Quality Auditing and Continuous Improvement Training Course

Participants can establish a risk-based audit programme aligned with organisational priorities.

• ISO 19011 principles: integrity, fair presentation, due professional care, confidentiality
• Audit programme objectives derived from risks, performance trends and prior findings
• Risk-based audit schedules account for process criticality, change and customer impact
• Auditor independence, competence and impartiality assessed before audit assignment
• Annual audit programmes define frequency, methods, resources and reporting routes
• Audit criteria combine ISO requirements, procedures, contracts and regulatory obligations

Participants can prepare an audit plan, checklist and evidence-based sampling approach.

• Audit plans specify objectives, scope, criteria, timetable, team and interfaces
• Document review traces approved procedures, records, risks and process measures
• Sampling plans select representative records using judgemental and statistical approaches
• Checklists convert criteria into open questions and required objective evidence
• Opening meetings establish roles, confidentiality, logistics and communication protocols
• Time-boxed audit trails follow transactions through handoffs, approvals and controls

Participants can gather, test and record objective evidence during an internal audit.

• Interview techniques use open questions, probing, summarising and confirmation
• Triangulate evidence from interviews, observations, records and system data
• Process-walk observations test actual practice against documented arrangements
• Audit notes distinguish facts, evidence sources, interpretations and follow-up actions
• Remote audit protocols address access, screen sharing, confidentiality and evidence capture
• Closing meetings communicate provisional findings without assigning unsupported blame

Participants can classify findings, analyse causes and specify effective corrective actions.

• Nonconformities state unmet criteria, objective evidence and precise requirement references
• Classify findings by severity, risk, recurrence and effect on conformity
• Five Whys identifies causal chains beyond immediate human error
• Ishikawa diagrams organise potential causes across people, methods, materials and measurement
• Corrective action distinguishes correction, containment, root cause and prevention
• Verify action effectiveness using evidence, trend data and recurrence checks

Participants can produce clear audit reports and monitor findings through closure.

• Audit reports present scope, criteria, evidence, conclusions and agreed actions
• Write findings in neutral language that supports consistent management decisions
• Traceability matrices link findings to criteria, records, owners and due dates
• Corrective-action requests assign ownership, deadlines, verification methods and escalation
• Management review inputs synthesise audit trends, risks, actions and opportunities
• Follow-up audits confirm implementation, effectiveness and closure of findings

Participants can use quality data to distinguish normal variation from process signals.

• Operational definitions make defect, error, rework and delay data comparable
• Run charts distinguish routine variation from signals requiring investigation
• Control charts apply centre lines, limits and special-cause rules
• Pareto analysis prioritises defect categories by frequency, cost and customer impact
• First-pass yield, DPMO and cycle time reveal process performance
• Data stratification exposes variation by shift, product, supplier and location

Participants can select and apply structured methods for process improvement.

• PDCA structures improvement from problem definition through standardisation and review
• A3 problem-solving frames background, condition, analysis, countermeasures and follow-up
• Value stream maps identify queues, rework loops, bottlenecks and information delays
• 5S audits sustain workplace standards through visual controls and ownership
• Kaizen events focus rapid improvements on defined process constraints
• Standard work documents sequence, timing, quality checks and escalation points

Participants can connect audit findings with preventive controls and process risk treatment.

• FMEA scores failure modes using severity, occurrence and detection criteria
• Process risks connect audit findings with controls, owners and residual exposure
• Control plans specify critical characteristics, checks, response actions and records
• Poka-yoke options prevent errors or make abnormal conditions immediately visible
• Change control assesses quality risks before process, supplier or system changes
• Escalation thresholds trigger containment when quality indicators breach agreed limits

Participants can convert audit evidence into prioritised improvement actions and review routines.

• Improvement charters define problem, baseline, target, owner, timing and measures
• Prioritisation matrices compare benefit, effort, risk and implementation readiness
• Action plans sequence corrective actions, resources, milestones and verification dates
• Visual management boards track findings, actions, blockers, owners and ageing
• Audit trend reviews identify systemic issues, repeat findings and improvement priorities
• Ninety-day application plans establish sponsors, measures, reviews and escalation paths