Recipe for a successful internal audit

Internal audit is a powerful business development tool that allows a company to identify success factors for replication and to identify areas for improvement for the coming period. So it's worth investing in internal auditing - in this blog you'll find tips and a free tool for conducting a successful internal audit!

Internal auditing is a self-assessment of a company's internal activities: comparing them with the guidelines given, examining the results and analysing them. The results provide important information on what the company needs to improve in order to achieve even better results.

Comprehensive internal audits are possibly even the single most important method of continuous improvement in an organisation, which is why they should be carried out regularly according to a 3-year plan.

Internal auditing helps a company to keep track of how well it is able to meet the requirements of the standards at different functions and levels of the organisation. Standards requirements are based on the Deming circle of planning, implementing, monitoring and improving activities.

In practice, internal auditing involves carrying out various assessments to compare plans with implementation, reviewing deviation and indicator figures and setting new targets. It also involves learning from your own and your friend's mistakes and learning from successes.

A good internal audit is guided by an experienced performer, but the content of a successful audit is created by the people working within the process and at the boundary. The best successes are often found at the interfaces between pain points, when a common need for improvement is identified.

When conducting an internal audit, it is important to remember that pain points are easier to deal with when they are discussed openly. While the informal discussion is guided by the requirements set out in the standards, it can also be a time to review any anomalies identified and complete the objectives.

Here's a recipe for a successful internal audit:

1. A successful internal audit requires 50% planning of the implementation and 50% successful proposals for action to improve the activities to be evaluated.
2. Mix in the appropriate number of process and sub-process implementers. Give them controlled freedom to lead the discussion.
3. Sprinkle some seeds of enthusiasm on top.
4. Let the development proposals stew long enough until the activity is ready to be re-evaluated.

We have created a free tool to help you check that your internal audit is progressing in a planned way towards a successful outcome at every stage of the audit.

Leave your contact details and download our free internal audit checklist

Sometimes organisations need external support to design and launch their evaluation practices, or external eyes to observe good practices and areas for improvement. In such cases, an internal audit conducted by an outsider can be a small contribution to a larger future.

We can carry out a successful internal audit for you - check out our other expert services and our outsourced quality manager service!