I'll join the chorus that this is a great discussion, teetering between what should be in theory and what plays out in the real relationships us humans have between people and organizations.
Several questions have been asked, and not answered directly. Let me throw my two cents in in the form of direct answers, followed by some questions on the practical side:
Should this have been written up as a NC?: Yes, if boundaries were not set up beforehand. No if boundaries were established and the NC was outside the boundaries.
Should it have been "Major"?: That is decided solely by the customer. There is no rule defining major and minor for a customer audit unless the customer defines them or the above mentioned boundaries exist.
Should it have been broadcast around the customer before you got a chance to respond or discuss?: N/A. It was going to be anyway, whether you discussed it or not during the audit. The person was going to go home and be asked, "what did you see?"
So back into practical stuff:
Aren't you glad it was sent to you? It could have been sent around your customer without your knowledge...and then you'd be scratching your head wondering why the customer didn't come back. Now at least you have learned to prepare for a customer audit thoroughly...and you know about the opportunity for damage control.
Beyond that, audits are a real pain from the auditee side. I don't know the auditor side, but I figure they aren't a thrilling way to spend the day there either. So the real question is...what is YOUR purpose for an audit.
- It could be to land a customer
- It could be to maintain your "ticket to play"
- Or it could be a way to build the best, most profitable company you can (which includes the last two).
If it's about doing a great job (i.e. increasing ongoing profit), you would desire your customer to point out deficiencies. You would desire the same from your CB auditors, interanl auditors, employees and janitors. You'll never fix it if you don't know it's broke. This is an opportunity to improve...the rest is words in an email.
This whole thread is a debate over the words in an email, and many people suggesting to get past the words in the email and build a better company...firstly by mending your customer relationship...then by revisiting your company's prioritization of conformance since it obviously can affect your customer relationship.
It's a great discussion...don't get hung up on the appropriateness of the NC wording, or the NC's existence...build a better system. Your customer pointed out a way you can improve...run with it.
K' that was about four cents...return the change if you want.
Several questions have been asked, and not answered directly. Let me throw my two cents in in the form of direct answers, followed by some questions on the practical side:
Should this have been written up as a NC?: Yes, if boundaries were not set up beforehand. No if boundaries were established and the NC was outside the boundaries.
Should it have been "Major"?: That is decided solely by the customer. There is no rule defining major and minor for a customer audit unless the customer defines them or the above mentioned boundaries exist.
Should it have been broadcast around the customer before you got a chance to respond or discuss?: N/A. It was going to be anyway, whether you discussed it or not during the audit. The person was going to go home and be asked, "what did you see?"
So back into practical stuff:
Aren't you glad it was sent to you? It could have been sent around your customer without your knowledge...and then you'd be scratching your head wondering why the customer didn't come back. Now at least you have learned to prepare for a customer audit thoroughly...and you know about the opportunity for damage control.
Beyond that, audits are a real pain from the auditee side. I don't know the auditor side, but I figure they aren't a thrilling way to spend the day there either. So the real question is...what is YOUR purpose for an audit.
- It could be to land a customer
- It could be to maintain your "ticket to play"
- Or it could be a way to build the best, most profitable company you can (which includes the last two).
If it's about doing a great job (i.e. increasing ongoing profit), you would desire your customer to point out deficiencies. You would desire the same from your CB auditors, interanl auditors, employees and janitors. You'll never fix it if you don't know it's broke. This is an opportunity to improve...the rest is words in an email.
This whole thread is a debate over the words in an email, and many people suggesting to get past the words in the email and build a better company...firstly by mending your customer relationship...then by revisiting your company's prioritization of conformance since it obviously can affect your customer relationship.
It's a great discussion...don't get hung up on the appropriateness of the NC wording, or the NC's existence...build a better system. Your customer pointed out a way you can improve...run with it.
K' that was about four cents...return the change if you want.