Audits

Audits record an audit number, scope, planned date, completed date, status and assigned auditor. The status moves among Planned, in progress, Reporting and Closed. Quality Manager can see which audits are scheduled and which are being worked. The linked audit findings hold the requirement, finding, severity, due date, closed date and Owner. The relationship keeps a finding with the audit that produced it while assigning follow-up to a person.

The audit record and finding record serve different questions. The audit answers what was reviewed and when. A finding answers which requirement was examined, what was observed and who has the follow-up. A closed audit does not substitute for the individual finding’s due or closed date. Review them together when discussing completion.

• Plan. Quality Manager defines scope, planned date and the auditor responsible for the review.
• Record. The assigned auditor works through the scope and documents each finding against its requirement.
• Follow up. Owners address findings by due date; Quality Manager reads the audit and finding history together.

Severity on findings is Observation, Minor or Major. Agree what those terms mean for response timing before the first audit. A finding sentence should state the observed condition, while the requirement field identifies the expectation. That distinction helps the owner decide what to address and helps the auditor revisit the same requirement later.

Select a numbering convention for audits. Decide who can set scope, who is assigned as auditor, and how an Owner is assigned to each finding. Agree how a team confirms a finding is closed, using closed date rather than assuming that the audit’s status settles every linked finding. Set the planned date in terms the audit team actually uses, such as the start of fieldwork or the scheduled review day, and explain it to everyone using the list.

Audit work can expose a condition that needs a separate corrective response. Agree who will hand that finding to Quality Manager and how the team will keep the audit reference with the discussion.

Quality Manager plans audit A-28 for a document control process and assigns a person as auditor. During the review, that person finds an outdated instruction in use. The finding cites the requirement, describes the observation, marks Major severity, assigns an Owner and sets a due date. The audit can move to Reporting while the finding remains visible in the due list. The owner and auditor can both see which original scope produced the finding.

Rehearse the next review with a second finding marked Observation. It should not be treated as the same response priority solely because it came from the same audit. Use each finding’s severity, due date and owner to discuss the response. When follow-up is complete, capture its closed date, then read the audit’s completed date and status separately.

• Audit schedule — Planned and active audits with scope, date and assigned auditor.
• Findings due — Requirements and observations that need owner follow-up by date.

See audit follow-up and the data model.