After completing an audit, it's important to examine the overall evaluation based on the professional judgment of the auditor.
Completeness Check: Ensuring Reliability
Ensuring the completeness of an audit is vital for its effectiveness. For instance, in a retail company's safety audit, it's essential to check if all mandatory questions, such as those concerning fire safety or emergency exits, have been answered. This approach ensures that no critical aspect is overlooked, providing a complete picture of the current situation. If an assessment isn't possible, the auditor will mark it accordingly. A completeness check for answering all mandatory questions in the audit should be conducted.
Smart audits include completeness checks, display overall results for orientation, and provide previews of reports for effective reconciliation and focused follow-up.
Overall Result: Guidance for Action
Displaying the overall result of the audit, based on a predefined calculation rule, offers the auditor a quick overview of the current status. For example, in a manufacturing facility, the overall result of a hygiene audit can instantly show whether a production line has passed or failed the audit. This can be supplemented by a desired quantitative evaluation (points, grades, percentages, etc.), perhaps using colours (green = satisfactory, yellow = potential for improvement, red = critical) for easy interpretation.
Preview of the Audit Report: Effective Communication and Follow-Up
Having a preview of the audit report before final discussions is another important advantage. The preview allows the auditor to review the results and prepare for discussions. For instance, in a branch office, the auditor could review the report before meeting with the branch manager to effectively present the findings of the quality audit and offer concrete suggestions for improvement. If there is a valid objection, the auditor can make final corrections before concluding the audit.
Modern audit strategies extend beyond mere data collection, offering a framework for continuous improvement. Through careful planning and analysis, supported by structured data and clear presentation of results, companies can enhance the efficiency of their audits, address deficiencies accurately, and sustainably improve their performance.