Any auditor training that I have ever seen, has a portion of the course allocated to handling problem audits.  It has always been my position, that in the vast majority of cases, if an audit goes bad, it is the auditor, who must take the responsibility. 

If during audits or at closing meetings the auditor encounters adversarial auditees, or lack of cooperation, the auditor has done something wrong. It is these situations that good auditors avoid.

The Four Secrets of Successful Auditing

Auditor Secret –#1 The Game

Good auditors understand that auditing is a game.  I know that many people in the auditing business will swear that auditing is a cooperative process where the auditor and the auditee work together to identify issues and help the organization improve.  In principle, I agree.

However, in practice, auditing is a game where the auditor is trying to identify issues and the auditee is trying to avoid having their process weaknesses found.   Auditors who do not understand the game, often end up in difficulty because they interpret the little white lies and the avoidance or delaying tactics as being personally directed at them.

Auditor Secret #2 – The First Three Minutes

Your introduction strategy is critical to the success of your audit.  Some auditors come across as being too stiff or blunt, in this first impression.  Good auditors develop a friendly first impression which dilutes the ‘us and them’ atmosphere immediately.  If you make the wrong first impression, your audit can go down hill very quickly.

Auditor Secret #3 – Constant Communication

Audits should not be a secret process.  Keep the auditee fully aware of the progress of your audit.  Communicate issues and potential issues clearly and as soon as is practical.  Keeping audit findings until the end of the audit will most certainly create an opportunity for conflict.

Auditor Secret #4 – Nonconformities

If you want to avoid disagreement or conflict over identified nonconformities, there is only one way to write them.  Three Steps;

Step 1 – The Nonconformity – Write a short statement describing the issue

Step 2 – The Evidence – Describe your objective evidence which supports the nonconformity

Step 3 – The Requirement – State the source specification or requirement

Summary

By implementing these Four Secrets of Successful Auditing, you will be able to avoid difficult audits and provide your auditee customers with effective value added and friendly audits