Reporting

It is imperative that your audit findings are written in a way that makes reference to objective evidence. This means for each one you should initially identify:

• the observation made
• the cause, and
• the required action.

The finding should also include:

• a due date for the completion of the action
• reference to the standard not being met (eg procedure, work instruction)
• who is assigned the action to complete
• the importance of the finding
• facts and comments which substantiate the existence of the finding, and
• the location of where the finding was observed.

When writing the Audit Report, the findings must be clearly documented and should provide a clear description of the events that were witnessed during the audit. It should also:

• be uniquely identifiable
• restate the audit scope and objective
• identify the criteria against which the audit was conducted
• list key personal, dates and locations
• detail any follow-up intentions, and
• state the overall outcomes and overall compliance of the audit.

You should write your Audit Report with your audience in mind, accounting for their technical understanding and their authority and responsibility. For example, a report for a manager could be a lot more technical than one for a Board, but would need to recognise the limits of their authority to remedy issues that may have a root cause elsewhere in the business.

Follow up

Corrective action, required as a result of performing an audit, must be followed up and closed out.

The follow up phase of an audit is where the auditor monitors the closing of the actions. This includes ensuring accountability for completing the actions lies with appropriate management. It is important that the auditor accepts or rejects all actions taken to address the findings (eg whether the action taken appropriate to address the finding and stop any repeat findings in the future).