Institute pro
Bob Bennett
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Bob Bennett
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Process audits are a managment tool for increasing the quality of services delivered while also increasing the morale of employees who get to see their recommendations often become policy. All too often government workers, and those in poorly run corporations, believe they have no choice but to implement either / or choices when neither is appropriate. "Don't blame me, I've got no choice" is a frequent refrain. Process audits, which get feedback from bottom level as to the problems they encounter - with the intent of changing policies to reflect reality, rather than the sometimes myopic view of out of touch management.
PROCESS AUDITS
Are less extensive than system audits.
Usually concentrate only on one or more specific processes of a
product or service.
May be performed internally or externally.
Require less planning than the system audit
Can be very helpful in improving the process in question.
Are less formal than the system audit
May be performed in as little as under one hour to as much as a
couple of days (This varies depending upon the scope of the
audit..how many different processes, product lines, standards, etc...).
Often, require fewer auditors than the systems audit (The scope of
the audit will help define the number of auditors necessary). An
example of this would be: one auditor for a simple in-house process
audit, two or more for an external process audit
Verify confomnance to standards, methods, procedures, or other
requirements.
Tracing allows the auditor to determine:
• Where procedure weakness occurs
• Where process weakness occurs
• Unnecessary, inefficient, or repetitive process steps
• At what stage the majority of problems are occurring
• The overall system/process condition
AUDIT INSPECTION METHODS
TYPE ADVANTAGES DISADVANTAGES
TRACE
FORWARD
• Shows logical sequence
• Easy for training
• Detects front-end weakness
quickly
• Aids in pre-planning of
auditee personnel
• Not very flexible
• Not practical for partial audits
• Flow broken if auditee
personnel not available
TRACE
BACKWARD
• Starting point optional
• Easy for training
• Results of upstream work seen
prior to audit
• Aids in pre-planning of auditee
personnel
• Good for partial audits
Not very flexible
Front-end weakness not
audited until the end
Flow broken if auditee
personnel not available
RANDOM
SELECTION
• Very flexible
• Good for partial audits
• Gives broad picture quickly
• Minimizes disruption
• Availability of auditee
personnel can be juggled
• Not good for training auditors
• Requires experienced auditors
• Requires good notes
• More difficult to understand
flow
AUDIT PERFORMANCE
CAUCUS MEETINGS
Throughout the performance of the audit, two types of meetings are held at least
daily. Both are conducted by the audit team leader. Audit team meetings are held
between the audit team leader and team members. Daily briefings are held
between the audit team and the auditee representative(s). These meetings are not
to be confused with the opening or the exit meetings.
AUDIT TEAM MEETINGS
The duration of team meetings should be as brief as possible, so that auditee representatives are not kept waiting to continue the audit and valuable audit time is not wasted. This is a private conference among the audit team members only; the auditee representatives are not included.
These meetings are conducted to:
Keep the audit team informed of developments
Make revisions to the audit schedule
Review and discuss evidence presented
Examine observations and reach consensus on findings
Inform team members of any change of assignments
Have the benefit of team examination of complex issues
Determine the acceptability of compliance
Examine specific documentation or evidence of compliance for pitfalls
To develop the audit report as the audit progresses (begin drafting
the report on the first day of the audit!)
DAILY BRIEFINGS
Two short meetings should be held with the auditee representative(s) daily.
Usually these are conducted in the morning and near the end of the day. In each of these meetings, the lead auditor takes the opportunity to advise the auditee of:
Planned daily activities
Any schedule changes
Observations and findings
Areas of concern
Points awarded to categories or elements (scoring checklists)
This keeps the auditee informed of how the audit is progressing and gives the auditee the opportunity to produce any evidence of compliance or conformance in inconclusive areas of concern. The auditee representative is responsible for sharing this information with their management and other appropriate personnel within his or her organization.
(more info available on request)
