Tough to say which to start with. Do you have more familiarity and experience with one of them with prior jobs? I'd probably want to start more where I'm comfortable, but you could be pigeonholed into a scheme not as widely used in your area. Maybe the bigger companies around you are sharing their certification info on their websites and you can get a sense of whom most are using?
And as a new auditor, changing into a new scheme or trying to work into multiple schemes could bring you frustrations: I think we're all familiar with auditors who say, "Well, what I'm used to seeing..." when deciding if your process or SOP meets a code requirement. The SQF auditors I've struggled the most with are ones who openly expressed preference for BRC, and would challenge me that my processes weren't good enough because it's "not what they're used to seeing." Same struggles occur when someone who has decade of experience in one industry suddenly transitions into auditing and walks into a facility type they've never experienced (like when a lifelong dairy guy was in his first year of SQF and came to my spice plant). Had to basically tell that guy, "No, Mr. Auditor, I really don't care how sanitation is super different in a dairy plant."
Just some food for thought as you weigh all of your options.
Edited by jfrey123, 21 January 2025 - 06:58 PM.