What is an audit ? When we deal with the issue of certifications, corporate auditing becomes a very important, we would even say decisive, part of the entire process. Starting from the definition audit we can only connect to the origins of the word: audit means “listening” and derives from ancient Rome, to indicate those subjects who controlled the administration of public money by precisely the so-called auditing of the accounting results. This control activityit is applied today, changing the context within the company, involving the integrity of the process necessary for quality certification. Therefore, to answer the question of what a corporate audit is, we must refer to the whole system that involves defining the necessary objectives and procedures, identifying critical issues and solutions, to ultimately arrive at the fulfillment of regulatory obligations or obtain or maintain a certification. of management systems when these have been implemented in the company.
What is an internal audit
Among the various figures related to this process we now try to explain internal audit definition and contents. The so-called internal audit refers to a consultancy, control and verification of the procedures put in place that is carried out by staff within the company , which operates in a position of functional independence. In reality, internal auditing can be carried out by professionals both inside and outside the company: does this seem like a real paradox? In reality the word “internal” for the audit refers to the direction of information related to the evaluation and improvement of the efficiency of the company organization, which is always the, as happens instead in other adjacent areas such as the certification of financial statements.
How an audit is conducted
After seeing what an audit is, let’s also see how the whole process works at a glance. The first important step in the audit process concerns the collection of data and information , identifying the areas of the company that must be involved, the tools to be used and the planning of data collection activities, with an overall assessment of protocols and parameters. But as we explained starting from the definition of what an audit is, the next step concerns the phase of listening and acquiring information through interviews with employees and management bodies of the company, to which are added inspections and observations of the work context.
The third phase of the auditing process involves the elaboration of the critical points detected , and the suggestions about the improvements, actions and objectives to be reached in order to implement the company system in order to obtain certification. At the end of the auditing process, the person who performs the role of auditor will have to proceed with the preparation of a written report , which will represent the starting point for achieving the improvement expected as a mission by the company system.
What is a third party audit
The third party auditor stands out in this area , which has some differences compared to the so – called first and second part auditors. The first-party auditor is the one who deals with what we have previously defined internal audit, while the second-party audit is instead addressed to organizations for which there are particular interests , for example when you need to qualify a supplier: also in this case such activity as the previous one can be carried out by a figure inside the company or by a specially trained external consultant. The third-party auditor, on the other hand, is responsible for monitoringabout the parameters of compliance and efficacy as regards the overall quality of the organization, and precisely because it seeks a specific objectivity for certification purposes, it is the only one of the three parts of the audit program that does not require the presence of internal staff for the purposes conformity assessment, but only independent professionals with a specific qualification.
