Why do an internal audit?

What are the benefits of conducting an Internal Audit?

An internal audit is an effective way of detecting anomalies, risks and non-compliance. It concerns all departments of an organisation, operational, commercial, financial, technical and social.

It is an independent activity that allows you to dissect the functioning of the company.

• measures on the level of control of operations

• help and advice to improve operations

• corrective actions to achieve its objectives (through the implementation of corrective actions)

The conditions for carrying out assignments during certification audits are identical to those for an internal audit.

What is the mission of the internal auditor?

It ensures that:

• compliance of activities with laws and regulations

• reliability of data at all levels

• monitoring the smooth running of internal processes, especially to maintain and improve performance

• monitoring the achievement of the objectives set by the company's management.

The auditor must be familiar with the areas under review in order to identify the processes in the company. This requires consultation of a number of internal documents, such as the previous audit report, the quality manual, or previous certifications for example.

Conducting an internal audit in 5 key steps

Steps	Actions
Preparing the audit questionnaire	understand the tasks of the processes - identify possible risks - prepare the list of items to be checked
Conducting the audit (individual interviews)	draw up a questionnaire covering all the subjects to be studied according to the best methodology (QQOQCP method) - observe the auditee in his or her environment in the workplace - present the results at the closing meeting, identifying: the positive points, the areas for progress and the gaps
Assist processes to be defined	list all (recommended) actions - optimise points for improvement
Monitor the effectiveness of actions taken	control the application, by the auditee, of the various corrective actions (customer and internal feedback, tests or simulations, or by additional audit).

Extrend Consulting can help you with your audit, whatever your needs and your sector of activity, thanks to :

• its expertise in QSE and CSR standards (ISO 9001, ISO 45001, ISO 14001)

• its expertise in specific trade repositories

• experience in international donor procedures