Randy Dougherty, the Registrar Accreditation Board’s director of registrar accreditation, was recently named chair of the technical committee of the International Accreditation Forum.

The appointment was made at a meeting held in Bern, Switzerland. Dougherty’s three-year term began on July 1. His selection marks the first time an American has been tapped to lead the committee, which governs the application of international third-party certification. As chair, Dougherty will lead the consensus process for developing IAF guidelines.

“My goals are to strengthen the third-party system by building consensus for technical positions and to promote a better working relationship among accreditation bodies and the certification bodies they represent,” says Dougherty. “We need to make sure the system is responsive to the needs of stakeholders and put into practice our commitment to increase harmonization and cooperation among accreditation bodies.”

IAF’s technical committee develops guidance documents that supplement the International Organization for Standardization and the International Electrotechnical Commission requirements relating to the third-party system of accreditation and certification.

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