By Blake Keller

Much thought and effort goes into the selection of vendors, but how much effort do you put into selecting an audit provider? Many potential clients begin their conversations with “We have tried third party auditors in the past…”

Does that sound familiar? I can’t tell you how to pick one company over another. Your particular industry and needs will determine who is right for you. What I can do, is give you some advice about audits in general.

An audit in general terms is an objective evaluation of product, processes, and/or systems. Most importantly, an audit is a comparison of actual performance to predetermined standards. Note, please the emphasis on predetermined standards, and the means to evaluate your auditor is clear. You must first specify to what standards you desire your supplier to be audited. Feel free to ask your potential auditor to what standard they will perform an audit.

That said, many corporate managers ask for an audit, desiring a general review of the supplier’s quality management and quality systems. While not asking that a supplier be audited to a particular standard, e.g. ISO 9001:2000, they still desire a systematic and objective evaluation of a supplier. The auditor must still audit to a general checklist (likely based on ISO 9001).

In the future, simply ask your potential auditor to what standard they perform audits. Ask for a copy of the audit checklist. Please bear in mind that most checklists are customized for a particular customer, and that the predefined checklist may appear rather crude, but it should exist, and there should be no problem sharing it with you. If there is no answer, and no checklist is available, move on.

Blake Keller, General Manager, Quality Sourcing Solutions