Jump to content

  • Quick Navigation
Photo

SQF Auditor questions to employees

Share this

  • You cannot start a new topic
  • Please log in to reply
16 replies to this topic
* * * * * 1 votes

Chadwick

    Grade - Active

  • IFSQN Active
  • 5 posts
  • 0 thanks
1
Neutral

  • United States
    United States

Posted 21 January 2021 - 09:36 PM

What are some of the SQF interview questions Auditors ask employees? I'm trying to prepare the crew for this portion of the audit. Please and thank you all!



Fred73

    Grade - MIFSQN

  • IFSQN Member
  • 76 posts
  • 23 thanks
12
Good

  • United States
    United States
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:NJ/NY
  • Interests:SQFI certified consultant, PCQI, FSVP-QI, IAVA-QI, FS-CP & CCFS. I enjoy analyzing problems in the FS field, solving it and learning in the process.

Posted 21 January 2021 - 09:57 PM

Some question I witness an auditor asking to regular employees:

 

-What SQF stand for/mean?

-Who is the SQF Practitioner?

-What is your job or task? explain with details (he most likely will ask questions related to food safety)

-Who is in charge of Food Safety?

-Who can put the product on Hold?

-What do you do if you see a product that cannot be ship or send out?

-What do you do if you see an intruder or unidentified person in the site?

 

 

Just my two cents.



Spidey

    Grade - MIFSQN

  • IFSQN Member
  • 208 posts
  • 83 thanks
97
Excellent

  • United States
    United States
  • Gender:Female

Posted 21 January 2021 - 11:05 PM

My auditor likes to ask employees about food-grade and non-food-grade lubricants.



Scampi

    Fellow

  • IFSQN Fellow
  • 5,704 posts
  • 1558 thanks
1,697
Excellent

  • Canada
    Canada
  • Gender:Not Telling

Posted 22 January 2021 - 01:38 PM

If you have a CCP, ensure folks that record that information are well versed on DEVIATION PROCEDURES!!!   Everyone knows to run the test pieces, but can everyone tell you what to do when it doesn't function properly   or a time/temp step etc


Please stop referring to me as Sir/sirs


olenazh

    Grade - FIFSQN

  • IFSQN Fellow
  • 1,364 posts
  • 441 thanks
434
Excellent

  • Canada
    Canada
  • Gender:Female
  • Location:Toronto
  • Interests:My job, church, reading, gym, horror movies

Posted 22 January 2021 - 02:27 PM

Our auditors never asked employees on the floor "what FSSC stands for" or something like this. Only questions pertaining to their duties. 



Setanta

    Grade - FIFSQN

  • IFSQN Fellow
  • 1,712 posts
  • 381 thanks
456
Excellent

  • United States
    United States
  • Gender:Female
  • Interests:Reading: historical fiction, fantasy, Sci-Fi
    Movies
    Gardening
    Birding

Posted 22 January 2021 - 03:24 PM

Our auditors never asked employees on the floor "what FSSC stands for" or something like this. Only questions pertaining to their duties. 

 

 

We have had auditors ask what does SQF stand for, do they know what HACCP stands for and do they know to report open pest bait stations that are outside.  AND do they know not to eat the bait.  

 

Absolutely true!  


-Setanta         

 

 

 


TimG

    Grade - PIFSQN

  • IFSQN Principal
  • 664 posts
  • 193 thanks
324
Excellent

  • United States
    United States

Posted 22 January 2021 - 08:42 PM

I have had the same questions  listed above as well as specific plant GMP questions. Make sure your GMP training is drilled into the employees, it's typical for the auditor to take a copy of the GMP training sheet (or pick a few items off the list) and quiz the employees. 

  • When and for how long do you have to wash your hands?
  • Where are you required to wear hair/beard nets?
  • What is the 'GMP' area? (this was from my training sheet)
  • What do you do if you feel like you have the flu?
  • What do you do if you see a bird in the facility? ("Ignore it we see them sometimes" was an answer one of the temps gave. Turns out the 'we see it sometimes' included the previous places he worked while with the temp company.)


Timwoodbag

    Grade - MIFSQN

  • IFSQN Member
  • 210 posts
  • 69 thanks
33
Excellent

  • United States
    United States
  • Gender:Male

Posted 22 January 2021 - 10:07 PM

I have had the same auditor for three years.  He told me that every audit he asks the employees the same questions.  My employees were completely clueless the first year, he did not give us a non-conformance or anything but kind of hinted that next year he will if we are unprepared.  The second year I had two employees absolutely nail the questions, and this year he didn't bother talking to a single production employee as he knew they were very prepared.

 

He always asks:

     1.) What is SQF? - Safe Quality Food OR Our Food Safety Program

     2.) Who is the SQF Practitioner? - BY NAME

     3.) Why does the company do SQF? - Increase Food Safety OR to Get More Customers!

     4.) Where is the SQF Policy Statement? - Employee must describe exactly where the posted SQF Policy Statement is.  (Cafeteria!)

 

He also asked my Office Staff

     1.) What is the SQF Policy Statement? - Management's Commitment to SQF

     2.) What was this years goal in the SQF Policy Statement? - Employee should be able to state the goal or at least find a statement and read it aloud

     3.) Have you received Training? - YES



Thanked by 1 Member:

FSQA MKE

    Grade - MIFSQN

  • IFSQN Member
  • 70 posts
  • 15 thanks
16
Good

  • United States
    United States
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Wisconsin, USA
  • Interests:Environmental Monitoring, FSVP, HACCP, Microbiology, Food Safety, Literature, Tennis, GFSI Solutions

Posted 23 January 2021 - 03:54 AM

1) What is SQF?
2) What do you do if equipment (i.e. the metal detector) goes off?
3) What are GMPs?
4) What do you do if you notice unusual activity or a strange person in a restricted area.


Providing solutions for food manufacturing companies in achieving regulatory compliance, GFSI standard implementation, environmental monitoring solutions, and HACCP development.

foodsafety@email.com

https://foodsafetymuse.com

 


TruptiG

    Grade - AIFSQN

  • IFSQN Associate
  • 26 posts
  • 0 thanks
3
Neutral

  • United States
    United States

Posted 07 June 2024 - 11:09 AM

Hello,

 

 

what is the answer to this? 

 

Who can put the product on Hold? what is the answer to this? 

What do you do if you see an intruder or unidentified person in the site?

What do you do if you notice unusual activity or a strange person in a restricted area.

 

Thank you



cookinmaple

    Grade - AIFSQN

  • IFSQN Associate
  • 46 posts
  • 9 thanks
6
Neutral

  • Canada
    Canada

Posted 07 June 2024 - 11:48 AM

My auditors ask about the job task being preforming, especially at CCP's and to those who monitor them. They have asked what the CCP limits are and why. 



Scampi

    Fellow

  • IFSQN Fellow
  • 5,704 posts
  • 1558 thanks
1,697
Excellent

  • Canada
    Canada
  • Gender:Not Telling

Posted 07 June 2024 - 12:50 PM

Every auditor I have ever had wants to speak to employees monitoring CCP and/or process controls --will ask job specific questions AND a question de jour

 

2023 was "what is food safety culture"

 

2022 was "who would you tell if there was a food safety issue"


Please stop referring to me as Sir/sirs


Marloes

    Grade - SIFSQN

  • IFSQN Senior
  • 292 posts
  • 78 thanks
82
Excellent

  • Earth
    Earth
  • Gender:Female

Posted 07 June 2024 - 01:02 PM

Indeed they will most likely ask questions about their work and what kind of food safety risks are involved.

I always tell my team to be open and honest. It is completely ok if you are unsure or are overwhelmed. Not everybody is comfortable being audited.
Just have them refer to their team-leader if they don't know. Almost all auditors I have encountered are receptive to this.

If saying the truth or ''I don't know'' leads to a (justified) non-conformance I am okey with this. It just shows us a direction that we need to work on.



jfrey123

    Grade - PIFSQN

  • IFSQN Principal
  • 821 posts
  • 220 thanks
419
Excellent

  • United States
    United States
  • Gender:Male
  • Location:Sparks, NV

Posted 07 June 2024 - 11:45 PM

Hello,

 

 

what is the answer to this? 

 

Who can put the product on Hold? what is the answer to this? 

What do you do if you see an intruder or unidentified person in the site?

What do you do if you notice unusual activity or a strange person in a restricted area.

 

Thank you

 

All answers depend on your SOP's.  In the plant I've run and plants I'm working with right now:

 

- QA and Production staff can place items on hold.  Only certain authorized QA can remove them from hold.

 

- They all report it to their supervisors/managers.  We actually had me go in unannounced and unknown to one of our plants to challenge the food defense program.  Long story short, I start off sneaky and went unchallenged for 45 minutes, actually walking amongst the crews and breaking rules on purpose.  When I finally gave up, we had a meeting and I had been reported to floor supervisors and executive staff well over a dozen times, execs figured I was a corporate guy and just let it go.  Now the procedure is for employees to report to their management, and management can approach to identify and call authorities if required.

 

- Same as intruder, report to supervisors/managers.

 

When auditors ask my regular production employees questions, I almost want the majority of their answers to be "report it to my supervisor."  I don't expect a regular employee to know the ins and outs of each procedure, just be well enough versed in the SOP to how it pertains to their job, and anything above it they should be going to a supervisor.



Thanked by 1 Member:

Victor Garza

    Grade - Active

  • IFSQN Active
  • 3 posts
  • 1 thanks
4
Neutral

Posted 08 June 2024 - 11:26 PM

As an Auditor, I use employee interviews to verify training effectiveness, employee involvement, gauge the food safety and quality culture.



TruptiG

    Grade - AIFSQN

  • IFSQN Associate
  • 26 posts
  • 0 thanks
3
Neutral

  • United States
    United States

Posted 09 June 2024 - 05:36 PM

Thank you for all your help!!



Seamoss

    Grade - Active

  • IFSQN Active
  • 8 posts
  • 0 thanks
1
Neutral

  • United States
    United States

Posted 11 June 2024 - 03:41 PM

My old work place, we used to provide our employee cheat cards. The cheat card was the size of a business card and on the cheat card, there was definition of SQF, GMP, HACCP, and any other Food safety definition. If the auditor ask our employee any questions, the employee will take out the cheat card and read it to the auditor. The past 10 SQF audits, there was no issues and the auditor thought it was clever. 





Share this

0 user(s) are reading this topic

0 members, 0 guests, 0 anonymous users