Guide

How to prep for your next ISO audit

Achieving and maintaining all of the ISO 9001 and NHSS related standards that you need to compete and win contracts can be tricky business, especially as your company becomes more established. In this guide you will learn how to prepare for your next ISO audit in order to pass with flying colours.

What is an ISO audit?


An ISO audit is a tool used to evaluate, verify and confirm activities related to quality. It is a measurement of how your business is performing against a set of standards established by the Internal Organisation of Standardisation.

Where do most companies go wrong?


If you struggle with ISO audits, don’t worry, you’re not alone. Here are the common pitfalls that cause issues for companies during the auditing process:

  • Not keeping approved supplier registers up to date
  • Not keeping equipment registers
  • Losing sight of the basics
  • Not keeping up to date with legislation
  • Not abiding by your own processes

Keep an eye on these things and you will be in a good position to pass your next ISO audit.

Keep approved supplier registers up to date


Keeping your paperwork in order is a vital part of passing ISO audits. You need to ensure you keep insurance certificates from all suppliers. Failure to do so could be noted down by the auditor as a minor non-conformance, however it could be a major if deemed as more serious which could lead to a complete failure – and we don’t want that! 

Keep equipment registers


To pass an ISO audit you must ensure that all of your equipment (plant, equipment, lifting equipment, etc.) have had all mandatory inspections and services recorded. You need to be able to prove that equipment is safe to use and that inspection dates are within the legal limits. If not, not only could you receive a minor or major non-compliance, but you are also putting your staff at risk.

Don’t lose sight of the basics


Keeping your paperwork in order is a vital part of passing ISO audits. You need to ensure you keep insurance certificates from all suppliers. Failure to do so could be noted down by the auditor as a minor non-conformance, however it could be a major if deemed as more serious which could lead to a complete failure – and we don’t want that! 

Keep up to date with legislation


Legislation changes a lot, so it can be really easy to miss. And with the added restrictions in place to fight COVID, there’s even more to keep on top of. Make sure you are keeping an eye on HSE or better yet, hire a company like Smart Safety Services to keep you in the loop.

Abide by your own processes


It’s super easy to be pulled up on your own processes during an audit. Make sure you are utilising a workforce management system which keeps track of documented forms and ensure all staff are clear on procedures and policy. When auditors come in, they’ll ask how you how you maintain the standards already in place. Being able
to prove how you abide by your own process will put you in good stead for an audit.

Use a Digital Workforce Management System

Preparing for audits is so much easier when you’re not working from paper and everything is stored on the cloud. But how exactly does digital management help you prepare for audits? Employers have a legal Duty of Care to protect the health, safety, and well-being of their lone workers. This includes creating a lone working policy, conducting risk assessments, providing adequate training, and implementing a lone worker safety solution. 

Management Process

When you get audited, the auditor will do a deep dive into your paperwork to prove you are meeting the ISO 9001 standards. It makes everyone’s life easier if this paperwork is stored digitally. A system such as MyMobileWorkers automatically pulls all of the relevant documents together with the additional proof of timestamps and signatures.

Quality plans

To ace an audit, you need a quality plan to identify roles, responsibilities, processes, and resources that show how risks are managed and performance is measured. A digital approach helps you manage these roles and enforces safety checks in real-time, and provides integrated performance tracking tools that help to rate the quality of jobs and the completeness of documentation.

Consider the benefits of external compliance support


Way up whether you need a helping hand in the form of external compliance support. There are advantages to doing it internally and externally, so see what works best for your business. If you do decide to hire someone externally, MyMobileWorkers recommends Smart Safety Services.

Internal compliance support

  • Better understanding of the company
  • Good for bigger companies
  • Majority of the time you don’t need someone full time
  • Less knowledge of the industry
  • Doubt over legitimacy of the findings/struggle to command authority

External compliance support

  • Saves a lot of time
  • Professional up-to-date advice
  • Can choose someone specific to your industry
  • Good for SMEs
  • More experience with a wide range of companies
  • Lack of control over potential changes requires management time and attention

HSE

In the past, you could report an accident and that would be that, however today HSE will come and investigate any accidents or RIDDOR reports, resulting in fines if there is any liability. To prepare for this, you need to ensure you are identifying and preparing for every potential risk.

Enforced checks and real-time info

With investigatory (and costly) visits from HSE becoming more frequent, you are expected to have your due diligence in order for inspection. Enforced checks and real-time information prove you are serious about safety.

Historical information on hand

If an accident happens, HSE may want to take a look at the historical risk assessments or checks associated. It’d easy to keep digital versions on these records, and not having this information on hand can leave your business vulnerable to fines.

Consider the benefits of external compliance support

An internal quality audit is a process put in place to identify the quality and performance of services being delivered. The purpose is to provide reliable metrics that can be used to hone processes and identify weaknesses. The benefits include:

  • Improving Performance
  • Building Trust
  • Ensuring Safety

How does MyMobileWorkers handle internal audits?

MyMobileWorkers includes several ways in which the quality and performance can be tracked. The audit tools can be configured to the needs of each task and include pre and post job checks to be carried out.

Pre-job audits

Pre-job audits ensure that workers have everything they need to work safely and efficiently before starting a job.
They can include:

  • Job Information
  • Relevant qualifications/training
  • Site data and specifications
  • PPE (Personal Protective Equipment)
  • Read and understand health and safety policy

Post-job audits

Post-job audits allow for an assessment of job quality to be added to a job report by an on-site manager or remote assessor.

They can include:

  • Images/Photos
  • Forms
  • Compliance checks
  • Notes
  • Quality of repair
  • Completion time
  • H&S compliance
  • Chapter 8 adhearence
  • Data collection quality/completion
  • Standard of POWRA

See how MyMobileWorkers can help your business:

MyMobileWorkers is the only mobile workforce management platform that can be fully adapted to ensure job processes are followed and provides ongoing, real-time updates for you and your clients.

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