An internal auditor is never just a certificate; you must possess all these abilities and qualities.

Quality system management, as an important part of standardized enterprise management, plays a significant role in improving quality and efficiency during business operations. This is why quality management systems are popular worldwide and highly regarded by various enterprises (organizations) globally. Only with a high-quality internal auditor team, combined with the attention of top management, can effective internal audits be conducted to maintain an effective quality management system, thereby building a high-quality enterprise.

1. Correctly understand the importance of internal audit work

Product quality is designed and manufactured, determined by the process. It includes work quality (accuracy of inputs and outputs at each stage of research, production, and sales, especially the foresight and correctness of product planning and project initiation), design quality (design maturity; coverage and compliance rate of standardization and generalization), component quality (reliability and defect rate of components), and process quality (manufacturing process level and pass-through rate). All these are guaranteed by the quality management system. Internal audit is a requirement of the quality management system, an important link and effective means to maintain the system's effectiveness, and a source of continuous improvement.
 
The purpose of internal audit is to conduct self-evaluation of the quality management system. The audit conclusions are generally used for management review and other internal judgments and decisions, and can also serve as the basis for the organization's self-declaration of conformity. It is no exaggeration to say that internal audit is the "eyes" of enterprise managers, playing an active role in discovering problems, seeking improvement opportunities, preventing recurrence of issues, and ensuring continuous success. Using the PDCA cycle, it prevents problems before they occur and progresses step by step, continuously improving the enterprise's quality management level. This shows how important internal audit is.

2. The important role of internal auditors in enterprises

Internal auditors play a key role in internal audits, and top management must fully recognize this. The standards for internal auditors are actually no less than those for external auditors, and sometimes even higher. They are the source of promoting the effective operation and maintenance of the enterprise's quality management system. The success of internal audits largely depends on whether internal auditors can correctly understand the process approach, accurately grasp standard requirements, and have the ability to identify problems. These come from excellent internal auditors' rich work experience, professional knowledge, and personal charisma.
 
For many small and medium-sized enterprises, they usually appoint the head or staff of a specific department within the enterprise to participate in training to obtain internal auditor qualifications, ensuring that the department's daily work complies with management system requirements and participates in internal audit teams when internal audits are needed.

It is imaginable that by consciously following the quality management system requirements in daily production, supply, and sales activities, the enterprise's quality management will be regulated and standardized. Any abnormality in any link can be easily detected, allowing timely corrective actions.
 
The important roles of internal auditors in the quality management system include the following points:
 
Supervising the operation of the quality management system. Monitoring the system's operation through internal audit activities to promptly identify and solve problems.
Advising on the maintenance and improvement of the quality management system. Proposing targeted corrective action suggestions for certain nonconformities found.
Serving as a communication and liaison role in quality management. Through contact and communication with employees during daily audits, conveying management's quality policies and intentions, and reflecting employees' opinions and suggestions on quality management to management.
Acting as an internal and external interface in second- and third-party audits. Usually, internal auditors serve as guides or observers for external audits, which both improves their audit capabilities and introduces the company's actual situation to the other party.
Leading the effective implementation of the quality management system. Leveraging internal auditors' thorough understanding of the quality management system, they lead by example in conscientiously executing and implementing relevant quality standards and regulations in daily work, influencing surrounding employees through their actions.

3. Abilities and qualities internal auditors should possess

Common traits of excellent internal auditors include rich work experience, strong abilities and professional knowledge, and maintaining good qualities and personal charisma.
 
1. Work experience
 
As an excellent internal auditor, one must understand the three major aspects of enterprise design and development, process technology, and quality management, preferably with work experience in these areas, which are the core of an enterprise. If top management recognizes this and consciously guides the cultivation of internal auditors, allowing them to gain certain work experience in these positions, then selecting elite backbone personnel with communication skills, clear thinking, rigorous logic, and integrity for training and appointing them as internal auditors of the quality management system is a wise choice.
 
2. Abilities and professional knowledge
 
(1) Pay attention to the application of national standards, industry standards, or other requirements in the industry
 
Internal auditors familiar with national standards, industry standards, or other requirements can accurately grasp the requirements of product design, production, and acceptance implementation standards. During audits, they can check whether the entire product realization process deviates from the planning of product quality assurance and whether the implementation process is compliant and reasonable.
 
(2) Pay attention to changes in product production processes, equipment, or testing methods and points
 
Changes in product production processes, equipment, or testing methods and points often bring changes in control parameters or conditions. If planning and verification are insufficient in advance, quality fluctuations often occur. Focusing on this can often audit the execution capability of the quality management system and verify the product quality and its consistency, achieving continuous improvement of product quality and management capability.
 
(3) Pay attention to the effectiveness of special process control
 
The confirmation of special processes is a very important part of clause 7.5 "Production and service provision" of the quality management system. The level of special process control not only reflects product quality but also the enterprise's quality control capability. Whether special processes are identified, confirmed, and controlled is often a focus of internal audits.
 
(4) Pay attention to the control of quality risks
 
Internal auditors are not saviors of the enterprise; audits are essentially a form of risk control. From the perspective of whether quality risks have been identified and effectively controlled, auditors assess whether the facts found may cause system operation failure or affect product quality.
 
(5) Pay attention to the rectification of previous audit issues
 
Issues raised in previous internal or external audits should be tracked during audits. The corrective actions taken for audit findings should be carefully examined to determine whether they can reduce or lower quality costs and promote the achievement of enterprise profit goals. For widespread issues, it is necessary to see whether systematic analysis and cause identification have been conducted and verify the effective implementation of improvement measures and the value-added effects achieved. The quality management system documents should be revised and improved according to the resolution of issues to ensure their standardization and suitability.

3. Qualities and personal charisma
 
(1) Learn to continuously study, summarize, and reflect
 
With the development of the times, technological progress, and the continuous improvement of standards, an internal auditor who was initially considered qualified will find it difficult to meet the requirements of the quality management PCBA spiral cycle and continuous improvement if they do not pursue continuous self-improvement, and will be eliminated by enterprise development.
 
After each audit, a review should be conducted to analyze and study the entire internal audit process, evaluate the work at each stage of the internal audit, and identify shortcomings. Internal audit skills are mostly improved during the audit.
 
(2) Learn to grasp the key points, focus on the important and let go of the minor
 
Internal auditors should conduct audits with clear levels, grasp the audit focus, avoid getting entangled in overly detailed issues, keep a main line in mind, pay special attention to key issues, and avoid superficial or general discussions.
 
During the audit, ask more open-ended questions and communicate fully about problem points. Besides verifying compliance, also seek input sources for system improvement. For the audited documents, as long as their operation and control ideas are clear, do not nitpick words or find faults. The key is whether the control requirements and control methods are clearly written.
 
(3) Learn to be practical and inspect the site
 
Internal audits are activities conducted without affecting the normal operation of the enterprise. Ultimately, they should serve the enterprise, plan centralized or rolling internal audits based on the actual situation of the enterprise, select targeted content for audits, allow plans to be adjusted at any time, increase audit frequency for weak links in a timely manner, make tracking and verification of nonconformities routine work, and make continuous improvement naturally become a long-term mechanism. Employees will then mentally value following system document requirements and procedures.
 
Whether the on-site audit is thorough directly affects the accuracy of the audit results. Focus on grasping the following principles: be observant and catch clues; focus on substance rather than appearance; emphasize evidence over oral statements.
 
By inspecting key processes, comprehensively and thoroughly evaluate the controlled status of the process:
 
① First, what are the process requirements? (Through work instructions, engineering specifications, drawings, etc., evaluate their current validity, suitability, and conformity of modifications.)
 
② Next, check whether the process requirements are implemented (observe the operation, and whether the equipment instruments, tooling fixtures, measuring tools, and measurement systems used are consistent with process requirements).
 
③ Check whether first article inspection is performed? (First article identification, first article inspection records)
 
④ Check the maintenance, calibration, and verification of equipment instruments and measurement systems, as well as the operator's qualification and capability.
 
⑤ Check status, identification management, and product protection.
 
Finally, check whether the control of nonconforming products meets the product conformity of the process and whether continuous improvement has been carried out?

4. Audit work methods that excellent internal auditors should master

1. Interviews

Interviews are a commonly used method in on-site audits. By interviewing top management, management representatives, and department leaders, one can confirm their understanding of their responsibilities and the implementation of those responsibilities; talking with on-site employees can assess their understanding and execution of the requirements in procedural documents and work instructions, thereby judging the implementation of the system.

Note here: sometimes the information obtained from conversations, especially data-related information, should be verified through other channels, such as reviewing records or on-site observation, to ensure the objectivity of the audit.
 
2. Reviewing documents and records

The quality management system is a documented system. Reviewing documents and records is a necessary method in on-site audits. Through documents and records, one can understand system requirements and trace the system's development and operation status. The main records to be reviewed during audits include: design review, validation, confirmation records, supplier evaluation records, training records, negotiation and communication records, document control records, monitoring and measurement records, nonconformities, corrective action records, internal audit records, and management review reports. Since there are often many records of the same type in an organization, it is impossible to check all. Auditors should be good at selecting representative samples for audit.
 
3. On-site observation

What auditors see with their own eyes should be the most authentic. Therefore, auditors should have keen observation skills. On-site observation can be used to judge whether the organization complies with the requirements of procedural documents and work instructions in actual work. This also requires auditors to be familiar with the main on-site requirements of the documents in advance. At the same time, auditors should not be bound by document requirements and should be good at discovering problems themselves.

An important part of on-site observation is to determine whether any important production processes are omitted. To do this well, auditors must master relevant quality knowledge and legal and regulatory knowledge.

5. Audit skills that excellent internal auditors should master

1. Be good at asking questions

If auditors organize questions mainly according to checklists during on-site audits, they should do so naturally and reasonably, avoiding rigid application. Auditors should maintain patience, politeness, and a smiling attitude, which will help overcome the fear of the auditees. Auditors can ask the same question to different people and then discuss the reasons for inconsistent answers.

Questions asked to interviewees at different levels and positions on-site should differ. For example, when talking with managers, questions should focus on policies, commitments, and related responsibilities; for employees at operational positions, questions should address specific quality issues related to processes and operations.

When asking questions, try to ask open-ended questions, avoiding closed questions that can be answered with "yes" or "no." Questions can follow the "5W1H (Why, What, Who, Where, When, How)" principle or use keywords such as "show, explain, record, quantity, degree, compliance rate" as guides, use easy-to-understand language, fully utilize various checklists prepared during audit preparation, conduct open discussions with the other party, and inspire their thinking and interest.
 
2. Be good at listening

Remember, information is obtained through seeing, asking, and listening, not from speaking.

Auditors should listen carefully to the interviewee's answers and respond appropriately. First, they must show interest in the answers, maintain eye contact, and use appropriate verbal acknowledgments such as "yes" or "I understand" to indicate understanding. During conversations, pay attention to the interviewee's expressions. If the auditee misunderstands the question or answers irrelevantly, the auditor should politely guide them.
 
3. Be good at observing

Auditors should carefully observe the site environment, equipment, products, and markings, and review relevant records. On-site findings should be thoroughly checked to determine audit evidence. Audit evidence refers to information obtained through observation, measurement, testing, or other means that reflects the actual situation. In actual audits, the following two aspects can be used as audit evidence:
(1) Audit evidence existing in on-site observation and document review;
(2) Conversations during visits with persons responsible for the audited activities;

These can serve as audit evidence, but attention should be paid to verifying the information obtained from interviews through other channels (including observation, record review, and on-site testing). Information that cannot be verified should be marked. Hearsay and conversations with accompanying personnel or persons unrelated to the audited activities cannot be used as audit evidence.
 
4. Keep good records

Auditors should ensure the traceability of audit evidence, which requires detailed recording, such as using minutes, audio recordings, photographs, etc. The records should include time, place, persons involved, description of facts, supporting materials, related documents, and various identifications. All this information should be clear, accurate, and specific, making it easy to review later. Only when the records obtained are accurate and complete can reasonable judgments be made about the audit results.
 
5. Be good at follow-up verification

Auditors must be good at comparing and tracking information obtained from different sources about the same issue, judging the system's operational status from discrepancies. They must be good at tracing records and documents, the consistency between records and actual conditions, and drawing conclusions. Auditors must be adept at tracing the origins and development of a component of the management system, identifying problems, and obtaining audit evidence rather than blindly trusting verbal answers.
 
6. Be good at creating a positive audit atmosphere

Auditors should treat people equally and politely; pay attention to listening, take careful notes; occasionally show interest in the conversation by nodding, maintaining eye contact, or agreeing. When requesting to see documents or talk to people, they should seek approval from the other party's leadership. If nonconformities are found that require the leader's signature, the auditor should patiently explain the reasons and avoid arguing, etc.

Summary

With the emergence of new technologies, new management theories, and new standards—for example, the 2015 version of the Quality Management System standard has been released, which includes many changes such as weakened document requirements, specific requirements for quality objectives, strengthened leadership, and quality risk assessment—the profession (position) of internal auditor requires continuous learning, acquiring much new knowledge, and ongoing practice and summarization of experiences in the professional field to maintain one's competency level and keep up with the development needs of the internal auditor profession.