How to be 100% audit ready with QMS
If it weren’t for audits, thousands of accounting frauds would have gone unnoticed, innocent people would have continued to be ripped off, and several companies would have not been able to spot embezzlement happening right under their noses. However, the role of audit (derived from the Latin word ‘audire,’ meaning ‘to hear’) is not restricted to the prevention of accounting scandals. Audit processes help to keep an organization in line, overall. It outlines processes that need improvement, acknowledges systems that are going well, recommends the way forward to achieve better results, and helps find the missing pieces so the organization can complete its puzzle.
With the help of audits, companies can ensure that they meet the standards set by themselves and by compliance regulations. This essentially helps them grow their business.
A quality management system (QMS), on the other hand, is the sum of the processes in a business that aims to help it meet the required quality standards. It standardizes processes, prevents, and predicts recurring and future issues, and prescribes remedies for the smooth running of the business. The point at which audit and QMS converge is that they both aim for continuous improvement.
Role of QMS in Audit
An intelligent QMS can help you to be audit-ready since it has the following processes embedded in it:
- Documentation of processes that helps capture the workflow of various functions and activities in the organization. These documents are organized by QMS and act as both a standard to follow and a checklist to fall back on.
- Performance of regular internal auditsto keep the organizational systems in check and in line with set standards so that the conditions for external audits are easily met. A smart QMS also alerts the system when audits are due.
- Maintenance of audit trails that ensures that the organization complies with its policies. QMS automatically keeps a record of the various processes, process owners, tasks executed, chronology, and other required information simplifying the process of tracing changes back to their root causes.
- Integration of capacity building into business processes as a part of continuous improvement and internalization of adopting quality management by the staff. With the help of QMS, merging the training process into the quality management process is seamless.
- Adherence to best practices. A smart QMS helps track standards and provides the opportunity to review the organizational processes to ensure that quality standards are met. The software solution makes the quicker, simpler, and safer
A data-driven QMS software that is powered by AI and ML can prepare your company to reach the standards set by Industry 4.0. By helping you be audit-ready, it maintains your quality standards and helps your business grow.
Types of Audits that QMS Makes Easy
When you have integrated a powerful QMS into your business processes, your organization is essentially ready to conduct various internal audits to ensure that all requirements are met before an external audit.
The types of audits a smart QMS will help you to conduct on your existing processes are –
- operational, to ensure that your operations are efficient and effective
- compliance, to help your organization be compliant with regulations
- financial, to keep an eye on the flow of accounts and reduce errors and miscalculations
- follow-ups, to check if audit observations are met and resolved
- investigative, to look for and find the root cause of questionable activities
- information technology, to evaluate the data security and internal automated processes
- management, to objectively review the business strategy
Benefits of using QMS for Audit Purposes
With automation and predictive analytics playing a huge role in ensuring which businesses have the winning edge in today’s cut-throat competitive markets, the role of QMS in making your organization audit-ready is non-negotiable. Being complimentary to each other, the two processes work together to help you achieve desired results, while continuously improving your performance and therefore, meeting, and exceeding customer expectations through comprehensive quality management.
QMS helps you identify the gaps and act on them, helping your business be compliant. It also figures out the areas that need more effort and the areas that are performing well so that resources are optimized. Risks are considerably reduced since issues can be predicted and prevented, thus bringing down the cost of quality for the organization. And very importantly, legal issues and penalties can be avoided keeping the goodwill of the company intact and helping you secure your brand perception.
Quality360 is a complete, intelligent, and AI-powered quality solution that is built keeping in mind the entire value chain, right from design, to sourcing, raw materials, prototyping, manufacturing, and finally delivery. The solution helps you embed quality management into every single process from end-to-end, thus ensuring you are 100% audit-ready!
To understand how Quality360 can make a difference to your company, click here