Hello,
We have our annual compliance audit coming up in the next couple of weeks. I was wondering if there is any general information available that I could present to our employees ahead of time on the questions the ISO 9001:2000 auditor may ask? (other than what will be in his audit checklist) I have already consided making sure all are aware of our quality policy, objectives, manual, and QOP's but is there anything else?

Thanks

Hi,

Tips for employees.

1. Just answer the question. Do not elaborate unless the auditor asks for more info.

2. Answer honestly.

3. If you don't understand the question, say so.

4. Be polite.

5. If you are in the middle of a task, andit is importantthat you finish the task, ask the auditor if he can come back in 10 minutes.

6. Know where the documentation that applies to your job

7. Know and understand the quality policy

8. Know the objectives that apply to you and how you affect them.

Hope this helps.

Danny

Here's a guide I provided our people some time ago.

First of all, disseminate the audit plan as early as possible to all concerned to let them do minor tweaking e.g. filing loose records, tidying up the workplace, reviewing if documents on file are the latest, etc.

Tip: When an auditor is asking for a record or a document and that record or document is filed inside a ring binder or a folder or an envelope, dont give the whole ring binder or folder or envelope but rather the specific document only. Otherwise, you are presenting several can of worms on which the auditors can open.

When asked a direct question answerable by yes or no, being unsure or taking too long to answer would lead the auditor to ask more question relating to that audit trail.

Prepare by understanding the process and reading through documented procedures or work instructions, if theyre available.

Prepare mentally, physically and emotionally before the audit.

Be able to tell the auditor a good place to have dinner. :D

Be able to tell the auditor a good place to have dinner. :D Says the guy who normally has lousy pizza in the hotel bar:lmao:

Seriously,
the best plan of action is to be sure each employee knows his place and function in the "big picture." At a minimum, he should also be aware of what comes immediately before his function (his supplier) and after his function (his customer.) As part of that, he should know and be able to explain how he knows whether incoming product or service from his supplier is good to work on and add further value. He should be aware of what his finished product or service requirements are to allow his customer to use it effectively.

Excellent!!! Thank you everyone for your help.

Great ideas from everyone last year!

Well, it's that time of year again for us and I thought I would bump this post up to see if there are any other suggestions out there for preparing company employees for a surveillance audit.

Cheers!

Make sure everyone knows the schedule.

Tell people if they don't know the answer to a particular question off the top of their heads, that is ok. They should do their best. If they can refer the auditor to someone who probably does know the answer (team lead, supervisior, another department) or to a document that has the answer, do so.

The auditor doesn't know everything about your division of labor, so questions that cross into other persons areas are to be expected.

Here's a guide I provided our people some time ago.
Which I shamelessly plagiarized because I liked it so much - thanks for sharing, Rob.:agree:

Here's what I did with it:

Good posts so far. I would add, if you have a good auditor, he is on your side. He is not an IRS auditor, and it is not just a "compliance" audit. We are there to help you improve, and endeavor to find any good ideas that will help you improve. Work with us, not against us. We're there to benefit you.

May I add the following:

He's a professional and respect him so. Do not harrass him. Leave him alone to exercise his professional judgement.

By the way, I am not an auditor but had worked with many.

Okido, bit of advocate of the devil here:

Don't prepare the employees!

If you've implemented your system properly, there's no necessity for preparation. I've also seen in real life that well prepared auditees (all yes/no answers, prepared files that are specifically updated for the audit, etc.) result in irritated auditors. Certifying auditors should be seen and treated as a valuable source of information and improvement.

I think preparing employees is a sign of fear of the auditor which also results in more stress on the auditees. "Aaargh, here the man I've been warned for :mg: ".

Don't prepare and let it happen, only by being open to a certifying auditor you get added value out of his audits.

edit: nope, i'm not a certifying auditor either, i really mean this ;-)

I would say get on your knees and kiss some A$$.:lmao:

Just kidding, just answer the questions tothe best of your ability and work with them not against them.

If you've implemented your system properly, there's no necessity for preparation. ... I think preparing employees is a sign of fear of the auditor which also results in more stress on the auditees. "Aaargh, here the man I've been warned for :mg: ". ... Don't prepare and let it happen, only by being open to a certifying auditor you get added value out of his audits.
You talk as if preparing means scaring them.:confused:

I prepare everyone in order to ease their minds - by letting them know that it's just another day at work but this guy might come and ask you some questions about your job. If you don't know the answer - say you don't know the answer. There's nothing to be nervous about.

Preparing employees is a sign of fear?:confused: I disagree.

I prepare everyone in order to ease their minds - by letting them know that it's just another day at work but this guy might come and ask you some questions about your job. If you don't know the answer - say you don't know the answer. There's nothing to be nervous about.

Preparing employees is a sign of fear?:confused: I disagree.


Like Cari, I agree with preparing as is easing the situation and trying to make folks comfortible. They need to know what to expect, the schedule, and that their best is just that, their best. No fingerpointing if someone chokes!

I have seen others take preparing to a whole new level that is similar to lawyers coaching cilents at a trial. Cheat sheets and list. List of folks to stear the auditor way from, practice audits with lists of "approved" auditees. I walked into this situation as a consultant 2 years ago:frust: . Those are the things to avoid. If you spend that much time preping folks, the system probably isn't working for various reasons.

Preparing employees is a sign of fear?:confused: I disagree.

Ok, ok, i got a little carried away perhaps (the weekend is nigh! :o ). But even so, when u say that peoples minds need to be eased, it apparently means they are not at ease when an auditor arrives normally.

I guess we fully agree on preparations then, just tell them to do whatever they normally do. The point i was trying to make was not to do what morgand said as well, don't give them an auditee training.

...when u say that peoples minds need to be eased, it apparently means they are not at ease when an auditor arrives normally.
The weekend can't come fast enough for me this week!:agree:

Anyway - lots of people get nervous over things they needn't be. Like the student who knows the subject matter like the back of their hand - yet freezes up on tests or chokes during an oral presentation. Machinists, forklift drivers, benchhands, etc. - they worry about saying the wrong thing, they worry they will sound stupid, they don't want to be the reason we get a gig, they worry because they don't know anything about ISO. I make sure that they know that they don't have to know anything about ISO - they only have to tell the guy about their job.

As far as this:

Cheat sheets and list. List of folks to stear the auditor way from, practice audits with lists of "approved" auditees.

I agree with you both on this for sure. This kind of stuff isn't necessary if you are actually doing what you say you are. People do this stuff when they have things to hide.

Amen!!! I coudn't agree more Cari. I worked for a company that prepared their employees because they failed to accurately define their system and follow it. It was a mad house right before the audit.

I now work for a company where I let the employees know that the auditor is coming and that is it. An auditor could walk into our facility at any time and perform an audit and no one would be nervous because they know that we "say what we do and do what we say".

I worked for a company that prepared their employees because they failed to accurately define their system and follow it. It was a mad house right before the audit.Yep - the mad house before the audit is definitely an indication that all is not well.

I now work for a company where I let the employees know that the auditor is coming and that is it. An auditor could walk into our facility at any time and perform an audit and no one would be nervous because they know that we "say what we do and do what we say".Glad to hear it.:agree1: Same here. Every now and then we get a new employee who hasn't worked at a registered company or who worked at a place that was a mad house before audits and I have to allay their nervousness. I also do my best to have the auditor interview the new employees specifically so they can see that there is nothing to be nervous about.;)

If the Management Rep appears to be nervous, the other employees will pick up on it, especially if the Management Rep is also responsible for the "nuts and bolts" of the Quality system. If the Management Rep is nervous, the line employees will be terrified (I know because I was one, seems like not too long ago).

That is why it is important to maintain one's cool and sense of humor, even if it seems alligators are everywhere. If I/we have done our jobs there is nothing to worry about. Confidence!!

Plagiarize anytime Cari. :yes: