Organization of the standard
Six normative clauses run around one record, the bias profile, and every clause is revisited as the system changes.
What clause 1.6 asks
The clauses that carry requirements describe moments in the life of a system when the team acts on the bias it intends and reduces the bias it does not want. One record, the bias profile, sits at the centre and the clauses are arranged around it. Their order matches the order in which a team is likely to meet them the first time; it is not a one-way sequence. The team returns to each clause as the build, the operation and the surroundings change. Clause 4 sets the requirements, clause 5 defines the profile, clause 6 covers the people affected and the people who influence the system, clause 7 covers the data, clause 8 covers risk and impact, and clause 9 covers evaluation. Everything in the annexes is guidance.
Why it matters
The organization clause is the instruction manual for the register. It says the six steps are a loop, not a checklist. It also says the profile is the spine: every step reads it and writes back to it. A team that runs the clauses once and files the result has followed the order but missed the iteration. A team that iterates without a profile has activity but no traceable record.
What good looks like
Draw the six steps on one page and put the bias profile in the centre. Mark where each step reads the profile and where it writes. Then mark the events that force another pass: a change to the system, a change to its context, a change to its data, a drift finding, a new stakeholder, or an audit. Put the loop on the project wall and use it at every gate.
Evidence an assessor asks for
The assessor will ask for the last iteration and what triggered it. A process map with no iteration log shows intent but not operation.
- Process map The six clauses drawn as a loop around the bias profile, with read and write arrows
- Iteration log A dated entry for each pass, with the trigger and the profile version
- Gate checklist The project gates at which the loop is reviewed
- Profile index The current and prior versions of each clause output
Where it commonly fails
- The clauses are run once as a project stage
- The profile is rebuilt each time, so the version history is lost
- Annex guidance is cited as a requirement
What to do before publication
Set the iteration triggers before the first pass. A trigger that is not written down will not be noticed when the system changes.