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Atricle Dump - Energizing Your Internal Audit Program
Friendship is the most effective branding a store can ever use. It isn't loyalty programs that set retailers apart from their competition, it is friendships. How can retailers build friendships with their customers?Many retailers go to a lot of trouble making their customers feel like "guests." I'd like to suggest that they would be better off trying to forge friendships.Friendships are forged from human interaction. Getting rid of the cold and impersonal, and adding the personal touch is the way to recognize every shopper as an unique individual. By valuing their customers' feelings, tastes, needs and desires, retailers create friendships and build customer loyalty. What are retailers doing to interact with their customers?Gwen Moran, president of Moran Marketing Associates, explored several ideas for Entrepreneur Magazine, including one from a florist friend, who "keeps a card file on each of her most frequent customers, recording the colors of their home d?cors, seasonal flower preferences and so on, so she always delivers the perfect arrangement." Just because a retailer is based online doesn't mean they can't create one on one contact too. Another great way to get customers back into a store is to offer classes and workshops. Many retailers, large and small, brick-and-mortar and pure-play, have found ways to build friendships.From letting a customer try a product in the store before they buy it, to soliciting feedback on products and giving customers a way to share their experiences with other customers, retailers are treating customers like friends, not just guests.
Inputs:
This is what the process needs for the activity. It can be in the form of information or a product. For this example the inputs are: Demand (what is driving the purchase), Quantity, Type, Specifications and Requirements, Due date and Budget (how much can be spent).
Supplier:<
Executive recruiters and commercial lenders agree that it takes a different kind of leader to run a $20 million company that it does to run a $2 million company. The same can be said about running $100 million and $1 billion companies. What makes the difference? What qualities does a $100 million dollar leader possess that a $10 million dollar leader lacks? Is it education? Technical expertise? Charisma? Political cunning?The crux of the question lies in the word leader. Let's define leadership as: getting results through others and apply this concept to your organization.* Have you been wanting to grow revenues to the next level yet never manage to make it happen?* Have you reached a plateau in either market share or revenue?* Did you experience a sales spike only to fall back to your previous level?* Do you have a strategy to grow to X level and then stop as additional business is foreseen as unmanageable?Which needs to grow first, the business or the leadership?It's a chicken and egg relationship. Executive recruiters and commercial lenders know that leadership is the egg while business growth is the chicken. Leadership growth drives and sustains business growth.The skills and behaviors required for getting sustained results through others are not something we're born with. They can be developed. Leaders who continuously grow provide the fuel for continuous growth of their organizations.When I hear a business owner say we just can't seem to get the next level, I see an executive who has stopped improving the behaviors, attitudes and skills needed for getting sustained results through others.Have you encountered a revenue plateau? Is it possible your organization's leadership has plateau-ed?What can you be doing do to avoid these plateaus? Are you ready to explore new ways of moving to greater heights?
The key to an effective, thorough and value added internal audit is in the preparation. If internal auditors are spending one to two hours preparing for an internal audit, it is not enough time. To properly prepare for an audit, it should take twice to three times that. If the actual audit time will take an hour, there should be at between two and three hours spent in preparation. A good rule of thumb to spend about two and half times as much time in preparation as the audit will take. Often times, auditors plan for a two hour internal audit and spend 1 hour preparing which leads to them running out of questions about 30 minutes into the audit. I can’t stress this enough if you want to be a successful internal auditor or manage a successful internal audit program then make certain you spend adequate time in preparation for the audit.
This sounds easy, but it is actually very difficult. The major obstacles to allocating enough time for preparation are time restrictions placed on the internal auditors. Chances are they have other responsibilities aside from internal auditing that compete for their precious time. One method to help remove that obstacle is to have as many trained internal auditors as possible to spread the work load.
Effective planning for an internal audit requires following a few simple steps that are listed below.
1. Learn the process (turtle diagram)
2. Identify the interfaces with the standard
3. Document review (compliance to standard)
4. Identify process interfaces
5. Identify potential process failure modes (pFMEA)
6. Value stream map process to breakdown activities
7. Review old audits
8. Develop audit questions
9. Develop audit plan.
1. Learn the process
Before you can audit a process you must become familiar with it. You need to learn how it is supposed to work, what it supposed to do, what are the inputs, outputs, activities, resources and controls. The first step would be to create a turtle diagram of the process (This may have already been done by the organization as part of their documentation, or in previous audits). A turtle diagram looks at the suppliers, inputs, activities, controls, resources, outputs, and customers. A turtle diagram is laid out such that the process activity is a box in the middle, the inputs come in from the left and outputs exit from the right of the box. The supplier is listed in the upper left hand corner and the customer is listed in the upper right hand corner. The controls are above the process activity and the resources are below the process activity. The feedback loop is an arrow from the output to the input. Let’s do an example of a turtle diagram for a process. For this example, the process will be one that applies to about every business in some way and that’s purchasing.
Inputs:
This is what the process needs for the activity. It can be in the form of information or a product. For this example the inputs are: Demand (what is driving the purchase), Quantity, Type, Specifications and Requirements, Due date and Budget (how much can be spent).
Supplier:
There is a growing demand for people with Six Sigma certification and expertise as companies realize the many ways in which the Six Sigma methodology can help their organizations grow and improve. Six Sigma has grown beyond its manufacturing origins with many government agencies and service providers now advertising for Six Sigma help. More importantly, even small companies are taking on Six Sigma consultants or full-time staff, which implies that the demand for Six Sigma professionals will only increase in the coming years.Six Sigma Job CategoriesThere are many junior- and senior-level Six Sigma openings across a wide range of industries. The positions and job descriptions are oftentimes unique to the company and its requirements. Admittedly, many of these positions are filled internally, as companies train their own people in the Six Sigma methodology so that people already familiar with the corporate culture are provided with the needed skill sets. On the other hand, these same organizations often reach outside for help, seeking out experienced people to either lead, or implement full-scale Six Sigma projects throughout the company.Six Sigma Job OpeningsMany companies openly advertise job opportunities that are clearly Six Sigma based (e.g., Six Sigma Analyst or Six Sigma Black Belt). Others, however, advertise openings for positions that are not obviously Six Sigma openings such as Functional Project Lead, Director of Operational Excellence, Business Project Manager, or Senior Projects Manager.Job openings such as these are usually for people with Six Sigma Black Belt capabilities – someone trained in the Six Sigma methodology with experience in leading cross-functional process improvement teams. These people are tapped to lead individual Six Sigma teams.Companies sometimes advertise for Six Sigma Master Black Belts to fill organization-wide Six Sigma program manager positions, in effect taking over very sen
This sounds easy, but it is actually very difficult. The major obstacles to allocating enough time for preparation are time restrictions placed on the internal auditors. Chances are they have other responsibilities aside from internal auditing that compete for their precious time. One method to help remove that obstacle is to have as many trained internal auditors as possible to spread the work load.
Effective planning for an internal audit requires following a few simple steps that are listed below.
1. Learn the process (turtle diagram)
2. Identify the interfaces with the standard
3. Document review (compliance to standard)
4. Identify process interfaces
5. Identify potential process failure modes (pFMEA)
6. Value stream map process to breakdown activities
7. Review old audits
8. Develop audit questions
9. Develop audit plan.
1. Learn the process
Before you can audit a process you must become familiar with it. You need to learn how it is supposed to work, what it supposed to do, what are the inputs, outputs, activities, resources and controls. The first step would be to create a turtle diagram of the process (This may have already been done by the organization as part of their documentation, or in previous audits). A turtle diagram looks at the suppliers, inputs, activities, controls, resources, outputs, and customers. A turtle diagram is laid out such that the process activity is a box in the middle, the inputs come in from the left and outputs exit from the right of the box. The supplier is listed in the upper left hand corner and the customer is listed in the upper right hand corner. The controls are above the process activity and the resources are below the process activity. The feedback loop is an arrow from the output to the input. Let’s do an example of a turtle diagram for a process. For this example, the process will be one that applies to about every business in some way and that’s purchasing.
Inputs:
This is what the process needs for the activity. It can be in the form of information or a product. For this example the inputs are: Demand (what is driving the purchase), Quantity, Type, Specifications and Requirements, Due date and Budget (how much can be spent).
Supplier:<
One of the first steps is to box up last years files. However, before you do that be sure to go through your files and clean them out. The files that can take up a lot of space during the year, can be easily tossed. For example, your correspondence file, newsletter files, chron files. You can also combine your completed client files for the year, both seller and tenant buyers. After you have gone through the paper file cabinet, be sure to do the same with your computer files. Years ago when computer memory was at a premium, people did not keep all the extraneous garbage on their computers, like people do today. Just like your paper files, move the files to disks or your zip drive if you need to, or just delete them. You don't need every letter you sent, every e-mail, or all the newsletters you've been meaning to read. Also go through your favorites and clean them out. Treat your computer like memory was at a premium and you won't hold on to items you will never use. Unfortunately today everything is in gigabytes rather than megabytes. After you have cleaned out the paper files and computer files, next step is to make up your files for this year. Avery Label Pro is excellent for doing up file labels. In fact all type of labels. It allows you to run another set of general files out very quickly. Remember time management and organization are keys to not wasting your time. I'm sure that many of you are thinking boxing up and making up of files is a waste of time. However, when a client calls and you can't find something they want to know, it will become of paramount importance. So, keep your files organized, both paper and computer. Once you have your files set for the new year, the next thing is to clean out the calendar or day planner you use. Change the pages. Tip, you can run day planner pages out of Outlook and then whole punch. A lot cheaper than buying the pages. This is also a great option for those of you without a day planner
Effective planning for an internal audit requires following a few simple steps that are listed below.
1. Learn the process (turtle diagram)
2. Identify the interfaces with the standard
3. Document review (compliance to standard)
4. Identify process interfaces
5. Identify potential process failure modes (pFMEA)
6. Value stream map process to breakdown activities
7. Review old audits
8. Develop audit questions
9. Develop audit plan.
1. Learn the process
Before you can audit a process you must become familiar with it. You need to learn how it is supposed to work, what it supposed to do, what are the inputs, outputs, activities, resources and controls. The first step would be to create a turtle diagram of the process (This may have already been done by the organization as part of their documentation, or in previous audits). A turtle diagram looks at the suppliers, inputs, activities, controls, resources, outputs, and customers. A turtle diagram is laid out such that the process activity is a box in the middle, the inputs come in from the left and outputs exit from the right of the box. The supplier is listed in the upper left hand corner and the customer is listed in the upper right hand corner. The controls are above the process activity and the resources are below the process activity. The feedback loop is an arrow from the output to the input. Let’s do an example of a turtle diagram for a process. For this example, the process will be one that applies to about every business in some way and that’s purchasing.
Inputs:
This is what the process needs for the activity. It can be in the form of information or a product. For this example the inputs are: Demand (what is driving the purchase), Quantity, Type, Specifications and Requirements, Due date and Budget (how much can be spent).
Supplier:<
The Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) directive came into force in the UK on 13th August 2004. The WEEE Directive aims to minimise the impact of electrical and electronic equipment on the environment during their life times and when they become waste. It applies to a huge spectrum of products including Computer Hardware and it encourages and sets criteria for the collection, treatment, recycling and recovery of waste IT equipment.The enforcement of the WEEE and RoHS (Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment) Directives should greatly assist in the reduction of lead, cadmium, mercury, and other hazardous chemicals in our environment. WEEE and RoHS have implications for product manufacturers, component manufacturers, importers, retailers, local authorities and consumers. There are no exemptions for small companies in the Directives.Previously, redundant or obsolete computer hardware was put in a back room to gather dust or worse still, thrown on a skip. These important Directives now make everyone responsible for disposing of IT equipment in an environmentally friendly way. However, there are still a lot of people unaware that this law will affect them.Laws that are designed to help reduce world pollution can make an enormous impact. The ban of CFC gases has helped to reduce the hole in the ozone layer and was one of the first initiatives that got both business and the general public thinking about how our everyday lives impact our world. Today we are used to the recycling of household and business waste but more work in these areas is necessary. America, China and India are vast contributors to excess waste and more initiatives, such as the WEEE directive, are necessary to make manufacturing companies responsible for the waste they and their customers create.
Inputs:
This is what the process needs for the activity. It can be in the form of information or a product. For this example the inputs are: Demand (what is driving the purchase), Quantity, Type, Specifications and Requirements, Due date and Budget (how much can be spent).
Supplier:<
Positioning is another one of those marketing jargon words that everybody throws around and is important to understand. It's also important to understand how positioning specifically applies to your small business marketing.Basically a marketing position describes your unique place in the market. The key word here is unique. What makes you different from your competitors? What features and benefits do you offer your target market that the other players don't?Here are a few things that may go into your positioning:-Price Point - This doesn't necessarily mean you have the lowest price. You may be the most expensive in town, and that's OK if you convince your customers you're worth it.-Service - Almost every business claims they have great service. If you can provide exceptional service compared to your competitors, your customers will remember you. I'll never forget calling a surly plumber to try to get him to my house for an emergency on a weekend. he acted like he didn't want my business and then told me it was going to be $200 for him just to show up, no thanks. I called roto-router who gave me amazing service, a guarantee, and the whole bill was less than $200. I now use them for all my plumbing.-Features and Benefits - Positioning is not just about what makes you different, it's also about what you emphasize. Folgers announces to the world that it's "mountain grown coffee" ( a feature). Guess what? All coffee is mountain grown. Folgers just claimed this feature first. What's something that none of your competitors are talking about?-Credibility - Legal Seafood's clam chowder is served at every presidential inauguration. Many products get celebrity endorsements. Many companies tout how long they've been in business. All of these things build trust in the mind of the consumer. What trust-building factors do you have that the competition does not?-Negative Features - Is there something you don't have that annoys customers of
Inputs:
This is what the process needs for the activity. It can be in the form of information or a product. For this example the inputs are: Demand (what is driving the purchase), Quantity, Type, Specifications and Requirements, Due date and Budget (how much can be spent).
Supplier:
This is who is supplying the inputs to the process. The supplier can supply information or a material product. For our example the supplier would be whoever is specifying what to purchase, when to purchase and how many to purchase.
Process Activity:
This is the process. There are a number of associated tasks contributing to the process. For our example the process activity is purchasing
Outputs:
This is the result of the process. It can be information, energy or material. In our example the output of the purchasing process is the desired product or service delivered when needed. For our example it could be a product like a computer or piece of test equipment. It could be information such as a failure analysis, training materials, book or manual. It could also be a service such as mowing the grass, doing the laundry or processing payroll.
Controls:
These are the items that regulate the rate at which inputs are converted to outputs. Without controls, the process would operate continuously generating the output. The controls for our example could be the material requirements planning software, the purchase requisition approval process and inventory analysis.
Resources:
These are the items used or consumed in the process activity. It could be people’s time, machine time or money. For our example, the resources would be the buyer or purchasing agent, money, the representative for the company supplying the product or service and possibly other support functions who have input for the purchase. Additional resources are in the form of computers, material planning software, phones, fax, office space, etc.
Customer:
The customer is the group that takes the output and uses it. It is most likely used as an input to another process or as a resource.
Feedback Loop:
This is the mechanism used to monitor the process. What metric is used to tell the process owner how the process is performing and when action needs to be taken to correct it. For a purchasing process it could be supplier performance, dollars spent, on-time delivery or receiving inspection information.
2. Identify the Interfaces to the Standard
The interfaces are the points where the process intersects the standard. In simple terms it is where the requirements of the ISO 9001:2000 standard are applicable to the process being audited. The easiest way to accomplish this is to use a matrix with the elements of the standard on one axis and the process name on the other.
To better disce
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