Conflict & Independence Policy
The credibility of a certification depends on the independence of the body that issues it. Most "AI audit" providers also sell consulting, implementation, or remediation services to the same clients they certification — a structural conflict that has discredited entire certification industries before. Etika is built to avoid it. This is the standing policy. Breaches are sanctioned.
01
Etika does not sell consulting, advisory, implementation, or remediation services to any organisation it audits or has audited within the previous five years. There is no separate consulting division, no partner firm, no white-labelled subsidiary.
02
Etika's assessor education programme is operated by a separately governed unit. Completion of an Etika course is neither necessary nor sufficient for an assessor to be assigned to any certification engagement.
03
No individual lead assessor may serve the same audited organisation for more than two consecutive certification cycles. A minimum two-year cooling-off period applies before re-engagement.
04
Certification fees are quoted in writing after a scoping call and confirmed in the engagement letter. No engagement fees vary based on the assessment outcome, and no Etika personnel receive variable compensation tied to certification decisions.
05
Every assessor must declare financial interests, prior employment, and personal relationships with audited organisations and their leadership. Conflicts trigger automatic reassignment. The disclosure register is reviewed by the Board of Directors quarterly.
06
Audited organisations may appeal a certification decision to a standing appeals panel composed of board members who had no role in the original certification. Panel decisions are published in summary form.
07
Breaches of this policy are investigated by the Board's Ethics Committee. Sanctions include suspension, dismissal, public disclosure, and — for affected certifications — reopening of the assessment at no cost to the certified party.
08
Etika maintains a public register of every certification engagement: who audited whom, in what role, in what period. This makes assessor rotation and recusal externally verifiable.
Reference
This policy is binding on all Etika personnel, accredited assessors, and contractors. It is reviewed annually by the Board of Directors and amended only with a two-thirds vote. Last reviewed: 2026.
