efficiency, and help it to consistently meet customer and regulatory requirements.

The executives of Assuria have given kudos to the GNBS for the professional and dedicated support and guidance provided to the company as it journeyed towards certification. They expressed satisfaction with the high level of competency demonstrated by the staff of the Bureau, which they believe would assist more companies in Guyana to become ISO 9001 certified.

Assuria Suriname, the parent company, which has been certified to the ISO 9001 Standard since 2008, desires that all of its subsidiaries attain the ISO 9001:2008 Certification; and, as a result, drafted an implementation plan with Assuria Guyana. Therefore, on April 13, 2015, Assuria Guyana signed a proposal with the GNBS to commence the technical assistance programme, which facilitated the development and implementation of the ISO 9001 Quality Management System in all of the company’s operations in Guyana.

The ISO 9001:2008 Quality Management System standard defines the strategic process for operating one’s business to ensure that it is consistently meeting customer and regulatory requirements. Companies implementing this system are often guided by the management system principles, which include customer focus, leadership, involvement of people, system approach, factual approach to decision-making, and supplier management.

Assuria Guyana joins the more than one million companies currently certified to the ISO 9001 Standard in over 170 countries worldwide. ISO 9001 Certification can be used as a benchmark for providing quality products and services, as a marketing tool for increasing the customer base of a company, and for boosting the competitiveness and efficiency within any organisation.