How often should Lead Auditors take a refresher course?

[mshell]

I was just wondering how often Lead Auditors should take a refresher course?

Opinions please?

 

[howste]

I suppose it depends on how frequently they are auditing, and how much they are working in functions that would keep them current with the requirements. The RAB requires at least 15 professional development hours per year to maintain certification.

BTW, are you talking about RAB-certified lead auditors, internal lead auditors, or something else?

 

[mshell]

Internal Auditors.

At this point, we only have 2. Both of us are ANSI-RAB certified but we only perform internal audits.

 

[db]

I suppose it depends on how frequently they are auditing, and how much they are working in functions that would keep them current with the requirements. The RAB requires at least 15 professional development hours per year to maintain certification.

The only thing I might add is to look at refresher training when there is a substantial change, such as going from 94 to 2K, or QS to TS. Also, if you merge your QMS and EMS or H&S, etc, you might want to take that time for a refresher.

 

[ben sortin]

My recommendation would be for the lead auditor to maintain a "relevance library" which could include the latest and greatest in terms of books, periodicals, and reports. This is a training tool in itself and the time can be logged towards recertification.