G3 Solutions, Inc.

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Internal Audits - can they be done by an outside party?

GGogoleski | 08 July, 2008 18:53

Many companies are choosing to outsource their internal audit process because of various resource issues within the organization. A number of reasons for this trend are becoming more common throughout many industries.

After spending large sums of money training a pool of good internal auditor candidates, an organization may find that some within that group take on new positions and responsibilities that either do not allow time for conducting internal audits or they are no longer able to audit certain areas because of their new role. Some employees will leave the organization and some will just decide that internal auditing is not for them. This is especially true in companies that are registered to such standards as ISO/TS 16949, AS9100 and other industry specific standards based on ISO 9001. The methods needed for conducting internal audits in these standards can be rather time consuming in terms of preparation.

Another reason is that some companies will use a large pool of internal auditors where most of them may only get a chance to audit one time per year. For small companies with simple processes, this isn't a big deal. For other organizations that have a multitude of key processes and departments, the auditing process can lose its effectiveness because of a lack of auditing experience by the internal auditor.

If your internal audit program has stalled and surveillance audits are approaching, let G3 Solutions show you how to ease the burden of having limited time for a complex schedule. Not only can G3 Solutions auditors pinpoint critical areas and nonconformances, G3 Solutions consultants and auditors can provide expertise in helping your organization develop cost-saving strategies to implement as part of the corrective action.

Maintaining the internal audit schedule

GGogoleski | 30 September, 2007 20:21

If you are having trouble maintaining your internal audit schedule, contact G3 Solutions to discuss the training options for your audit team or to have a G3 auditor conduct your internal audits for you.

Do not wait until your registrar auditor makes the internal audit "issue" a nonconformance. Call us today to find out how G3 can help.

Need help? Ask us here first!

GGogoleski | 22 June, 2007 11:30

Stuck on some quality or environmental issue and don't know what to do? Post it here and we'll ask our team of experts what they think is the answer. Questions can be on anything related to a quality or environmental system, standard, concept, program, etc. - you get the idea. What the heck - its free! Go on and ask. Consultants love to hear themselves talk - or in this case, see themselves write. We're even humble enough to admit you might have a better idea or solution than us! So go on and post it and lets see what happens.

Implementation of ISO 9001 and other standards - planning is key!

GGogoleski | 20 June, 2007 12:17

As with any project, having a solid plan to follow will usually be an accurate indicator of whether the project will flounder or finish. Implementation of such standards as ISO 9001, ISO/TS 16949, AS9100, ISO 13485 and others are no exception.

For statrers, key questions must be asked:

Will the project involve one site or will it include multiple facilities?
What types of activities will be covered under the scope?
Do we need to make exclusions for such items as design, servicing and special process verification? Will exclusions be allowed depending on the standard?
Will the implementation team need formal training?
How well are key processes identified?
What company measurables are in place? Are they adequate? Can they be linked to continual improvement?
Do we need some outside expertise?

This is only the beginning. Once these questions are answered, projects and assignments can be distributed to the proper personnel. It is important that key project milestones and activities have realistic due dates and that those dates are monitored.

Most importantly, the involvement of as many employees as possible in the implementation/documentation phase is critical. Employees that are involved and are solicited for input during the project generally take more ownership of policies and procedures. This helps to create a "quality culture" throughout the organization.

ISO Consultants - to hire or not to hire. That is the question...

GGogoleski | 30 May, 2007 15:13

When resources are an issue, an experienced consultant can help to minimize the "trial and error" approach to implementation.

Contrary to what some "experts" may tell you (there are a lot of quality "charlatans" looking for work), no company needs to hire a consultant - some companies have implemented standards just fine on their own provided they have a knowledgeable ISO person or staff available. The purpose of hiring a consultant is to help fill in the knowledge and resource gap, especially when it is difficult to allocate and train current personnel because of staffing/resource issues. A good consultant can help your company avoid the pitfalls of improper and excessive documentation and can also be the shortcut needed for timely project completion.

Implementing ISO 9001 - just how long does it take?

GGogoleski | 30 May, 2007 11:42

Management personnel in companies that have little or no experience with ISO-based standards often ask "How long will it take to implement ISO 9001?". The answer to this question is essentially dependent on the level of resources that an organization is willing to commit to the project.

Having a team for implementation will work far better and provide more value than attempting to make it the pet project of one individual. In most cases, that person usually ends up being the quality manager (in manufacturing facilities) or the office manager (in service-based companies). Although it isn't wrong to have those types of folks become the project managers, it is an issue when the top management of an organization treats it as a task that simply needs completion. The upper management team should be the driving force and support of the project to help instill an attitude of commitment and value to ISO 9001 implementation.

With the right determination of resources including outside consulting help, very few companies, regardless of size, need more than a year (that's being very conservative). The timeline for implementation can be cut much shorter than that depending on how the project is handled. This rule of thumb holds true for other standards such as ISO/TS 16949, ISO 14001, AS9100, ISO 13485, etc. (Be careful - some standards may have restrictions on when a company is technically ready for registration.)

In order to expedite the implementation process, a cross functional team from the organization should be brought together to "share the wealth" of tasks that will need to be tackled during the implementation. From there, duties and projects can be assigned to others to help build the employee "buy-in" for the project. When all employees have some type of input into the architecture of the business/quality management system, the result is a system that truly provides a framework for maintaining a quality culture within the organization.

How many participants can we have in an on-site training session?

GGogoleski | 24 May, 2007 10:17

The number of participants allowed in a training session may vary based on a variety of factors.

For starters, is the facility big enough to allow all participants room to take notes and examine materials? Companies with limited facility resources need to remember that participants will need more than just a chair and notepad. This can become a big issue for small companies with small facilities, and off-site plans may need to become reality. This does not mean than that expensive hotel conference rooms need to be rented. Many free sources exist for companies to conduct off-site training when the company facility is not equiped for training. Local libraries, state employment offices and even local township offices and town halls can be an affordable (if not free) alternative to renting expensive private conference space.

Another consideration is the course subject itself. Is the material and subject matter new for all participants? What is the experience level of the group? Will there be a large amount of questions from the participants? How many group exercises and activities will there be? These questions must be answered before a realistic limit can be put on the number of participants.

Also, If the course is on-site, top management must make it a priority to insure that participants are not pulled out "just for a quick moment" during the session to answer phone calls, pages, and take care of small fires for other employees. Remember that a comfortable environment is the most effect environment for training. Participants that have minimal distractions in a classroom setting have the best retention of material and stay motivated to apply what they have learned.

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Internal Audits - can they be done by an outside party?

Maintaining the internal audit schedule

Need help? Ask us here first!

Implementation of ISO 9001 and other standards - planning is key!

ISO Consultants - to hire or not to hire. That is the question...

Implementing ISO 9001 - just how long does it take?

How many participants can we have in an on-site training session?

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