The ISO Whistleblowing Standard is a guideline aimed at aiding organizations in establishing whistleblowing management systems founded upon concepts of trust, impartiality, and protection. The adaptability of the guidelines allows for their usage to be contingent upon factors such as the organization's size, nature, complexity, and jurisdiction of its activities. The guidelines have the potential to aid an organization in enhancing its current whistleblowing policy and processes, as well as ensuring compliance with relevant whistleblowing legislation.
The ISO Whistle-blower Guidelines offer guidance to businesses on the establishment, implementation, maintenance, and enhancement of a whistleblowing management system, aiming to achieve the following objectives:
- Providing incentives and making it easier for people to report wrongdoing
- Making certain that reports of misbehavior are investigated in an appropriate and prompt way
- Enhancing both the culture of the organization and its governance
- Providing support and protection for people who blow the whistle as well as other interested parties
- lowering the likelihood of unethical behavior
ISO 37002: The Guidelines Intention
The ISO Whistleblower Guidelines provide a set of principles that pertain to establishing, implementing, and maintaining an efficient whistleblowing management system. These principles are rooted in trust, impartiality, and protection and are organized into four processes.
- Receiving reports of wrongdoing
- Assessing reports of wrongdoing
- Addressing reports of wrongdoing
- Concluding whistleblowing cases.
The ISO Whistleblower Guidelines possess a generic nature, designed to be universally applicable to organizations of all types, sizes, and operational characteristics, irrespective of their sector classification as public, private, or not-for-profit. The plan under development can be readily customized to align with the organization's specific requirements.
ISO 37002 Certification - Benefits
Regardless of its size, industry, or organizational structure, any organization is eligible to utilize ISO 37002 as its management system standard. It will be possible for organizations to find solutions to a far greater number of problems, many of which would otherwise have the potential to worsen, thereby preventing damage to the organization and its stakeholders. It also provides a fresh perspective on the culture of your company or organization.
The objectives that will be accomplished with the implementation of the proposed ISO 37002 Management Systems Standard are as follows:
- Assisting organizations in establishing consistent whistleblowing frameworks that produce protected settings, foster self-assurance in reporting wrongdoing, and respond to concerns promptly and suitably.
- Assisting in establishing trust between an organization and its various stakeholders, especially its employees.
- Addressing issues over-reporting misconduct and handling it in light of the growing number of incidents brought to public attention.
- Promoting democratic principles and openness to scrutiny. The utilization of ISO 37002 as a document that stands on its own is planned. Equally, the suggested standard might be utilized with existing standards, such as those governing organizational governance and anti-bribery, compliance, and other management systems.
- Providing direction to organizations so they can cultivate cultures of openness in which individuals feel comfortable coming forward to raise concerns of wrongdoing.
