Ten stages from your first enquiry to follow up after delivery, so you know what happens next at every point.
Every piece of work we do follows the same ten stages, from the first enquiry through to follow up after delivery. The stages exist so you know what happens next at every point, and so the work is assigned to someone who covers that subject instead of whoever is free.
The two stages people underestimate are scope definition and internal review. Loose scope is how a project ends in an argument about what was bought, and work that goes out on one person's judgement is how a mistake reaches a client.
Ten stages, the same every time. Scoped and quoted in writing before anything starts, assigned by subject, reviewed by a second specialist, delivered in any language.
Every engagement follows these, whether it is a single label review or a full management system build.
| Stage | What happens | Why it works this way |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Initial enquiry | You tell us what you need, through the configurator, a service page or an email. | We read it and come back within one business day. Nothing is committed at this point. |
| 2. Scope definition | We agree exactly what is covered and what is not. | Vague scope is how projects go wrong. We would rather spend time here than argue at delivery. |
| 3. Standard and jurisdiction | We establish which standard applies and which markets you sell into. | Requirements diverge between markets in both directions, so this decides much of what follows. |
| 4. Specialist assignment | The work goes to someone who covers that subject. | HACCP, labelling, standards, regulatory, supplier assurance and monitoring are separate disciplines and we treat them that way. |
| 5. Information collection | We ask for the documents and records the work depends on. | We ask once, in a single list, so you are not drip fed requests across a fortnight. |
| 6. Technical assessment | The work itself, whether a review, an audit, an assessment or a build. | Findings are recorded against the requirement they relate to, with the evidence behind each. |
| 7. Internal review | A second specialist checks the work before it reaches you. | Nothing goes out on one person's judgement. |
| 8. Deliverable | You receive the report, register, plan or document set agreed at scoping. | Written so you can act on it directly, without needing us to interpret it. |
| 9. Follow up | We answer questions on what we delivered. | Explaining our own findings is part of the work and is not charged separately. |
| 10. Additional work where needed | If the findings point to work outside the scope, we say so. | We tell you what it would involve. Whether you commission it is your decision. |
Six things that shape every engagement, and that you can hold us to.
Every quote is written against your own scope. We do not publish list prices, because a single site with a mature system and a three site operation with nothing documented are different pieces of work.
The information request is a single list, sent at stage five. Requests arriving one at a time waste your week.
Most work is delivered remotely, which keeps cost down. Where a service genuinely needs someone on site, such as a mock audit or a hygiene assessment, we say so on the page.
Reports, procedures and training are delivered in the language your team reads. Comprehension is the point of a document.
Where findings point to work we were not asked to do, we state it in the report. We do not convert it into a further engagement without telling you.
Where a question needs a laboratory, a lawyer or a structural engineer, the report says so at the point it becomes relevant.
Within one business day. That first reply either answers your question or asks what we need to scope the work accurately.
Against your own scope, quoted in writing before anything starts. Each service page lists the factors that set the price, such as the number of sites, the number of products, the standard and the languages involved.
Someone who covers that subject. HACCP, labelling, certification standards, regulatory compliance, supplier assurance and monitoring are separate disciplines, and we assign by subject instead of by availability.
Yes. A second specialist reviews every deliverable before it reaches you. This is the same internal review process our published content goes through.
It depends on the service and the page for each one says so. We send a single list at the information collection stage, so you can gather everything in one go.
Most is remote, which keeps the cost down. Some services need someone on site to be worth anything, such as a mock certification audit or a facility hygiene assessment. Each service page states which applies.
BRCGS, IFS Food, FSSC 22000, ISO 22000 and SQF for certification, plus customer codes. For legal compliance, the food law of the markets you sell into. We establish both at stage three.
Any language, including English, Spanish, French, German, Italian and Portuguese. Reports, procedures and training are delivered in the language your team reads, and we agree that at scoping.
We answer questions on what we delivered. Explaining our own findings is part of the work and is not charged separately.
We say so in the report, with what it would involve. Whether you commission it is your decision, and a lot of businesses close a good share of findings themselves once they know precisely what they are.
Yes. We handle recipes, specifications, audit reports and supplier information, so confidentiality is normal for this work and not an exception.
Yes. A lot of our work sits alongside someone else's. We are not a certification body and we have no interest in replacing an arrangement that suits you.
How we write, review and update technical content, and which sources we use.
Read about Technical review and editorial policy →Reviews, audits and assessments, priced on scope and delivered worldwide.
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