Is it normal...to feel like you're going to fail your first audit?

to feel like you're going to fail your first audit right before the audit?

Our site audit is 3+ weeks away and I feel completely lost.

The document audit found no non-conformances, which is good, but I feel like I'm shooting in the dark.

Can someone give me a boost and tell me I'm not going crazy?!

You are not going crazy.   It is completely normal to feel that way.  I am working on our 2nd re-certification audit in 2 weeks (done well in the past) and still feel like the worst could happen.   Just keep telling yourself that "You Rock" and it will be okay!  Good Luck :thumbup:

Keep hoping for the best and prepared for the worst ;-)

You are not going crazy!  Try to be positive and everything will be fine :-)

You are not going crazy, and keep smile :spoton:

then you must be better for the next re-certification audit

Dear Lacey,

You are OK as long as your MD does not repeatedly state that he has complete confidence in yr ability (validated from English Football System).

Regardless, My Best Wishes for the Future.

Rgds / Charles.C

Your not crazy.

Unless your a pro and know your system is bullet proof I'm sure everyone has some butterflies before any audit.

I've done an SQF audit and before this FSSC audit I was freaking out (of course I had only been with the company 2 weeks before their initial FSSC audit and I didn't know 3/4 of the system yet but I still felt, as Quality Manager, a good deal of anything was on my shoulders.

Review your system one last time.  Make sure you can do a good clean traceability exercise.  Then resign yourself to the fact that you believe you've done everything you can to make sure you did your best and relax.  Don't stress out over it.   You can fix anything he finds.

Hey don't panic!

I've been doing this since the year dot, and I still see things as I go around with an auditor, and make a mental note to fix it ready for the next audit! No system is bullet proof and you're only as good as your production people, and if they see you worked up, that's when they start making mistakes.

Don't forget, non-conformances are opportunities for continuous improvement :silly:

Deep Breaths & Good Luck.  Let us know how you get on

Hi Lacey, I'm guessing it's an SQF audit. :dunno:

You say you passed the desk audit, so that's a good start. :smile:

If the documented procedures reflect what happens in reality (pretty much) you should be fine.

The auditor will be experienced and lead the audit, it's not an exam, you just answer questions, show documents and take the auditor where he/she wants to go. It won't be perfect (it never is), there will be errors and omissions and gaps and you will learn new things that will help you improve your FSMS. That's just continuous improvement.  You won't fail unless there is one or more things that present a very serious and imminent risk to food safety.

Hang on in there, use the three weeks to test and find potential NC's, remind employees over and over and chill out.

It will all go fine...you'll see...and when it does come back and tell us. :smile:

It's normal.  I felt that way and we did fail.

Second time I felt that way and we still had non-conformances that were entirely preventable yet my awesome co-workers can't even behave themselves for two days with their bad habits.

I hope to be somewhere else when the next audit comes up.

Good luck

good way to increase the confidence level Destinee :rofl2:

:tardis:

good way to increase the confidence level Destinee 

I try!  I consider myself a pessimissitic realist.

I feel like I'm going to fail every audit and one of my sites has a blue PIU!  Still I can see the 101 things wrong all over the shop which auditors miss.

Be assured that you know your site better than any auditor can and you know your paperwork.  That in itself is a huge deal.  Also failing is rare.  Getting a poor mark and a chance to improve is more common so the worst that can happen is you learn something.  It's rare to get a nightmare auditor who is just simply unfair and if you did, appeal.

Of course it's not normal! Soldier up and put your big boy pants on!

j/k  :tongue: 

For some personal perspective;  I took over the QA department for my company last June as a plant supervisor managing production with very little notice (about 30 min worth) from an out-going manager that in hind sight new very little about their job.  Not one audit during their tenure of a year and a half.  Within the first four months I went through six regulatory and customer audits. Needless to say I was a basket case.  


And as Destinee observed, I swear employees were trying their damnedest at sabotage.   For the last eight months I have been putting my boot to people as they were an ass meat pinata.  

It's been a trial, but I consider myself fortunate for the opportunity believe it or not.  

My advice to you is express any concerns you have to company management about the upcoming audit and have a "group hug" to reaffirm strengths and weaknesses, and practice some corrective actions.  In sports practice I think they call it "visualization"  :spoton:

Thanks all. Finished up the audit this morning and in the closing meeting the auditor said our score as it sits is a 93. I think we had a good draw of an auditor.

Congrats! We just finished our re-cert audit last Thursday/Friday. It's a relief, but don't let your guard down!

Congratulations!  :ejut:

Congrats!

Good job, Pizza&Sandwich! I would place a wager that you had a good team and plan in place rather than a "good draw" with an auditor.