Training Auditors For Effective Auditing

摘要

The rapid spread and popularity of ISO9000, ISO14000 and other Standards have created the need for Management System audits, as opposed to compliance audits that have existed for some time in various fields such as health and safety, food safety and environmental. These management system audits have become very much a part of managing a business and are here to stay for any foreseeable future. These audits require a significant investment of time, money and resources on the part of the organization and hence it is essential that these organizations get a good return on the investment of all their resources expended in these audits. It is, therefore, of paramount importance that the management system auditing be a value-added activity for managing a company's affairs and is appropriately understood, controlled and improved. What will make the auditing process a value-added activity for management of the company? There are various parameters that could be controlled in order to ensure that all the activities associated with auditing will provide the greatest benefit - the audit management program, auditor training, management support, provision of resources. This paper will focus on the issues related to the training of internal (first-party) and external (third-party) auditors in a ISO 140001-based EMS. The training of auditors involves focusing on enhancing technical skills related to the Standard being audited and the auditor's understanding of company's policies, procedures and other documents that will be used in the audit. There are other attributes that are called into play during an audit, such as communication skills, understanding the client's needs with regard to time, the planning of an audit, leading a team of auditors successfully through an audit, and writing and presenting the audit report. To a degree these skills can be enhanced through proper training. Most RAB Accredited Auditor Training courses available today emphasize these areas. An area which has lacked the explicit attention it deserves in most of the typical Auditor Training courses is the Systems Thinking. This paper presents some perspective on Systems thinking in the context of ISO 14001 EMS.