Fundamental audit concepts and principles
What the domain tests
Domain 3 tests ISO 19011:2018 audit principles and vocabulary: audit, audit criteria, audit evidence, findings, conformity, nonconformity, audit programme, audit plan, competence and the seven principles.
Principles and vocabulary
- Integrity, fair presentation, due professional care, confidentiality, independence, evidence-based approach and risk-based approach.
- First-party audit is internal; second-party is by an interested party such as a customer; third-party is independent, e.g. certification.
- Audit criteria are the requirements used as a reference; audit evidence is records, statements or observations verifiable and relevant to the criteria.
- A finding is a result of evaluating evidence against criteria; it can show conformity or nonconformity. Nonconformities are graded by the certification scheme, not by ISO 22000 itself.
- Competence is the ability to apply knowledge and skills; it is not the same as qualification.
- The audit programme is the set of audits planned for a period; the audit plan is the schedule for one audit.
Worked example
An auditor sees a calibration sticker expired by two weeks on a thermometer used for CCP monitoring. The auditor does not immediately write a nonconformity. First, they check whether the thermometer was used during the expiry period, whether product was affected, and whether the calibration status can be demonstrated. If the device was used and no verification exists, the evidence supports a nonconformity against the monitoring and measuring requirement. If it was not used, the finding may be an observation about control of monitoring equipment. The reasoning shows evidence-based evaluation, not a checklist reaction.
Traps
Treating a verbal assurance as objective evidence; writing a nonconformity without stating the requirement; confusing audit programme with audit plan; claiming independence when auditing your own work; and grading nonconformities using personal preference instead of the scheme's rules.