ISO 18295 Customer Contact Centre Certification in Norway

ISO 18295 is the international standard for customer contact centres, and itmad audits customer contact centres and their client organisations against ISO 18295 in all industries in Norway. itmad audits with both Norway-based auditors and a travelling team, and has worked in Norway for more than 10 years. ISO 18295 certification from itmad follows a two-stage audit and produces a certificate that runs for three years with annual surveillance audits. Last reviewed: October 2026.

What ISO 18295 is

ISO 18295 is the international standard for customer contact centres. ISO 18295 defines what a contact centre must do to deliver consistent service, and what a client organisation must provide when the client organisation outsources customer contact to a contact centre.

The two parts of ISO 18295

ISO 18295 has two parts. ISO 18295-1 sets requirements for the customer contact centre itself, whether in-house or outsourced, covering how service is delivered. ISO 18295-2 sets requirements for the client organisation using a contact centre, covering what the client organisation must specify, resource and monitor in the outsourcing relationship.

The two parts serve different organisations. A contact centre certifies to Part 1 to demonstrate its own service delivery. A government entity, bank or utility that outsources customer contact certifies to Part 2 to demonstrate that the entity specifies, resources and monitors the relationship properly. itmad certifies against both parts of ISO 18295.

Who ISO 18295 applies to

An organisation in Norway needs ISO 18295 certification when a customer or supplier programme asks for independent proof of its customer contact arrangements. ISO 18295 applies to any organisation that runs or commissions a customer contact centre, including:

• Outsourced contact centres and business process outsourcing providers
• Telecommunications and utility customer service operations
• Banking, insurance and fintech support functions
• Government service centres and public-facing helplines
• Healthcare appointment and patient contact services
• Airlines, travel and hospitality reservation centres
• Client organisations outsourcing customer contact and needing Part 2 certification

itmad audits ISO 18295 for organisations in all industries in Norway.

What ISO 18295 covers

• Customer contact strategyDefined service levels across all channels, with accessibility requirements for waiting times, response rates and first-contact resolution targets.
• Staff competence and authorityRecruitment criteria, induction, ongoing training and defined authority for customer-facing agents, including sufficient authority to resolve enquiries without unnecessary escalation.
• Enquiry and escalation handlingProcesses for handling enquiries at first contact, escalating what cannot be resolved, and closing the loop with the customer on the outcome.
• Complaint handlingComplaints distinguished from general enquiries, logged, acknowledged and closed within defined timescales, with trend analysis feeding improvement.
• Customer information protectionControls over customer data collected and held by the contact centre, appropriate to applicable privacy obligations.
• Quality monitoringCall and contact monitoring against defined criteria, with feedback to agents, calibration between assessors and evidence that quality data is used rather than collected and filed.
• Satisfaction measurementCustomer satisfaction data collected, reported and acted upon, not surveyed once a year and otherwise ignored.
• Business continuityContinuity arrangements for the contact operation, tested rather than assumed.
• Client organisation requirements (ISO 18295-2)What the commissioning organisation must specify, resource, monitor and report on when the organisation outsources customer contact: the obligations that make the outsourcing relationship manageable.

Where ISO 18295 audits find gaps

Quality monitoring is the clause that most often produces findings in ISO 18295 audits. Monitoring records exist, but calibration between assessors was never done, so scores are not comparable across supervisors or time periods. The other recurring area is complaint handling: a defined process that is followed for straightforward cases and bypassed for anything difficult, with the most significant complaints resolved informally and never entered into the system at all.

Certification in Norway

An ISO 18295 certificate states the certified scope, including the locations covered, and a Norwegian buyer or supplier programme checks that scope wording. Each Norwegian buyer or supplier programme sets acceptance conditions for ISO 18295 certificates.

How itmad delivers ISO 18295 in Norway

itmad delivers ISO 18295 audits in Norway through Norway-based auditors and a travelling team, and certifies organisations in all industries. ISO/IEC 17021-1 prevents a certification body from designing or implementing the system that the body certifies, and itmad does not. itmad provides the audit, the certification decision, and optional pre-assessment that identifies gaps without prescribing how an organisation closes those gaps.

The ISO 18295 certification process

Stage 1 of an itmad ISO 18295 audit reviews documented arrangements, service level definitions and scope. Stage 2 of an itmad ISO 18295 audit assesses the operation in practice: call and contact monitoring records, staff competence evidence, complaint files end to end, and the measurement data behind reported performance.

ISO 18295 timeline

An ISO 18295 certificate from itmad runs for three years, with annual surveillance audits in each intervening year and recertification before the certificate expires.

What itmad provides

• Stage 1 report identifying readiness gaps before the main audit
• Stage 2 audit report with findings supported by objective evidence
• Nonconformities classified by severity with defined response timescales
• Certificate of registration stating the certified scope and locations
• Certification mark for use under the terms of itmad's mark and seal policy
• Annual surveillance audits and reports through the three-year cycle

Frequently asked questions

What is ISO 18295?

ISO 18295 is the international standard for customer contact centres. ISO 18295 defines what a contact centre must do to deliver consistent service, and what a client organisation must provide when the client organisation outsources customer contact.

How does ISO 18295 certification work with itmad in Norway?

itmad audits ISO 18295 in two stages. Stage 1 reviews the documented arrangements, the service level definitions and the scope. Stage 2 assesses the operation in practice, including call and contact monitoring records, staff competence evidence, complaint files end to end, and the measurement data behind reported performance. The ISO 18295 certificate runs for three years with annual surveillance audits.

Does itmad use auditors based in Norway?

itmad uses both Norway-based auditors and a travelling team for ISO 18295 audits in Norway. itmad has worked in Norway for more than 10 years.

What is the difference between ISO 18295-1 and ISO 18295-2?

ISO 18295-1 sets requirements for the customer contact centre itself, whether in-house or outsourced, covering how service is delivered. ISO 18295-2 sets requirements for the client organisation using a contact centre, covering what the client organisation must specify, resource and monitor in the outsourcing relationship.

What do ISO 18295 audits find most often?

Quality monitoring is the clause that most often produces findings in ISO 18295 audits: monitoring records exist, but calibration between assessors was never done, so scores are not comparable across supervisors or time periods. Complaint handling is the other recurring area, with a defined process followed for straightforward cases and bypassed for anything difficult.

What does ISO 18295 cover?

ISO 18295 covers customer contact strategy, staff competence and authority, enquiry and escalation handling, complaint handling, customer information protection, quality monitoring, satisfaction measurement and business continuity. ISO 18295-2 adds the requirements for the client organisation that outsources customer contact.