What exactly is required?
Separate legal or contractual obligations, buyer preference, user need and internal aspiration.
Gap 6 of 14
Supplier claim → observable proof
Policies and capability statements exist without evidence that controls operate
The problem
A document may describe review, quality, safeguarding, cyber security or environmental management without records showing the activity occurred.
Evidence is stronger when it shows operation, exception, learning and correction—not only an approved statement.
Buyer question
What minimum evidence proves the control is operating without imposing disproportionate burden?
Supplier question
Could an independent reviewer follow the record from requirement to action, result and correction?
Observable evidence
What would make confidence more reasonable?
- evidence register
- sample record
- exception log
- management review
- corrective action
Important: the presence of a document does not prove that the process operates. Evidence should be proportionate, current, attributable and capable of being reviewed.
A practical diagnostic
Six questions before prescribing a solution.
The questions prevent a generic template from being mistaken for implementation.
Who is accountable?
Name the person who performs, approves and reviews the activity—not only the department.
What actually happens?
Describe the normal sequence, decision points, exceptions, handovers and dependencies.
What trace is created?
Identify a proportionate record that can show the process was used and the result was reviewed.
How is variation corrected?
Define how delay, error, nonconformity or poor feedback becomes corrective action rather than explanation.
What decision follows?
Specify what management changes when the evidence shows the process is not producing the required outcome.
Continue the diagnosis
Related gaps
Most reliability problems cross more than one point in the system.
Sources and scrutiny
Sources informing this gap
These sources support the factual context. Market Accord's interpretation is identified separately and should be read with its stated limitations.
- Guidance: Covered Procurement Objectives Cabinet Office · 2026-04-01 · official procurement guidance Open source
- ISO certification International Organization for Standardization · 2025-01-01 · official standards information Open source
Move from diagnosis to evidence.
A short scoping conversation can determine whether the next step is research, implementation, a controlled pilot, buyer engagement or no intervention at all.