British Accreditation Bureau reference work

Below is a selection of clients to whom we have delivered a range of consultancy services.

UK Trade & Investment

'Passport' is UK Trade & Investment’s flagship assessment and skills-based programme that provides new and inexperienced exporters with the training, planning and ongoing support they need to succeed overseas.

Following competitive tender, we were selected to design and manage the Passport Accreditation System (PAS), with the remit of measuring and evaluating the performance of export services from the Government’s business support agencies. Since its launch in 2002, the PAS accreditation scheme has evolved into a sophisticated web based monitoring system for ensuring the effective delivery and management of the Passport programme.

Today the PAS accreditation scheme has developed into a comprehensive web-enabled monitoring tool that is used by all nine UK Regions and Overseas Trade Posts creating a worldwide online community. The comprehensive live statistics module is utilised at Ministerial level and provides the source data for official reports regarding the growth of UK exports.

Royal Mail - QMP

Launched in March 2001, the Quality Standard for Mail Production (QMP) was created as an accreditation scheme for driving up standards in the direct mail industry.

Commissioned by Royal Mail, we were selected to design and manage the QMP accreditation scheme on behalf of the industry. We also created a web interface to help buyers of direct mail services to source proven suppliers. The sophisticated web based short listing mechanism was designed to allow end users to find accredited mailing houses using keyword, geographical or specialist criterion. Thus providing end users with a unique facility for sourcing providers of all forms of direct mail services.

Overseen by an independent Advisory Council with representation from the Incorporated Society of British Advertisers (ISBA) and the Direct Marketing Association (DMA), the QMP accreditation scheme was a first for the industry.

As the scheme evolved, a community secure area was made available for accredited mailing houses; providing access to up-to-date information regarding changes in legislation for the direct mail industry and guidance on issues of best practice. To support this, we also implemented a management system for ‘Ad Alerts’ on behalf of the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), to ensure compliance with ASA adjudications relating to direct mail advertising.

British Institute of Agricultural Consultants

Any form of assessment requires objectiveness and consistency. In this case the British Institute of Agricultural Consultants (BIAC) wanted us to help them to align their current procedures to recognised best practice and provide training for professionals that would perform the role of internal moderators.

Our initial objective was to review the existing membership assessment process. As part of this review, we updated the assessment procedures and produced tools for their interview assessment panel to support their use of the new procedures. To support this work we then provided training on assessment best practice to the panel and acted as external verifiers to ‘bed down’ the new procedures.

BIAC tell us that they have found our assistance extremely beneficial in that their membership assessment panels have gained credibility and the robustness of their procedures is now transparent and open to external scrutiny. 

The British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) wanted to re-launch their Joint Export Training Standards (JETS) scheme. JETS is aimed at expert trainers that provide training for Government funded schemes and it was important to ensure that the new version of the standards was aligned to best practice. BCC contacted us following a recommendation.

We were engaged to review the existing standards and apply our expertise to align them to recognised best practice. We re-designed both the application and assessment processes and assisted the BCC in recruiting qualified Assessors.

Our involvement has enabled the BCC to demonstrate that JETS conforms to recognised best practice and has helped to position JETS accredited trainers as the trusted choice for sourcing export related training providers.

Certified Practitioner

We can design personnel certification programmes to suit the most rigorous of requirements. This could entail an integral part of a specified standard or in support of a training strategy.

The Certified Practitioner (CP) award is a further example of our work. Originally developed for the Government’s business support agencies in the early nineties, the CP award certifies the credentials of professional consultants.

This personnel certification requires consultants to demonstrate their expertise across a range of abilities. Their qualifications and claims are verified, client references are checked and they are required to have a minimum level of professional indemnity insurance.

To ensure standards are maintained, CPs must adhere to a Code of Professional Conduct, they are required to undergo continuing professional development (CPD) and their work is regularly monitored.

This scheme is operated to this day and forms the content for The Consultant Register which is available FREE of charge to those who wish to search for and short list accredited consultants.

To access The Consultant Register simply click here. If you’d like to know more about the CP award click here.

Barclays Bank

We helped Barclays' Corporate Business Support team to develop an accredited Company Doctors network in support of Barclays' clients who find themselves facing troubling times.

Bulgarian Association of Management Consultants (BAMCO)

We were invited to assist the Bulgarian Association of Management Consultants (BAMCO) to align their assessment procedures to recognised best practice and identify robust criteria for assessment.

Business Links

We have worked with the Government’s business support agencies since 1990. During that period we have helped to develop a number of programmes including the Certified Practitioner award. This rigorous assessment was designed as a standard for consultants wishing to work with businesses assisted by Government support funding.

The Chartered Insurance Institute

We developed and managed a Training Supplier accreditation programme for the Chartered Insurance Institute to help raise standards in the provision of training for its members.

Department of Trade and Industry

We have worked on a number of DTI initiatives since the early 1990’s and most recently managed a pilot programme aimed at helping Small & Medium sized Enterprises (SMEs) to avoid business failure through the engagement of accredited Company Doctors. We also developed a web presence to support it.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

We were commissioned to design and conduct a research programme on behalf of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to measure the effectiveness of their Overseas Trade Services. This consisted of conducting quarterly telephone surveys and producing reports along with briefing papers for Ministers.

The Institute of Export

We were commissioned to review the Institute’s current membership assessment procedures and help to align them to recognised best practice.

Institute for the Promotion of Small Enterprise (Malta)

We were commissioned to act as advisers to the Institute for the Promotion of Small and Medium Enterprises in support of the Maltese Government’s bid for membership of the European Union. Our role was to draft plans to address service partner accreditation and recommend suitable best practice guidelines.

Lloyds of London

We were commissioned to design and manage a Training Provider accreditation programme to ensure best practice in training provision.

Polish Business Advisory Network (PBAN)

We were commissioned as a partner in a major PHARE project. Our role was to advise on accreditation best practice and draft plans to address supply chain accreditation issues.

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