ISO 19011 Guidelines for auditing management systems include 13 necessary personal behaviors that an auditor should have which ensures that they exhibit professional behavior during the conduct of audit activities.
These thirteen (13) personal behaviors are:
1. Ethical - Fair, truthful, sincere, honest and discreet.
As auditors, we need to be open, transparent and clear in our communications at all times (even when we're not being watched).
2.Open-minded - Willing to consider alternative ideas or points of view.
This is really important as an auditor as we will be shown all different ways in which a criteria requirement has been implemented across different businesses and industries.
We have to always be open to new ways of doing things and go back to the criteria we are auditing against and ask "does this method meet the requirements". Just because it's different doesn't mean it is not conforming to requirements!
3. Diplomatic - We need to be tactful when dealing with individuals.
It is important to be able to 'read' people. Not just what they have said, but their tone and body language as well. As auditors, we need to adjust our behavior to get the best out of the auditee.
4. Observant - Actively observe physical surroundings and activities.
Always be looking around you and go where the activity happens. This is where you will see the records and evidence being generated. And always remember if the auditee is taking you in one direction always look back in the other 🙂
5. Perceptive - Being aware of and able to understand situations.
As auditors, there is likely always a lot going on around you. We need to be able to read different situations, where auditees might be nervous or anxious or even trying to hide something. We not only have to be aware of this but we also need to know how to manage the situation.
6. Versatile - Able to readily adapt to different situations.
You never know what an audit is going to throw at you. Your priorities might change. Higher risk areas might be identified on which you need to focus more of your time on. You need to be able to adapt and change as the audit progresses.
7. Tenacious - Persistent and focused on achieving objectives.
As auditors, we will always ask an open question to get the auditee talking and explaining what they do or what the process is. We need to follow these questions up to dig deeper and identify the evidence to be able to collect it for reference in the audit report.
Your tenaciousness in 'sniffing' this out will help you to find the evidence that you need to determine whether the system is conforming or not.
8. Decisive - Able to reach timely conclusions based on logical reasoning and analysis.
The decisions you make during an audit must be made based on facts and objective evidence. For example, if you identify a potential nonconformance you need to make the final decision based on the evidence you have collected and ensure it is communicated to the auditee during the audit.
There shouldn't be any surprise after the conclusion of the audit because you have needed 'time' to think about it.
9. Self-reliant - Able to act and function independently while interacting effectively with others.
As you will be working on your own or as a team member at times, you need to be able to self-monitor and manage the audit yourself while communicating what stage you are at with other audit team members and auditees.
10. Act with fortitude - Acting responsibly and ethically.
Even though these actions may not always be popular and may sometimes result in disagreement or confrontation.
As an auditor, you need to learn how to deliver your findings or questions in a manner that will not insult or make the auditee defensive.
Remember that you are working with the auditee with a common goal - you want them to succeed so how can you support them to do this and keep the relationship open to feedback while reducing the potential for conflict?
11. Open to improvement
Willing to learn from situations.
As an auditor, it is an ongoing learning process. Get in the habit of reflecting back on how you asked questions, how the auditee responded, and whether you could have done something different to get a better outcome.
12. Culturally sensitive
Observant and respectful to the culture of the auditee.
Right at the point of planning the audit, you should ask whether there are any cultural considerations to allow for. These may be language barriers, prayer time, or customs that you need to be made aware of. This way you can arrange for a guide or interpreter and update your audit plan and timetable with any other areas identified.
And finally,
13. Collaborative
Effectively interacting with others, including audit team members and the auditee's personnel.
We all have a common goal! The auditee wants to have a continually improving and conforming system and of course as auditors we want that too! We help businesses to achieve this by having a fresh look at their systems and identifying any areas that are not conforming or could be improved.
This same outlook applies when you are working within an audit team - you are both there to achieve the audit objectives so working collaboratively to achieve this is the best way to conduct a productive audit.
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