Who Audits the Auditor?

This reflection is mainly based on internal audits and audits conducted within the same organization or corporate group, where learning and improvement should be central to the audit process.

ISO 19011, the international guideline for management system audits, clearly recognizes that:

• the auditor is part of the system, and

• the auditor’s performance directly influences the value of the audit.

This is also reflected in Clause 5.6 (Monitoring the audit programme), which states that audit programmes should consider auditor performance and feedback from auditees as part of continual improvement.

If the auditor is part of the system, then the auditor can make mistakes, can improve and should also be evaluated.

Feedback does not weaken authority

There is a common myth in QA: “If an auditor accepts feedback, they lose authority.”In my experience, the opposite is true.

Feedback strengthens professionalism and aligns perfectly with the continuous improvement mindset we expect from others.

Auditors who listen to feedback do not lose objectivity or impartiality. They gain perspective, communicate better and deliver audits with greater positive impact.

Putting our principles into action

If, as auditors, we expect teams to be open to observations, accept improvement points and reflect on their performance, then we must be willing to do the same.

Auditing should never be an exercise of power, but a professional dialogue in both directions.

Continuous improvement is not only for processes or departments it is also for those of us who audit.

Final reflection

If we want audits that are more human, more effective and truly value-adding, we must first acce

pt that auditors can and should  improve as well.

The real question is not whether auditors should be evaluated.

The real question is:

How professional are we in accepting feedback?