Introduction:

If you must stay relevant in the market as a professional, career enhancement is necessary. Would you like to enhance your career as a lead auditor? Are you new to the ISO standards and not sure which ISO scheme is right for you? In this article, we will discuss the in-demand ISO Schemes and the difference between a lead auditor and a lead implementer. After reading this article, you will have a better understanding and will be able to make an informed decision.

ISO Schemes (Most demanded)

There are 13 ISO Schemes however, the most demanded are:

• • ISO 9001:2015 QMS: An international standard for quality management systems aimed at helping organizations meet their customers’ needs.
  • ISO 14001:2015 EMS: An international standard aimed at helping organizations reduce how their operations negatively impact the environment.
  • ISO 45001:2018 OHSMS: An international standard aimed at helping organizations reduce accidents and ill health at work; promoting health and safety.

Depending on your profession or desire, you can get certified for one or all 3 of these standards.

Difference between Lead Auditor and Lead Implementer

Lead Auditor:

A Lead Auditor is a professional who is responsible for leading the audit team in an organization or during an ISO management systems audit.

Responsibilities of a Lead Auditor:

Conducting day-to-day audits is the main responsibility of a Lead Auditor.

• • He/She prepares the audit plan, delivers meetings, and submits the audit report.
  • A Lead Auditor is the one who is responsible for leading the audit team in an organization.
  • A Lead Auditor contacts the auditee and manages all the communications and correspondence prior, during, and after the audit ensuring the requirements are understood by the auditees.
  • A Lead Auditor is responsible for opening meetings, audit team meetings, and closing meetings.
  • He/She is responsible for collecting the audit notes from the audit team members for inclusion in the audit report.

Types of audits:

There are three types of ISO management systems audits namely:

1. First-party audit: Also known as an internal audit. This type of audit is conducted internally by the internal auditor who is a staff of the organization.

2. Second-party audit: This is an external audit performed on a supplier by a contracted organization on behalf of the customer. A second-party audit is a strong tool that strengthens the company’s supply chain through verification of all the current and future suppliers that meet or exceed predetermined requirements. 

3. Third-party audit: This is performed by an external auditor or an independent auditor. A Lead Auditor undergoes the Lead Auditor training to develop the necessary skills for auditing a management system and managing a team. He guides the team by applying techniques and procedures learned from the lead auditor training. Anyone can become a Lead Auditor. The basic criteria are to attend the ISO Lead Auditor Training. A third party audit occurs when a company has decided that they want to create a quality management system that conforms to a standard set of requirements such as ISO 9001, and they try to hire an independent auditor or an independent company to perform an audit to verify that the company has succeeded in this endeavor.

Note: A lead auditor can skillfully conduct first, second, and third-party audits of the ISO management systems.

Lead Implementer:

The Lead Implementer training enables you to develop the required expertise to support an organization in establishing, managing, implementing, and maintaining its ISO standard.

Responsibilities of a Lead Implementer:

1. The Lead implementer takes charge of an organization’s ISO project. His/Her responsibility to support an organization in effectively managing, planning, implementing, monitoring, and maintaining the ISMS.

2. They are responsible for the big decisions making, such as setting the ISMS’s (information security management system) scope and making sure that the standard’s requirements are addressed to the management. It basically takes charge of an organization’s ISO 27001 compliance project.

3. The Lead Implementer ensures that organizations have a strong understanding of ISO 27001’s compliance requirements, and complies with them. He/she Assist in establishing the internal audit program and management reviews within an organization. Manages information security risk assessment and controls selection activities. 

Project managers and consultants who are involved in and concerned with the implementation of an ISMS(information security management system), the ISMS implementation team, and experts seeking to master the implementation of an Information security management system are eligible to attend the lead implementer training. If you would like to know who can attend this training are the project managers and the consultants.

Conclusion

If you want to learn how to implement information security, the lead implementer course is good for you. The Lead Auditor training course, on the other hand, will equip you with the skills to perform first, second, and third-party audits of the ISO management systems of whichever scheme or schemes (ISO 9001, ISO 14001, and/or ISO 45001) you choose. Now that you know the difference between a lead auditor and a lead implementer, we hope that you will be able to choose which is best for you.

At 3FOLD Training, a CQI IRCA Approved Training Partner we offer the 3 popular ISO Lead Auditor Courses. ISO 9001:2015 QMS Lead Auditor Course, ISO 14001:2015 EMS Lead Auditor Course, and ISO 45001:2018 OHSMS Lead Auditor Course.

Want career guidance in ISO lead auditing? Kindly get in touch with us through the enquiry form, whatsapp, or email.