Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! Note: this slide show is designed to let you view at your own pace… …just click Page Down. (approx time 4-6 minutes)

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! A Better, Value-Added Approach to Audits – Internal Improvement Audits

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! We spend so much Time and Money on Audits… Why can’t we get more from them?

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! Here’s a common example, during a recent upgrade audit: Client had performed 23 internal audits (on a new system) with only 8 findings. My audit found dozens of open issues - most were routine ISO issues. Yet, they were confident their internal audits were solid and effective… …Why?

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! Why? There must be something missing. …What are we missing?

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! Are we missing this? – Show me the money!

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! If we want better results, If we want more “Money,” (…savings…value…benefit), …We need a better approach!

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! I don’t fault our auditors I don’t fault our ISO systems I don’t fault our Management Teams I blame the system that teaches our auditors. We did the auditor training, but there’s more to be harvested.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! I have been an auditor 11 years, and sat through at least a dozen professional auditor training sessions. Not a single one focused on saving money or time from audits!

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! The focus was on compliance, procedures, requirements, auditor behavior, responsibilities, the right way to do it, Audit paperwork and reporting, Customer this…and ISO that… All sorts of things, but NO MONEY!

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! These were professional 3rd party auditor trainings, so they weren’t supposed to be about money, right? Problem is, “professional” training for internal auditors are taught from the same script, by people trained to the same approach.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! Were your auditors trained the same way? The difference was I got to practice on about a thousand audits. Your internal auditors get 2, 3, 4, 5 audits a year. They will never synthesize how to get all these results on their own.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! If you want different results, you must design a different process… …so we did!

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! First, I changed the name – We call them “Improvement Audits.” No more “internal audits.”

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! Then, I completely changed the focus of our internal audit training program. We spend less time on the ISO stuff. We focus more on your company, your objectives, your performance… …the MONEY STUFF!

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! When did it become wrong to talk about the MONEY Stuff ? That’s what your Top Management talks about, isn’t it? Your customers talk about money a lot, don’t they? Why can’t auditors?

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! Can we focus on MONEY savings, and TIME savings, * and still satisfy the Customer? * and still meet ISO and TS requirements? SURE! …We just have to re-aim our focus.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! Being a consultant and auditor gives me a unique perspective and advantage. I have reviewed hundreds of audit programs, (some effective, some not). So, I developed a whole different approach. Remember my motto – “this stuff has to save time and money.”

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! First, the audit program must be something Management can support and get excited about. It has to drive improvements that support Customer Satisfaction. It has to meet ISO requirements. And, it has to SAVE MONEY! …All four points matter!

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! So, we designed: A different approach, A different focus, And, a different curriculum all together.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! We teach “Improvement Audits” We quit focusing on every little ISO requirement as the primary focus of the training. They’re only 1/3 of it. We spend a great deal of effort on explaining what ISO is trying to do, …not how to do ISO.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! We explain the purpose and benefit of the process approach. It’s not about flowcharts or diagrams, though they are useful. It’s not about work instructions and procedures. They’re good too, but we have plenty of them already.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! It’s about identifying, aligning and optimizing every interchange between every process and every transaction. That’s what we teach your auditors!

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! Every process transaction is a potential improvement – and there’s a lot of transactions! Imagine if you could begin to improve and optimize each transaction. How many potential improvements could we, …would we… identify? We struggle to find 5 useful findings in our audits. Don’t fault the auditors, they audit the way they were taught. We have to teach them a better way.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! In redesigning the approach, we also include some principles from Lean and 5S. That’s not part of external audits, but there’s no reason they can’t be part of your internal “Improvement Audits.” …It’s good stuff!

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! In Improvement Audits: More focus on intelligent selection, not random selection, of audit samples. More focus on performance and metrics, and meeting targets. On work instructions, more focus on methods and why we do what we do.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! Four Levels in each audit: 1. Effective Audit Prep – reviewing the “Report Card, Criteria, Metrics, Objectives, 2. Auditing the actual process flow, 3. Auditing the linkages to other related and supporting processes, 4. An effective audit summary. There is much more to it, but these levels support the Improvement Audit concept.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! More focus on meeting the needs of the Process Owner. (When auditing Purchasing, you are doing the audit for the Purchasing Manager, he is the customer of the audit process. When auditing Manufacturing, the Mfg. Mgr. is your customer. Not ISO, not Quality, not even the external customer. They are secondary customers.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! Focus the audit, audit process, audit results, selection and interviewing, all must look at the needs of the direct internal customer. The audit must look at effectively aligning all the transactions of each processes, and where improvement opportunities are. If this is done well, managers may begin to actually look forward to audits!

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! When we roll this out, it’s FUN!. Top Management likes it. Most people I audit get value. Most auditors LOVE this approach! They are excited by the idea, and can’t wait to begin to explore it.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! So, who do you suppose has the most problem with this new “Improvement Audit” concept?

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! - The Quality Manager! Yes, the very person who complains he/she isn’t getting the support and resources needed to do what is required, often tends to be the one likely to resist this approach. Fortunately, many QM’s are progressive and buy in quickly. Those are the ones I am trying to reach!

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! They are excited about the possibilities this approach presents. They just want to be confident this won’t violate ISO requirements. And, the way we designed it, it is completely compliant with ISO and TS. (It may slay a few sacred cows … …but we all like a good BBQ!)

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! The ISO world and the global Quality movement is moving in this direction. This was the driver why ISO adopted a process approach. A proper process approach is the required framework to support this aligning and optimizing “improvement approach.”

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! (By the way, I have available a PowerPoint training about designing a proper process approach.)

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! We find that to get auditors to truly have the right mindset and understanding toward these Improvement Audits, takes some “re-training.” In fact, we reprogram them to use this improved approach! Also, the Internal Improvement Audit training includes training how to use a special audit checksheet we designed to work with this approach.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! Our auditor training in this new approach is guaranteed to save you money. In fact, if you implement the program the way we teach it, we actually guarantee there will be no net cost to your company.

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! Better audits, more savings, happier auditors, supportive managers…and no net cost to you… … sounds too good to be true? …but it is doable! We guarantee it!

Improvement Audits - Let’s Get More Bang! If you’re interested, let’s talk... Helmut Jilling hjilling1@aol.com 330-338-3050 www.Jilling.com …Thanks for watching!