Conduct the opening meeting

content guide

Table of contents

Overview

Going on-site
Professional conduct

The opening meeting

Purpose of an opening meeting
Preparing for an opening meeting
Chairing the opening meeting
Opening meetings in larger organisations
Establishing the sequence of audit activities
Explaining paperwork, audit findings and reporting

Summary

Further references

Feedback to review questions

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Overview

Once you have completed the planning phase of the audit process, you are
ready to conduct the audit. Conducting an audit involves three stages:
1. establishing audit protocols at the opening meeting
2. reviewing workplace documents
3. reviewing workplace practice.
This Content guide will cover establishing audit protocols at the opening
meeting.
Protocols are rules or practices that will be followed during the audit.
Establishing audit protocols involves consulting with the auditee about how
the audit will be conducted. The primary communication about the audit
process between an auditor and an auditee occurs at the opening meeting.

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Going on-site

Professional conduct
As an auditor you need to project a professional image, dress and act
appropriately for a business context and be approachable. Remember, you
will be working in a production environment. Usually, long trousers, a
jacket with a business shirt and tie or scarf are appropriate for larger
manufacturing operations, whereas you can generally adopt a more casual
dress style for a rural operation.

Dress to prevent OHS issues

Youll need to ensure that your dress does not create potential OHS issues.
Always ensure you are wearing flat shoes, which entirely enclose the foot,
are non-absorbent and have a non-slip sole. Before entering the auditees
operational area, tuck ties and scarves into clothing. Dont wear high-heeled
or platform shoes, as parts of the production area may be slippery.
Most food production areas have a no jewellery policy. You should check
this before the opening meeting. If so, you will be asked to remove
jewellery prior to entering the production area.
Have all the relevant paperwork, including blank audit checklists, and
working pens (not pencils) easily available. Pens should preferably be
metal. Remember that no glass or other objects that could fall into food are
allowed in production areas. Be mindful that some businesses do not allow
even pens and paper to be taken into production areas. Youll need to ask
about this at the opening meeting and then alter your approach to the audit,
if necessary. You may need to break the audit into small stages, repeatedly
entering the production area and leaving it to make observation notes and to
complete the relevant sections of the audit checklist.

Personal hygiene
As auditors can be a significant source of cross-contamination, make sure
that your hands and nails are clean, and your nails are neatly trimmed. Dont
wear long or false nails, nail polish or strong perfumes.
Clean clothing and clean shoes are essential when going into food handling
businesses as they can also pose a significant risk of cross-contamination.
You may need to think about where you have been recently. You may need

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 to assess if you can even conduct the audit. If you have been in hen-laying
sheds in the last week, or own pigeons or fowl, you are usually not welcome
at another commercial hen-laying operation, as you could be a potential
carrier of disease. For example, the Newcastle virus was a disease that
resulted in mass-slaughtering of hens in specific areas in the late 1990s.

Punctuality
Arrive about five minutes before the mutually agreed time for the meeting.
Ask for the key auditee contact by name at reception. It is appropriate to act
courteously, without arrogance, pompousness or highhanded superiority
when speaking with the contact person. You can put people at ease by being
pleasant and friendly. Show an interest and an enthusiasm for the task to
promote the trust and confidence of your contact.

Ethical behaviour
All auditors are required to conduct themselves according to professional
and ethical standards. You may be working as a contracted auditor on behalf
of a company specialising in food safety audits. Keep in mind you are
representing the certifying body, not your own business. Wearing your
business uniform or pushing your training or consulting services is not
appropriate. This is unprofessional behaviour and may breach your
employment contract.

Induction to the company

Once you have been given a good manufacturing practices (GMP) induction
by the auditee contact, you must abide by their rules (unless you are testing
their commitment by deliberately flaunting their rules to see what
corrective actions the auditee takes).

Review question 1
Think about professional people you have worked with. What aspects of
their presentation and behaviour contributed to their professional
conduct?

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The opening meeting

The first step in establishing protocols for an on-site audit is to organise an

opening meeting with the auditees key representatives.

Purpose of an opening meeting

An opening meeting is a face-to-face meeting that is generally held between
the auditor (or auditor team), the auditee and their senior management. The
opening meeting is a crucial point where an auditor can establish how an
audit will be conducted in consultation with an auditee. Its purpose is to:
establish personal contact with the auditee
confirm the plan for carrying out the audit
explain and confirm the activities, roles and responsibilities of those
involved in the audit
confirm communication arrangements and reporting requirements
provide an opportunity for the auditee to clarify issues and ask any
questions.
Practical information you may want to confirm could include:
the products/processes that will be running while you are conducting
the audit on-site
the areas to be audited
any expected breaks in production.
Briefly explain the audit procedure to the auditee, outlining how the audit
will be conducted, the techniques that will be used during the audit and the
expected length of the audit. Establish the best way to conduct the audit
during the time you are going to be on-site.
Also, it is critical to explain the implications of the audit findings and
reporting protocols to the auditee.
At the end of the opening meeting, set a time for the closing meeting.

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 Preparing for an opening meeting
Prepare an agenda or list of items that need to be discussed before the
meeting. Remember that the opening meeting is an opportunity to cross-
check the work youve already done when planning for the audit.

Chairing the opening meeting

It is your role as the auditor to chair the opening and closing meetings.

Welcome and introductions

Start the opening meeting by welcoming all attendees. Introduce the
certifying body and yourself. Give an overview of your background
including where you have worked and your audit experience. This will give
the auditee confidence that you are competent to audit their operation. Also,
remember to thank the client for choosing to use this certifying body.
At the opening meeting, record the names and positions of the people who
attend. One method you can use is to provide some paper so that the
members can print their names and positions in the organisation.
It is a good idea to have an attendance record and audit schedule to circulate
to members (see Table 1 below).

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 Table 1: Attendance record and audit schedule

Food safety audit schedule and attendance record

Date of audit: ______________________ Audit file no: ___________________________
Start time: _________________________ Finish time: ____________________________

Company being audited:

________________________________________________________
Address: _____________________________________________________________________
Company contact persons: ______________________________________________________
Phone/fax/email: ______________________________________________________________
Auditors details: ______________________________________________________________
Signature:
____________________________________________________________________

Company staff Position Signature:

member
Entry meeting Exit meeting

Proposed schedule

Time Location
9.00 am Arrival and set-up
10.00 am Site audit
11.30 am Report write-up
12.15 pm Completion; Auditee sign-off
Conditions for The audit may be terminated if risk to team exists, or if conditions arise
termination that make continuation of audit unfeasible.
Confidentiality No commercially sensitive information will be divulged. Food safety
issues will be referred to the Regulatory Authority as required by
legislation.

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 Explaining the audit process
At the opening meeting the auditor should explain the audit process.
Specifically, that the audit process will involve the:
review of documentation
review of workplace practices
review of records
consolidation of the outcomes of the audit, including the closing
meeting.
If members of the opening meeting are new to the audit process, then it is
wise to explain in simple language the purpose of an audit.
Explain that auditing is essentially a systematic and independent evaluation
of the past history and current practices to give a future projection of
performance. The auditor needs to confirm that the business has validated
their processes and procedures. Validation evidence is often based on
industry standards or codes of practice. The auditor also needs to verify that
these standards are consistently met by observing and questioning the
auditee to obtain objective evidence, by examining records, observing
procedures and practices and questioning the auditee to establish that the
food safety program:
meets the requirements of the standard
is effectively implemented
is appropriate and effective.

Confirming and documenting audit protocols

During the opening meeting you will need to confirm and document the:
audit schedule including the date of the audit, when the audit will
begin, when it will finish and how long it is expected to take.
type of audit
standard(s) against which the audit is to be conducted
company details including:
company name
site address
postal address
phone numbers
facsimile numbers
email address and website details

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 company operations including:
number of employees
market share
history of the business
significant achievements
plans for the future, etc.
product scope including production lines/facilities to be covered
methods and procedures that will be used to undertake the audit,
which can include:
an explanation of the results of a desk audit
circulation of a sample of the site audit checklist
discussion of how you will collect sources of information (eg
observation of activities, documentation review, interview with on-
site staff)
communication protocols including:
how the auditee will be kept informed of developments during the
audit (particularly in relation to non-conformities). It may be
appropriate for a key contact to be in attendance throughout the
audit process so that you can communicate potential non-
conformances
the need for a guide or someone who will stay with you during the
audit across different operational areas
the names of the people and information you will need to access
during the audit
the format of the audit reports
who will receive the reports
resources that may be required to conducted the audit including:
protective clothing
equipment, such as sensors and thermometers
office facilities.
When discussing the audit process, use the auditees flow diagram in their
food safety plan to communicate more effectively to the auditee (its theirs
and theyll understand it).
If you are conducting the audit in Victoria you also need to confirm is the
name of the designated food safety supervisor.

Discussing confidentiality and legal issues

As well as confirming the audit details, it is critical that an auditor:
stresses the need for honesty and openness between auditee and
auditor

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 confirms the requirement to inform the regulatory authority of food
safety hazards. A major non-conformity will be reported to the
client, agreed and then reported to the Department of Health. An
auditor is bound by this process, otherwise there may be legal
liability and professional indemnity issues (ie there is a risk the
auditor will become an accessory to a breach)
outlines the conditions for termination of the audit (eg where there is
intimidation or obstruction; safety issues; or the audit cannot follow
the agreed plan and either party wishes to terminate).
At this point, you may wish to invite any questions related to the
certification process.
If the proposal to undertake the work has not yet been signed, ensure it is
signed before proceeding any further with the audit.

Promoting good food safety practices

You are likely to be working with businesses that hold different attitudes
towards being audited. More experienced, good practice workplaces usually
welcome input from an auditor as an opportunity to have a fresh set of eyes
look at what they are doing and support the business to identify ways they
can improve their performance. Less experienced businesses may be wary
and nervous about the process. It is useful to remind the auditee that the
value to be gained from an audit is not to get a perfect scorecard but rather
to get a better understanding of areas for improvement. Everyone gets things
wrong from time to time. High performing businesses are those that are able
to recognise and learn from their mistakes. Auditors can make an important
contribution to this process.

Communicating effectively
Effective communication skills are important throughout an audit. During
the opening meeting, it is important that you invite the members to ask
questions and that you show interest in all you are hearing about the
organisation. Auditors also need skills in facilitating meetings and
negotiating issues.

Facilitation skills
Being able to engage participants and facilitate discussion effectively is
important in promoting good communication at the opening meeting and
also in ensuring that a successful audit is conducted.
Interpersonal skills that support your role in facilitating effective meetings
include:
engaging and inviting input from all participants
sharing speaking time

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 managing interaction between participants
keeping an open mind
keeping the meeting focused on the agenda
using active listening and providing constructive feedback
not withdrawing or becoming submissive.
As an auditor you need to ensure that representatives do not leave feeling
frustrated or not listened to. They are less likely to cooperate with the audit
process if they feel this way.

Negotiation skills
It is likely that as an auditor you will need to employ negotiation skills
throughout an audit, particularly to overcome differences of opinion
regarding certain aspects of the audit process.
Some useful tips when negotiating differences between participants or
between you and participants are:
Clarify the issues and seek to establish the interests or perspective of the
participants.
Identify whether participants have sufficient information to resolve the
issue. If not, identify the additional information required and agree on
how to obtain it.
Remain objective rather than personalising issues or comments. For
example, You havent sent through the food safety documents yet, not
You never give me anything on time.
Dont get defensive. It is easy when under attack to take it personally.
Remember, that people are liable to get flustered or nervous when they
are being audited. Make an effort not to take criticisms or attacks
personally.
The process of negotiating issues is as important as the outcomes. It is
often impossible to resolve issues in ways that meet the demands of all
participants but if people see that the process of discussing and working
towards resolution is open and fair, they are more likely to accept the
outcomes.

Common meeting problems

Effective opening meetings are the result of a team effort.
Common problems can occur in an opening meeting: here are some of them
with some suggested ways to help solve the difficulty.
Common problems Suggested solutions

Meetings always finish You could suggest that the team agrees on a finish
much later than planned time, and take care that not too many items are put

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People do not arrive on time
for the meeting
Some members do not
contribute to the discussion
during meetings
Someone constantly moves
the discussion onto their
favourite issues that are not
on the agenda
on the agenda.
As the auditor, you could say things that help to
move the discussion along.
Ask if the meeting time is inconvenient for
members. Agree on a time. People are more likely
to keep to plans they have helped make.
Say the discussion will have to proceed smartly to
make up for a late start.
Try to keep to the times set up in the agenda for
each item.
You or the chair could ask them what they think.
You could suggest that everyone gives their
opinion, one after the other, going around the table.
You could suggest they talk about it over coffee
after the meeting, and then promptly ask what is
the next item for discussion.

Recording the minutes

An important aspect of managing any meeting is ensuring that any decisions
made are well documented to ensure follow-up action is carried out. Take
notes of the decisions or actions at the opening meeting.
The purpose of the minutes is to record the proceedings of the opening
meeting as well as to provide a basis for action. Everyone should receive a
copy of what went on.
The notes or minutes of the meeting should include:
the time and place of the opening meeting
the names of all people who attended and apologies
topics discussed and actions/outcomes decided
the name of the person responsible for carrying out any action that was
agreed to
arrangements for the closing meeting.
As auditor, you will need to decide who should take the minutes, although
often the chair will ask one of the participants to do it.

Review question 2
What makes an effective meeting?

Think about meetings you are involved in. Are they useful? Do they
achieve results? Or do they ramble on without any clear outcomes?

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 Make a list of the behaviours and practices you think are important to
support effective meetings.

Opening meetings in larger

organisations
If the auditee organisation is large and complex, the audit may be
undertaken by an audit team and there will probably be more auditee
representatives at the opening meeting. In this case, the meeting will need
to be more formal.
When auditing a large organisation, it is useful for an auditor to provide an
overview at the beginning of the meeting. An overview at an opening
meeting with a large organisation may include the following information:
the status of food safety within Australia with any new developments
(eg May 2006 launch of Coles recognising BRC and SQF2000
Standards for dry grocery) or new regulatory initiatives (eg DAFF
and RABQSA working on the new National Food Safety Auditor
Scheme 2006)
updates from the owners of proprietary standards, for example
Woolworths, and any updates on the services that the auditing body
can offer the auditee
dates and venues of significant food-related conferences (eg annual
AIFST or food safety conferences, etc)
the advantages of food safety audits. This information may be
appropriate for those new to the audit process. Where there are flaws
found in a food businesss food safety program, it is better they are
found during an audit process by an audit rather than through:
o a serious illness or food poisoning outbreaks
o the media
o inspection by regulatory bodies
o rejection of goods by customers
o loss of trade from a major customer.
However, the items covered at the opening meeting are essentially the same
regardless of the size of the operation or how formal the meeting is.

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 Establishing the sequence of audit
activities
A well planned audit runs to schedule, covers all key processes and
personnel in a logical way and minimises stress levels. To plan an audit
effectively, an auditor should confirm the sequence of the audit activities at
the opening meeting.
To be able to establish the sequence of audit activities, an auditor must have
a thorough understanding of the activities being audited. Ask the auditee for
copies of the organisational chart, plant layout plans and process flow charts
before the meeting and have them available to refer to at the meeting.
During this stage of the opening meeting, you will need to confirm:
The scope of the operationswhere does the process begin and
end? Which areas will be audited? For example, will the audit take
place where the ingredients are bought? Or during the weighing,
mixing, packing and despatch part of the process?
What operational areas need to be audited and what are their
physical locations? For example, a warehouse may be 10 minutes
away by car, or goods may be blended on one site and then relocated
in bulk bags to another site one hour away for final packing and
despatch.
How will off-shift activities be audited? For example, what
happens to the food in the production areas at change of shifts,
during meal and tea breaks? How well are GMP and cleaning
matters attended to at these times?
Which standards will the audit need to be conducted against?
This is essential as it can impact on the time allocated for certain
activities. For example, a WQA audit on a site manufacturing many
products for Woolworths needs to allow the prescribed time for the
number of products being audited, whereas other standards may
leave time allocation up to the auditor.
Which people and what information will you need access to? An
affective auditor must interview the operational staff to confirm
knowledge of GMP, monitoring of Critical control points (CCPs)
and supporting operational procedures, etc. It is not acceptable
practice for an auditor to only talk with the QA personnel, managers
and supervisors.
What will the audit schedule be? Confirm that this fits with the
availability of the auditees personnel and operational activities. Be
prepared to be flexible and adjust the audit program if the
circumstances change (eg if there are breakdowns, accidents,
emergency departures of key auditee personnel, fire or fire drill, etc).
In many workplaces, the correct order of review may not necessarily
follow the direction of product flow. This is an important

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 consideration, as it may be necessary for you to start at the final
product end rather than the beginning of product flow. This is often
the case with high-risk operations where cross-contamination from
areas of potentially high contamination to areas of low
contamination must be avoided. It is common that cooking areas be
viewed prior to raw material handling areas.
Remind those at the opening meeting that the audit could take longer
if problems or anomalies are found that require further, in depth,
investigation.

Explaining paperwork, audit findings

and reporting

Checklists
Checklists are used by auditors to keep them focused on the task of auditing
to a specific standard. Checklists are a list of questions that assist auditors to
cover all areas of the standard and operation (as defined by the audit scope).
An auditors role is to find the answers to the questions.
Depending upon the policy of the certifying body, the checklist can be
circulated before the audit, during the audit or, as a minimum, shared with
the auditee so they feel there are no hidden surprises or agendas. Checklists
may be generic and used for all auditees, where they are being audited
against one standard. Or, they can be specific to a business, where the
documentation is essentially the same across many sites (eg warehouse
operations) that are being audited to the one standard. Explain that as the
audit progresses you will be taking notes on:
what you have observed
what you have gained from speaking with many people.
The checklist then becomes a working record or evidence of the audit and
its findings.

Corrective action requests (CARs)

During the opening meeting, it is important that you explain the criteria for
non-conformances and how they will be documented. Non-conformances
are also called Corrective action requests (CARs) or Opportunities for
improvement (OFIs). CARs or OFIs will vary from standard to standard. It
is therefore vital that you make it very clear to the auditee what a critical,
major and minor CAR means. An auditor should also discuss the potential
ramifications of the non-conformances, such as ceasing trade, product recall
or having certification withdrawn.

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 It needs to be made clear that as the audit progresses, matters of concern
will be identified, which could end up being non-conformances. An auditor
should notify the auditee when these are identified but the grading of the
type of non-conformance can only happen at the end, or towards the end of
the audit, once all the findings are reviewed.
Documenting the CAR and discussing potential corrective actions with the
auditee generally occurs at the end of the audit, followed by the auditee
documenting the corrective actions that will be undertaken to address them.
This process must occur at the time of the audit. An audit is not deemed
completed until the auditee documents and signs a commitment to fix the
problems.

Previous audit non-conformances

If applicable, it is useful to discuss any outstanding non-conformances from
the last audit. Note that these need to be closed-off before commencing the
on-site audit, although, some auditors prefer to close them off during the
audit, as they review the area(s) that relate to the non-conformances.

Summary of audit outcomes

Explain that a summary of audit outcomes will be left with the auditee at the
closing meeting and that a formal report will be prepared and sent within the
next week. (This varies, depending on whether the business wants a hand-
written report only or a formal typed report which is usually more
expensive.) Similarly some standards (eg WQA and McDonalds) require a
handwritten report left on the day of the audit.

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Summary

The opening meeting is a forum for decision making about the audit to be
conducted, followed by some actions required before the audit takes place.
The participants have to come to an agreement on decisions. Tasks are
allocated resulting from the decisions.
As an auditor, it is your role to guide the process of the meeting.
The most effective opening meetings have auditors and participants who are
capable in all three areas and can make a contribution. The different roles
people take on in an opening meeting help the meeting to achieve its
purpose. All roles can contribute something to the meeting.

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Further references

CSIRO Publishing (1997), A guide to the implementing and auditing of

HACCP, SCARM report 60, CSIRO publishing, Collingwood.
Foley K (2000) The quality auditor, Quality Assurance Services Pty
Limited, Consensus Books, Sydney.

Sutherland, P. S. and R. J. Porritt (1997) Listeria monocytogenes, In A. D.

Hocking, G. Arnold, I. Jenson, K. Newton and P. Sutherland (eds),
Foodborne microorganisms of public health significance, 5th ed, AIFST
(NSW Branch), Sydney, Australia.

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Feedback to review questions

Question 1
There are many ways a person can establish their credentials as a
professional. Some characteristics include:
dressing appropriately
punctual timekeeping
being well prepared
technical competence
ability to communicate clearly and effectively.

Question 2
Some useful meeting characteristics include:
make sure people know the purpose of the meeting before they
arrivethat way they have an opportunity to prepare
distribute an agenda
nominate someone to chair the meeting
allocate responsibility for note/minute taking
allot time for each item on the agenda
if items run over time either agree to extend the time allocation or
defer further discussion so you can work through remaining items
reach and summarise conclusions or outcomes reachedthis may
include noting action required and allocating responsibilities and
timeframes
set a time for follow up/next meeting.

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