This guidance takes an internal auditor from the audit schedule and checklists through recording evidence, classing findings and following them up.

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Further Reading

Further guidance on internal auditing:

• Internal Auditing Explained
• The Audit Schedule and Programme
• Conducting an Internal Audit
• Audit Findings and Reporting
• Internal Auditing knowledge base

How to Download

These files are included in the alphaZ subscription.

Need Help Implementing?

If you'd like hands-on help setting up your audit schedule, audit checklists and findings records, our remote support services provide direct expert input from our team, by the day, by project, or on an ongoing basis.

Internal Audits Guidance

A general guidance document on internal audits for internal auditors and the people whose areas are audited. It explains what an audit is and why it is done, auditor competence and independence, the audit schedule, planning and carrying out an audit, and how findings are reported and followed up.

Topics Covered

• Why audits are done - confirming the system works as intended, investigating problems, finding improvements and checking compliance with standards and other requirements
• Types of audit - internal, external, management system and process audits, each with its own approach and objectives
• Auditor competence and principles - independence from the area audited, what auditors should understand, and principles from integrity through to a risk-based approach
• The audit schedule - planned intervals that reflect the importance of processes, changes, risks, complaints and the results of previous audits
• Planning and checklists - defining objectives, criteria and scope, preparing questions and using blank or pre-prepared audit checklists
• Carrying out the audit - the opening meeting, recording evidence on the checklist, keeping the auditee informed and the closing meeting
• Reporting findings - classing findings as opportunities for improvement, observations or nonconformities, and logging nonconformities for corrective action
• Following up - closing findings, adjusting the audit schedule and taking audit results to management review

Who Is It For?

Anyone who carries out internal audits, and the managers and workers whose departments, functions or processes are audited.

Supplied with the Training Talk

This guidance is supplied with the TT-1-10 Internal Audits training talk, and both are included in the alphaZ subscription.

Using the Guidance

Use it to prepare internal auditors and to explain to auditees what happens during an audit, and keep it as a reference alongside the audit checklists. Record who has received it, for example on the training matrix.

Recording Evidence That Stands Up

When sample records are checked, the auditor notes which ones were viewed, with reference numbers, dates and other relevant details. The guidance makes the point that completing a check is not enough, as it must also be possible to show it was completed. Each finding sets out what was wrong and why, with the evidence, so the audit report rests on objective evidence.

Adapting the Guidance

Edit the guidance to match your own arrangements - who carries out your audits, how your audit schedule is set out, the checklists you use, the terms you use to class findings and the register where nonconformities are logged.

Related Documents

Other documents that work alongside this guidance:

• PP-1-10 Internal Auditing and ISO Compliance Policy Procedure
• F-Q2 Audit Checklist
• F-Q31 Audit Report
• Internal Audit Training Presentation
• GG-1-12 ISO Standards and ISO Certification