How do you prepare for a safety audit?

1 Define the scope and objectives

Before you start your safety audit, you need to clarify what you want to achieve and what areas you want to cover. Do you want to evaluate your entire safety system or focus on specific aspects, such as risk assessment, training, incident reporting, or emergency response? Do you want to check your compliance with legal standards or industry best practices? Do you want to benchmark your performance against your goals or competitors? Define the scope and objectives of your audit and communicate them to your auditors and auditees.

2 Review your documents and records

One of the main sources of evidence for your safety audit is your documentation and records. These include your safety policy, manual, plans, procedures, checklists, forms, reports, logs, certificates, permits, and any other relevant documents. You need to review them and make sure they are up to date, accurate, consistent, and accessible. You also need to identify any gaps or discrepancies that may affect your audit results. Organize your documents and records in a logical and easy-to-find way and provide them to your auditors in advance.

4 Conduct a self-audit

A good way to prepare for a safety audit is to conduct a self-audit before the external audit. A self-audit is a self-assessment of your safety system and performance based on the same criteria and standards as the external audit. It helps you identify your strengths and weaknesses, verify your compliance and effectiveness, and implement corrective and preventive actions. A self-audit also helps you familiarize yourself with the audit process and reduce your anxiety and stress. You can use tools such as checklists, questionnaires, interviews, observations, or tests to conduct your self-audit.

5 Support the audit process

During the safety audit, you need to support the audit process and cooperate with the auditors. You need to provide them with access to your documents, records, staff, facilities, and equipment. You need to answer their questions honestly and objectively and provide them with evidence and examples. You need to respect their authority and independence and avoid any interference or influence. You also need to listen to their feedback and recommendations and take notes of any findings or nonconformities.

6 Follow up on the audit results

After the safety audit, you need to follow up on the audit results and implement any actions or improvements. You need to review the audit report and understand the audit findings, conclusions, and recommendations. You need to acknowledge any nonconformities or deficiencies and develop an action plan to address them. You need to assign responsibilities, deadlines, and resources for each action and monitor their progress and effectiveness. You also need to communicate the audit results and actions to your staff and stakeholders and celebrate your achievements and successes.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?