What are standards and why are they important

Standards are the best way to do something

Standards are best practices. They describe the best way to do something. Like making a product, delivering a service or managing a process. Think A4 paper size, the 4G network or agreements around fire safety.

Standards, sometimes called standards, are ubiquitous in our daily lives and workplaces. Thanks to standards, we have safe toys, quality mouth masks, energy-efficient buildings, clear online privacy policies and so on.
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Why standards are important

Everyone benefits from using standards: governments, industry, but also the consumer. You and me, that is.

Consumers: You and I also benefit from standards. For example, there are standards for safety of products and services, better quality of products or safer infrastructure (such as Eurocodes).

Companies: standards provide guidelines around, for example, quality and characteristics of a service or product, agreements in a value chain and working methods with clear communication.

Governments: governments can use standards to develop sustainable policies. For example, around human rights, energy and water efficiency or public health.