ISO 9001:2008 clause 8.2.2 "Internal Audits" says that an audit programme shall be planned, taking into consideration:
Review and update internal audit program/schedule during company management meeting. This will add visibility to internal audits results, appreciation of the efforts of internal auditors, as well as allow company management team to utilize internal audit program to solve problems and mitigate risks in the future.
- status and importance of the processes and areas to be audited,
- results of previous audits.
It means that established internal audit schedule is not "fixed", it can be updated according to the needs of an organization.
The best way to identify which processes and areas require more attention and help is to measure your processes using established measurement methods and criteria.
Review internal audit schedule for the purpose of identifying audits to be performed first, establishing sequence and frequency of audits, fine tuning audit areas, objectives and criteria. Issues which may cause changes in current internal audit schedule/plan and listed but not limited to:
- Negative trends in process performance
- Process slow down due to poor communication
- Needs in resources, applied new resources
- Performed training
- New product/service
- Increased number of nonconformities and required corrective actions
- Critical issues as result of previous audit.
Some internal audits may be repeated to verify that corrective actions has taken place to eliminate any critical issues identified during previous audits.
When our external auditor arrives to perform their annual audit will it be a problem if one area of the company has not had an internal audit performed in order for the company to have focused on an area that needed attention?
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