Auditor Selection, Competency and Auditor Registration: Guardian Independent Certification

Guardian Independent Certification
Chapter 9
Auditor Selection, Competency and Auditor

Registration
©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 1 of 28

Lead Assessor / Assessor Revision: 5 (July 2010)
Chapter 9
KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS
Occupational
Health & Safety
Specific
Knowledge and
Skills
Generic
Knowledge
and Skills
Quality Environmental
Specific Knowledge Specific Knowledge
and Skills and Skills
Education Work Auditor Audit

Experience Training Experience
Personal Attributes
AUDITOR COMPETENCY
(Reference to ISO 19011)
For Auditor:
 Education
- completed an education sufficient to permit the acquisition of knowledge
and skills
 Work Experience
- technical, managerial or professional position involving problem solving
and communication with management or others - 5 years
 Training
- undergone training that contributes to the development of the
knowledge and skills - 40 hours
- training may be provided by the person’s own organization or by an
external organization
 Audit experience
- gained experience in audit activities under the supervision of audit team
leader - 4 complete audits within 3 consecutive years and
performing role as auditor for not less than 20 days

Chapter 9
AUDITOR COMPETENCY
For Audit Team Leader:
 Demonstrate the knowledge, skills and personal attributes necessary for
effective leadership and efficient management of the audit that includes:
 planning,
 organizing,
 directing,
 performing and
 reporting audits
 Have performed additional audits recommended e.g. additional 3
complete audits, not less than 15 days acting as audit team leader
 Be able to reach audit conclusions on the overall capability of the quality or
environmental or health and safety management system
AUDITOR COMPETENCY
For EHSQ MS Auditor:
 Quality or EMS or OHSMS auditors who wish to become auditors in
the second discipline should have:
 the recommended training i.e. 24 hours training in the
second discipline
 work experience in the second discipline (additional 2 years)
 the knowledge and skills needed for the second discipline; and
 conducted the additional audits i.e. 3 complete audits, not
less than 15 days experience in the second discipline

Chapter 9
Auditor Qualities
 Good Communicators
 Tactful and Diplomatic
But
 Firmand Tenacious
 Capable of Flexibility
 Able to Judge Significance
 Capable of DecidingPriorities or Findings
Positive Auditor Characteristics
Knowledge Good Communicator

Judgment Analytical
Patient Good Planner
Tenacity Self Disciplined
Professional Diplomatic
Good Listener Management Oriented
Inquisitive

Chapter 9
Fairness
Lead Auditor must ensure fairness is
demonstrated by ensuring:-
 “nit-picking” is avoided
 Good points are taken into account
 The Company is given benefit of doubt
when necessary
Auditor Conduct
 Objective understood and objectively

maintained
 Normal courtesies and protocols followed
 Criticism is constructive
 Auditor stays within defined authority
 Auditee feels that the Audit is beneficial

Chapter 9
AUDITOR’
AUDITOR’S RESPONSIBILITIES
Auditors’ responsibilities are to:

 Comply with the applicable audit requirements.
 Communicate and clarify audit requirements with
auditee.
 Plan and carry out assigned responsibilities.
 Document the observations.
 Report the audit result.
 Verify effectiveness of corrective actions taken as a
result of the audit.
 Retain and safeguard the confidentiality of audit
document / information.
 Co-operate and support the Lead Auditor.
LEAD AUDITOR’S RESPONSIBILITIES
Lead Auditors are responsible for:
 Manage all phases of the audit.

 Final decisions regarding the conduct of the audit and
any audit observations.
 Assisting with the selection of other audit team
members.
 Preparation of audit plan.
 Representing the audit team with the auditee’s
management.
 Submitting the audit report.

Chapter 9
LEAD AUDITOR’
AUDITOR’S RESPONSIBILITIES
The Lead Auditor’s activities include:

 Define the requirements of each audit assignment, including
the required auditor qualification.
 Comply with applicable auditing requirements and other
appropriate directives.
 Plan the audit, prepare working documents and brief the
audit team.
 Review documentation on existing quality management
system activities to determine their adequacy.
 Report major non-conformities to the auditee immediately.
 Report any major obstacles encountered in performing the
audit.
 Report on the audit results clearly, conclusively and without
undue delay.

Chapter 9
IRCA Registration Scheme
 QMS 2008 Provisional Auditor

 QMS 2008 Auditor
 QMS 2008 Lead Auditor
 QMS 2008 Principal Auditor
IRCA REGISTRATION SCHEMES
Academic Work Quality Auditor Auditor Audit Mgmt /

Qualification Experience Experience Training Exp.(E) Team Leader
(A) (B) (C ) Course Experience
(D) (E)
Provisional Acceptable At least 4 At least 2 years IRCA  No Auditing Experience

Auditor programme of years full time full-time (quality registered
study work related) work Auditor / Lead
Grade experience. experience Auditor course
Auditor (or modular
(see IRCA  Minimum 4 audits * in 3
equivalent) years (10 audits for those
Grade /102 /latest
who do not meet the
issue)
Academic requirements)
(or QMS
course
eg: Post certified to
graduate, IATCA criteria
Lead diploma, under presented by  4 audits as above and 5
Auditor graduate & an approved audits as team leader
Grade post graduate organisation)
degrees

Chapter 9
Note * :
 Acceptable audits: document review, audit activities and audit
reporting.
 Audit experience must be verifiable and must not total less than 20
days duration (at least 10 days of which must be on-site) in 3years.
 Audit day must be not less than 6 hours duration.
 Internal Audit experience should be supported by a "family tree"
showing the auditor's independence and the auditor has no part in
the creation of the system. A sample internal audit report is
required.
 For renewal of auditor certification, please refer to the latest
IRCA/102.
Continuous Professional Development
Continuous Professional Development (CPD)

 Each IRCA registered auditor has to undertake at
least 45 hours of appropriate CPD during each 3
year period prior to re-registration (IRCA/168/97).
– Structured : each hour = 1 hour CPD (max: 15 hrs/event)
– Semi-structured : each hour = 1/2 hour CPD (max: 15
hrs/event)
– Unstructured : each 3 hours = 1 hour CPD (max 15 hrs / 3
year period)
 Maintain audit and training log.

Chapter 9

IRCA contact:
PO Box 25120
12 Grosvenor Crescent
London SW1X 7ZL
Tel : 44 - (0)20 - 7245 6833
Fax : 44 - (0)20 -7 245 6755
email : irca@irca.org
Website: www.irca.org

Chapter 9
NOTES
1. Auditor Selection
Auditors must be competent to perform their assigned tasks and there should be
a consistent process for initially selecting and continually evaluating the
competence of auditors.
The ISO 19011 guidance provides describes the general knowledge, skills, and
personal attributes needed for an auditor and an audit team leader. An auditor
needs knowledge and skills in audit principles, procedures, and techniques in
order to be able to implement the audit. Similarly, the auditor needs to
understand the scope of the audit and concepts of management systems in order
to apply audit principles effectively. An audit team leader needs to have these
same knowledge and skills as well as have the appropriate organizational and
leadership skills to be able to implement the audit consistent with the goals of the
audit program. In addition, the auditor and audit team leader will need knowledge
and skills pertaining to QMS and their applications and EMS and their
applications, as appropriate. When combined audits are required, knowledge and
skills in both areas will be necessary.
There is also a need for auditors to have appropriate education, work experience,
auditor training, and auditing experience consistent with the needs of the audit
program. Typically, the levels of education, training, and experience will vary
according to the specific goals and objectives of the audit program. For example,
the levels of education, training, and experience needed for internal (first-party)
auditors is very likely to differ significantly from those for third-party, certification
auditors. In a practical manner, these levels will be set by the "owner" of the audit
program or by an appropriate accreditation body.
2. Assessor Qualities
The assessor needs to be able to communicate both at board room level and
shop floor level with equal effect.

Chapter 9
The assessor must ensure by careful wording of his comments that they are not
taken personally.
The assessor needs to avoid "nit picking' - but concentrate on important issues.
He must judge the importance of all the pieces of information that he obtains and
draw a conclusion from them. This may necessitate in-depth exploration of a
situation to establish the truth. Conclusions are drawn and presented in a firm,
authoritative manner.
3. Positive Assessor Characteristics
The assessor needs to ensure that he/she looks and acts like a professional at
all times and frequently needs to communicate "bad news" whilst leaving the
recipient with the feeling that he has obtained something of value from the
assessment.
4. Fairness
Of all the valuable characteristics for an auditor, the key quality is one of fairness.
Whatever the audit result, if it is arrived at and presented fairly, then both parties
will view it positively.
The auditor should avoid "digging" until a problem is found. He should take a
sample and if satisfactory, move on to the next area.
If a non-conformance is found, the auditor must be prepared to take a second

sample (let the auditee choose where). This shows an unbiased approach.
Listen carefully to any explanation as to why non-conformances exist.

Chapter 9
5. Auditor Conduct
The auditor should know the safety and security rules of the auditees'
organization and follow them.
The auditor must respect the auditees feelings and be polite in approaching
them. Do not criticise, and if comment is required, pass it in a constructive
manner.
To avoid misunderstandings, the auditor should always obtain permission to

speak with any person outside of the audit party.
6, Team Roles and Responsibilities
1. If the audit is to be carried out by a team, a "Lead Auditor" should be placed in

overall charge.
2. During the audit, the responsibilities of the Lead Auditor are to:
 Make final decisions for all phases of the audit;
 Assist with the selection of other team members;
 Prepare the audit plan;
 Represent the audit team at opening and closing meetings;
 Submit the audit report.

Chapter 9
3. The responsibilities of an Auditor are to:

 Comply with the audit requirements;
 Plan and carry out assigned duties effectively and efficiently;
 Document corrective actions requests, observations and objective
evidence;
 Report audit findings;
 Verify effectiveness of corrective actions;
 Retain and safeguard documents;
 Co-operate and support the Lead Auditor.
7. Auditor Roles and Responsibilities
1. The Lead Auditor should:

 Define the requirements of each audit task, including auditor
qualifications;
 Comply with the audit requirements and other directives;
 Prepare working documents and brief the team;
 Review documentation to determine their adequacy;
 Report critical nonconformities to the auditee immediately;
 Report any major obstacles encountered during the audit.
2. Auditor should:
 Prepare, know the subject material;
 Learn as much as possible about the auditee;
 Remain within the scope of the audit;
 Exercise objectively;
 Control the audit;
 Assist if there is a misunderstanding or misinterpretation;
 Collect and analyse relevant objective evidence;
 Remain alert to evidence of problems or potential problems;

Chapter 9
 Determine whether quality documents are known and understood by

appropriate personnel;
 Act professionally at all time.
3. Auditors should not:

 Be sarcastic;
 Swear;
 Discuss company policy or personalities;
 Be negative;
 Criticize;
 Drink before an interview;
 Argue;
 Compare the auditee with others.
4. In planning and preparing for an audit, the selected auditor or at least one team
member must know:
 The applicable quality management criteria;
 Contents of codes, regulations and standards;
 Quality practices of the industry/function being audited;
 Any legislative and contractual regulations;
 Processes used by auditee.
5. Lack of knowledge by the audit team of the organisation's processes should be

overcome by the use of specialist team members.
6. Good Practices at Meetings

At meetings, auditors should remain polite, calm and professional at all times.
They should:
 Introduce themselves;
 Ensure that the agenda is known and understood;

Chapter 9
 Keep to the agenda

 Keep control;
 Keep to time;
 Avoid arguments;
 Listen to others;
 Maintain appropriate records.
8. Auditor Registration
8.1 An auditor registration scheme is one of the means of providing consistency and
accuracy in the interpretation of the Standard by auditors. The internationally,
there are various schemes (e.g. IRCA, IATCA, RAB, etc) developed for the
purpose of qualifying and certifying competent auditors in the principles and
practices of auditing Quality Management System (QMS).
8.2 The IRCA Registration Scheme is outlined in Fig 12-1. The details of other
schemes are published by the relevant Auditor Registration Bodies. The detailed
information on the application and re-certification process and fees payable can
be obtained from www.irca.org .
8.3 The scheme operated by the International Register of Certified Auditors (IRCA)
provides three types of Auditor:
 Provisional auditor;
 Auditor;
 Lead Auditor.
8.4 All IRCA registered auditors are required to comply with the IRCA code of
conduct (see Fig 12-2).

Chapter 9
Fig 12-1
(For information only)
IRCA Registration Scheme
1. Criteria for Initial Certification
A. Academic Qualifications
B. Work Experience
C. Formal Auditor Training
D. Auditing Experience
Applicants shall satisfactorily comply with elements A, B, and C to be eligible for any
grade of certification.
A. Academic Qualifications
Applicants shall have completed at least secondary education. Applicants who are able
to demonstrate degree or near-degree level qualifications awarded by an institution
recognised by a national governmental body or accredited by a national professional
body will be offered a reduction in the requirement for Work Experience (see B below).
Applicants for QMS 2008 Principal Auditor grade shall be able to demonstrate degree or
near degree qualifications.
IRCA maintains, and is able to reference an extensive database of recognised technical,

academic and professional qualifications awarded in most countries throughout the
world.

Chapter 9
B. Work Experience
Applicants with secondary education only shall have completed at least 6 years full-time
work experience, 4 years of which shall have been within a context where quality and
quality issues formed the major part of the job.
Applicants able to demonstrate degree or near-degree level qualifications shall have

completed at least 4 years full-time work experience, 3 years of which shall have been
within a context where quality and quality issues formed the major part of the job.
In both instances, such experience shall have provided the applicant with the practical
knowledge necessary to audit quality management systems effectively.
To be eligible for certification to QMS 2008 Principal Auditor grade, applicants shall be
able to demonstrate at least 6 year’s work experience acquired within the previous 10
year period that related to the development, implementation, maintenance and auditing
of quality management systems. The significant majority of this work experience shall
have been conducted at a senior level within an organisation. This experience may
have been acquired either as an employee or as a contractor.
Applicants for the grade of QMS 2008 Principal Auditor should note that acceptable,
relevant auditing experience shall only account for a maximum of 3 years of the 6 year
work experience requirement.
Periods of training will not be considered as eligible toward meeting this criterion.

Chapter 9
C. Formal Auditor Training
All applicants shall have successfully completed.
Either
An IRCA certified QMS Auditor/Lead Auditor course presented by an IRCA approved

Training Organisation.
Or
A QMS ISO 9000:2008 auditor training course certified by another training approval
body recognised and accepted by IRCA as being of an equivalent standard.
Successful completion of formal auditor training should normally have occurred within
the 3 year period immediately prior to application for certification. Formal training
conducted prior to this period may be accepted if the applicant is able to demonstrate
currency of appropriate experience.
Applicants are advised to contact IRCA or prefer to the IRCA website

(www.irca.org/auditor_train/pdf/152.pdf) for a current listing of all IRCA approved training
organisations offering IRCA certified auditor training courses.

Chapter 9
D. Auditing Experience
For QMS 2008 Provisional Auditor grade:
An applicant who satisfies A, B and C, but who has insufficient, or no acceptable

auditing experience, may be eligible for certification to the QMS 2008 Provisional Auditor
grade.
For QMS 2008 Auditor grade:
To be certified to the QMS 2008 Auditor grade, an applicant shall have completed a
minimum of 4 acceptable audits. The totality of auditing experience shall have involved
document review, audit activities and audit reporting.
All audit experience submitted in support of application shall have been gained in the 3
year period prior to application, shall be verifiable and shall not be of less than 20 days
duration, at least 10 days of which shall have been acquired on-site.
For QMS 2008 Lead Auditor grade:
To be certified to the QMS 2008 Lead Auditor grade, an applicant shall have completed,
in addition to the requirements for certification to the QMS 2008 Auditor grade, a further
3 acceptable audits as leader of an audit team which included at least one other auditor.
The duration of these lead audits shall not be less than 15 days.
This audit experience (additional to that required for QMS 2008 Auditor grade) shall
have been gained in he 2 year period prior to application.

Chapter 9
For QMS 2008 Principal Auditor grade:
To be certified to the QMS 2008 Principal Auditor grade, an applicant shall have
completed, in addition to the requirements for certification to the QMS 2008 Lead Auditor
grade, a minimum of 10 acceptable audits performed either as lead audits or sole audits.
This audit experience (additional to that required for QMS 2008 Lead Auditor grade)
shall have been gained in the 3 year period prior to application.
Applicants to this grade shall have previously been awarded, or be able to demonstrate
eligibility for the award of lead auditor grade.
For all audits submitted in support of certification, an audit day is considered to be of not
less than 6 hours duration, excluding any breaks.

Chapter 9
2. The Application Process
(i). Contact IRCA for application pack
An information pack can be obtained from the Secretariat on request (see below for
details). The application pack is free of charge. Alternatively, all documentation
required to submit an application is available for download from the IRCA website
(www.irca.org).
(New Applications- QMS)

IRCA
PO Box 25120
12 Grosvenor Crescent
London SW1X 7ZL
Tel: +44 (0) 20 72456833
Fax: +44 (0) 20 72456755
Email: irca@irca.org
The pack will include an application for (IRCA/103) and a number of audit log sheets
(IRCA/106) in addition to general information about IRCA and the various IRCA activities
and details of fees.
(ii). Complete and submit application form and documents
To apply for certification, complete the forms as instructed, enclose all the additional
material requested and forward to IRCA with the application fee.
Please note at the application stage, only the application fee is required.
Applicants are advised not to submit any fee in respect of initial certification with their
application. Should the application for certification be successful, a fee notice for the
initial certification fee will be enclosed with the offer letter.

Chapter 9
All communications and correspondence in support of the application must be in the

English language, or be accompanied by certified translations of the originals. This is
particularly important in respect of academic qualifications.
Any claim for qualification shall be supported by documentary evidence. An example of

acceptable evidence would be a good quality photocopy of the original certificate,
indicating the awarding body, the title and date of the award and the name of the person
to whom the award was made. If any of this information is not available or is not clear,
the applicant will be required to supply additional supporting evidence.
The same applies if a copy of the certificate is not available, for example where it has
been lost or destroyed. Acceptable evidence would include an official letter from the
awarding body confirming the award.
A transcript (i.e. an official, detailed account of the course content) of an award would
also be acceptable evidence if it clearly states the date and title of the award.
If no documentary evidence can be supplied by the awarding body, the qualification will
not be accepted for certification purposes.

Chapter 9
3. Types of Audits Acceptable for Certification
To be acceptable for auditor certification, all audits shall have been performed in
accordance with the auditing guidance standard, ISO 10011 part 1, or its successor; ISO
19011:2002 when issued, and have been against ISO 9001:2008 or accepted
equivalent.
First Party Audits

First party audits are acceptable only where the complete independence of the
organisation’s audit function from its operational activities can be demonstrated and
where the scope of the audit covered all elements specified in the quality system
standard.
Second Party Audits

Second party audits are acceptable where the complete independence of the
organisation’s audit function from its operational activities can be demonstrated and
where the scope of the audit covered all elements specified in the quality system
standard.
Third Party Audits

Third party audits are acceptable.
Audit against Standards other than ISO 9001:2008

Audits performed against alternative national or company standards may be acceptable.
Applicants are advised to contact the IRCA Secretariat for advice and/or to submit to
IRCA, with the application, a copy of the standard for evaluation.

Chapter 9
Consultancy Audits
A contractually specified audit performed on behalf of a client by a consultant, against a
quality system standard acceptable to IRCA, is acceptable providing all of the following
are satisfied:
 a fully documented and established quality system was being operated by the
auditee prior to the audit.
 the consultant had no part in setting up the quality system being audited
 the consultant was totally independent of the auditee
 the scope of the audit included all elements of the quality system
Please note: Where a consultant has been involved in the development and
implementation of the quality system prior to certification by a Certification
Body/Registrar, and has performed the pre-assessment audit, that pre-assessment audit
may be acceptable for certification providing the following conditions are satisfied:
 the auditee obtained certification at the first attempt
 there were no major non-conformances requiring corrective actions as a
condition of the awarding of certification
Applicants who include consultancy audits in support of certification are required to
complete and submit form IRCA/105.
Types of Audit NOT Acceptable for Certification

The following types of audits are not acceptable for certification purposes:
 Surveillance (partial system) audits are not acceptable for initial certification.
However, surveillance audits may be acceptable for renewal of certification. For
renewal of certification five surveillance audits may be considered equivalent to
one full quality systems audit.
 Audits of a particular quality management system that are repeated more
frequently than once every 12 months.
 Audits of less than one day (6 hours exclusive of breaks) duration.
 Close out and follow up visits.

Chapter 9
4. Definitions
Audit
A systematic, independent and documented process for obtaining audit evidence and
evaluating it objectively to determine the extent to which audit criteria are fulfilled.
Auditee
The organisation being audited.
Audit Client
The person or organisation requesting an audit.
Audit Team
One or more auditors performing an audit, one of whom is appointed as leader.
Lead Audit
An audit where the auditor performed the audit whilst leading a team of at least one
other auditor.
Sole Audit
An audit where one auditor performed all phases of the audit.
First Party Audit

An audit performed within an organisation by that organisation’s own auditing resource.
Also referred to as an Internal Audit.
Second Party Audit

An audit of contractors/suppliers undertaken by, or on behalf of, a purchasing
organisation. This may include the audit of companies or divisions supplying goods or
services to others within the same group. Also referred to as a Supplier Audit.
Third Party Audit

An audit of an organisation performed by a body that is independent of the organisation
being audited, e.g. Certification Body or Registrar.

Chapter 9
Fig 12-2
IRCA Code of Conduct
All certified auditors are required to agree to act in accordance with, and be bound by,
the following Code of Conduct:
1. To act in a strictly trustworthy and unbiased manner in relation to both the

organization by which they are employ, contracted or otherwise formally engaged
(the audit organization) and other organization involved in an audit performed by
them or personnel under their direct control.
2. To disclose to their employ any relationships they may have with the organization
to be audited before undertaking any audit function in respect of that
organisation.
3. Not to accept any inducement, gift, commission, discount or any other profit from
the organization audited, from their representatives, or from any other interested
person nor knowingly to allow personnel for whom they are responsible to do so.
4. Not to disclose the findings, or any part, or any other information gained in the
course of the audit to any third party, unless authorised in writing by both the
auditee and the audit organization to do so.
5. Not to act in any way prejudicial to the reputation or interest of the audit
organization.
6. Not to act in any prejudicial to the reputation, interests or credibility of IRCA.
7. In the event of any alleged breach of this code, to co-operate fully in any formal
enquiry procedure.

Chapter 9
About IRCA
IRCA is a leader in worldwide auditor certification and training, where worldwide
activities cover:
• 60,000 students attend courses every year
• 100 Training Organizations exist worldwide
• 24,000 auditors certificated since 1984
• IRCA auditors exist in over 100 countries
• London UK headquarters
Why become an IRCA auditor?
• Recognition for your skills
• Continual Professional Development
• Increased credibility with clients/employers
• International acknowledgement
• Better earning potential
• Improve your CV/resume
What are the registration requirements?
• Auditor training course
• Education and qualifications
• Work experience (general and specific)
• Auditing experience
• Continuing professional development (CPD)
IRCA Auditor certification programs include:
• Quality 2008, Quality 1994, Aerospace, Environmental, CSR, TickIT, Maritime,
Food safety, Information security, and Occupational health & safety.
How to get involved
Register with IRCA @ www.irca.org or email info@irca.org
Free magazine IRCA Inform @ www.irca.org

Chapter 9

Auditor Selection, Competency and Auditor Registration: Guardian Independent Certification

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Auditor Selection, Competency and Auditor Registration: Guardian Independent Certification

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Guardian Independent Certification

Auditor Selection, Competency and Auditor

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 1 of 28

KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS

Education Work Auditor Audit

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 2 of 28

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 3 of 28

Positive Auditor Characteristics

Knowledge Good Communicator

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 4 of 28

 Objective understood and objectively

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 5 of 28

Auditors’ responsibilities are to:

LEAD AUDITOR’S RESPONSIBILITIES

Lead Auditors are responsible for:

 Manage all phases of the audit.

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 6 of 28

The Lead Auditor’s activities include:

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 7 of 28

IRCA Registration Scheme

 QMS 2008 Provisional Auditor

IRCA REGISTRATION SCHEMES

Academic Work Quality Auditor Auditor Audit Mgmt /

Provisional Acceptable At least 4 At least 2 years IRCA  No Auditing Experience

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 8 of 28

IRCA REGISTRATION SCHEMES

Continuous Professional Development

Continuous Professional Development (CPD)

 Maintain audit and training log.

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 9 of 28

IRCA REGISTRATION SCHEMES

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 10 of 28

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 11 of 28

3. Positive Assessor Characteristics

If a non-conformance is found, the auditor must be prepared to take a second

Listen carefully to any explanation as to why non-conformances exist.

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 12 of 28

To avoid misunderstandings, the auditor should always obtain permission to

6, Team Roles and Responsibilities

1. If the audit is to be carried out by a team, a "Lead Auditor" should be placed in

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 13 of 28

3. The responsibilities of an Auditor are to:

7. Auditor Roles and Responsibilities

1. The Lead Auditor should:

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 14 of 28

 Determine whether quality documents are known and understood by

3. Auditors should not:

5. Lack of knowledge by the audit team of the organisation's processes should be

6. Good Practices at Meetings

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 15 of 28

 Keep to the agenda

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 16 of 28

IRCA Registration Scheme

1. Criteria for Initial Certification

IRCA maintains, and is able to reference an extensive database of recognised technical,

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 17 of 28

Applicants able to demonstrate degree or near-degree level qualifications shall have

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 18 of 28

C. Formal Auditor Training

All applicants shall have successfully completed.

An IRCA certified QMS Auditor/Lead Auditor course presented by an IRCA approved

Applicants are advised to contact IRCA or prefer to the IRCA website

©Guardian Independent Certification Pte Ltd Page 19 of 28