If you implement a management system, you must be able to audit its effectiveness.
As management thinker Peter Drucker said: “If you can't measure it, you can't improve it.”
As your organisation migrates its occupational health and safety system to ISO 45001, your managers will need to be trained in how to carry out an internal audit to the requirements of this international standard.
An ISO 45001 audit is an objective, systematic, and documented fact-gathering process which will help you identify potential areas for improvement and show whether your processes reflect best practice.
ISO 45001 puts the onus firmly on senior managers and the leadership of organisations to ensure hazards are identified and the occupational health and safety of workers is continuously improved.
Having an effective, robust audit process is an excellent way to ensure systems are working properly and that you as senior managers are living up to your own responsibilities.
What do internal auditors do?
Internal auditors give an organisation’s systems a health check.
They see how processes are working and flag up potential problems or examples of good practice to the board or organisational leadership.
The issues examined by internal auditors are fundamental to the prosperity and future survival of any business or organisation.
Internal auditors consider a wide range of issues such as a business’s reputation, its finances, its impact on the public and the environment, its growth and future prospects, recruitment and retention of staff, and the way it treats its workers.
When it comes to auditing ISO 45001, the internal audit looks at how the organisation is implementing the health and safety standard, whether requirements are being met, whether there have been incidents or failings, and what lessons can be learned.
What are the skills needed?
An internal auditor will need to understand hazard and risk identification, understand the standard and the organisation’s legal duties, and write detailed audit reports which identify recommendations including potential solutions.
They’ll also need to understand the fundamental importance of organisations having robust health and safety management systems.
Get yourself or your managers up to speed with an ISO 45001 internal audit course. We deliver them in-house, or you can book on to a public course. Discover more details.
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