Someone’s interpretation of third party certification:

Wise people come and judge how other people are doing and if they’re doing OK, as defined by a standard, a certificate can be issued.

One must be really ignorant to even assume that auditors (1) are wise people, or (2) judge anybody. Auditors verify that the evidence provided by stakeholders (including the auditee) complies with a standard. It isn’t rocket science, and often a real no-brainer. Yet, sadly enough auditors apply that no-brainer also to the more challenging requirements of a standard…