ISO 37001 is the first international anti-bribery and anti-corruption management system standard designed to help organizations deal with the risk of possible bribery in their own work processes and throughout their supply chain, including relationships with stakeholders. The standard is a tool for reducing corporate risk and costs related to the occurrence of bribery by providing a flexible business framework to prevent, detect and resolve bribery.

The system can be independent or integrated into the entire management system. This standard addresses the following issues related to the organization’s activities:

• by bribery in the public, private and non-profit sector;
• bribe by the organization;
• bribery by the staff of the organization acting on its behalf or for its benefit;
• bribery by business associates of the organization who act on its behalf or for its benefit;
• a bribe to the organization;
• bribing the organization’s staff in connection with the organization’s activities;
• bribery to the organization’s business associates in connection with the organization’s activities;
• direct and indirect bribes (eg bribes offered or received from a third party).

The standard establishes requirements and provides guidance for a management system designed to help an organization prevent, detect and respond to bribery and complies with anti-bribery laws and voluntarily accepted requirements applicable to its activities. The requirements of this document are generic and are intended to be applicable to all organizations (or parts of organizations), regardless of type, size or nature of activity, regardless of whether they are in the public, private or non-profit sector.

By implementing related measures and controls, including accompanying guidelines, the anti-bribery management system defines requirements for:

• anti-bribery policy and procedures,
• leadership, commitment and responsibility of top management,
• supervision of responsible managers,
• anti-bribery training,
• risk assessment and verification of projects and business partners,
• financial control, procurement control, commercial and contracting control,
• reporting, monitoring, research and review,
• corrective measures and continuous improvement.

Advantages of ISO 37001:

• ensures legislative and regulatory compliance
• improves work and process control
• promotes an ethical business culture
• establishes trust and ensures implementation of best practices against bribery and/or bribery
• protects the company, shareholders and management from the negative effects associated with bribery
• reduces reputational risk