Click here to visit the main IRCA website

Auditing internal communications

With many problems occurring in an organization’s QMS often being traced back to poor communications, this month’s guidance from the ISO 9001 Auditing Practices Group gets to grips with auditing internal communications

An effective internal communication process contributes to the success of any organization’s QMS. Conversely, many problems that occur with an organization’s QMS can often be traced back to poor communication.

Requirements and guidance

Under internal communication, ISO 9001 clause 5.5.3 states: ‘Top management shall ensure that appropriate communication processes are established within the organization and that communication takes place regarding the effectiveness of the QMS’.

This is one of a number of requirements that have been introduced in ISO 9001 where a definitive ‘yes/no’ approach may not be adequate to evaluate the effective implementation of the internal communication process within an organization.

There are a number of other requirements in ISO 9001 where top management has a responsibility to communicate with people in the organization with regard to:

the quality policy and objectives
the importance of meeting customer as well as statutory and regulatory requirements
the promotion of awareness of customer requirements throughout the organization
people’s defined responsibilities and awareness of the relevance and importance of their activities, and how they contribute to the achievement of the quality objectives
where product requirements are changed, to ensure that relevant personnel are made aware of the changed requirements

Guidance from ISO 9004, clause 5.5.3, states: ‘The management of the organization should define and implement an effective and efficient process for communicating the quality policy, requirements, objectives and accomplishments. Providing such information can aid in the organization's performance improvement and directly involves its people in the achievement of quality objectives. Management should actively encourage feedback and communication from people in the organization as a means of involving them.’ It is important to note that this guidance from ISO 9004 is not auditable, but it does provide additional insights into the relevance of internal communication.

Verifying effectiveness

There are two main components of the requirements of ISO 9001, clause 5.5.3, that have to be verified:

a) That appropriate communication processes have been established within the organization, including the:

identification of the people between whom the communication is to occur
information to be communicated
means by which this is to be achieved
method selected to monitor its effectiveness
documentation and records necessary to verify it has occurred
communication process is subject to continual improvement

b) That the communication is taking place and is related to the effectiveness of the QMS.

In searching for evidence of effective communication processes the auditor may need to observe some or all of the following as appropriate to the organization:

top management, employees at all levels in the organization and contractors, generate, receive and respond to communications
the information to be communicated is clearly defined, appropriate and accurate to the purpose of the communication
the means used for communication is appropriate to the literacy and other skills of those expected to receive and act upon the information provided
monitoring takes place to ensure that the information communicated is acted upon and the desired outcome achieved
the procedures and records necessary to demonstrate that communication has occurred, is effective and subject to continual improvement are available

Although there is no specific requirement for a documented procedure, depending on the size, complexity and culture of the organization it may be necessary to have one in order to ensure its effective implementation.

The auditor’s approach

Some or all of the following means of communicating information within the organization may be observed by the auditor:

management-led communication in work areas
team briefings and other meetings, such as those for recognition of achievement
notice boards
email, intranet and websites
company or inhouse magazine/newsletter
staff meetings
individual notices or letters

The auditor may be able to judge the effectiveness of the organization’s internal communication processes by:

interviewing employees to determine awareness of policy, objectives and management system performance
evaluating the causes of nonconformities and the organization’s corrective action processes. Could the need for corrective action be linked/traced to poor internal communication processes?
evaluating the relevance and significant dates of displayed information. The information that is being communicated is of no value if it is out of date
examining the feedback mechanisms within the organization, eg one-to-one interviews or reviews, employee surveys etc
evaluating training and induction programme within the organization. These programmes should contain information on how the QMS operates
viewing minutes of meetings containing items of internal communication

Evaluation of compliance

It is doubtful if an auditor can determine the effectiveness of the organization's internal communication processes during a single audit session or time slot. It requires a more holistic approach throughout the entire audit, but need not be included as a separate item in the audit plan. Audit teams should plan for a collaborative review of this issue. Similarly it is doubtful if the effectiveness of the organization’s internal communication processes can be determined solely from one source in the organization.

Compliance with the ISO 9001 requirements should only be determined at the end of the audit, after evaluation of audit evidence and after reaching consensus with other team members.

This article is an edited version of 'Documenting non-conformances' from the website of the ISO 9001 Auditing Practices Group, and is reproduced courtesy of ISO and the IAF. These papers were developed on current best practice and therefore have not been formally endorsed as International Accreditation Forum (IAF) guidance or ISO TC176 interpretations. For further information about the Auditing Practices Group click here.

The ISO 9001 Auditing Practices Group is an informal group of QMS experts, auditors and practitioners. The ISO 9001 Auditing Practices Group is an informal group of QMS experts, auditors and practitioners drawn from the ISO Technical Committee 176 Quality Management and Quality Assurance (ISO/TC 176) and the IAF. It has developed a number of guidance papers and presentations that contain explanations about the auditing of QMSs. These reflect the process-based approach that is essential for auditing the requirements of ISO 9001.