How Global Retail Organisations can benefit from automated auditing systems

Automated auditing systems can benefit all organisations – particularly retails firms operating on a global scale. Here we look at the features of an auditing system which are particularly suitable for such enterprises.

While all organisations can improve and gain from automated audit systems, they are particularly effective for large, global retail firms. Such organisations typically consist of a multi-level structure, incorporating head office, corporate sub-divisions, individual outlets / retail units, suppliers, and franchise holders.

These structures demand rigorous and consistent auditing requirements, in order to:

• provide uniform standards and quality
• ensure adherence to legislative and corporate safety guidelines
• maintain consistent inventory control
• prevent inventory loss
• share best practices
• undertake regulatory compliance requirements; and
• provide close-loop feedback for continuous improvement at the retail units.

However, despite the increasing global reach of retail firms, many continue to rely on manual auditing processes. Common features of manual retail audit systems include:

• the use of printed questionnaires and checklists to conduct the audits;
• scores being manually assigned to test compliance, inventory control, and safety procedures;
• on-site / field audits being conducted with spreadsheets; and
• transfer of information in one format from field auditors to a support team which summarizes and then further distributes it.

Overall, manual audit metrics are inflexible and opaque; they are difficult to create, change and monitor, undermining a firm’s ability to analyse, investigate and improve the audit scores, share information and practices, and improve product quality or customer service or satisfaction.

A comprehensive automated auditing system will enable a global retail firm to achieve optimal performance through its auditing process by:

• providing thorough accessibility to all field data across the firm, at every personnel level
• standardizing and streamlining the data entry process, to ensure uniformity across the firm, and minimal data-entry errors
• creating a broad audit database, in real time, which encompasses all audit information, to enable immediate analysis on inventory losses, safety, and quality incidents
• facilitating easy and immediate distribution of audit information, scores and results throughout the organisation
• enabling interactive review of auditing information in real time, with relevant personnel

To this end, an organisation looking to implement an automated auditing system should look for the following features:

• A broad-reaching system, which automates the entire auditing process (or, if complete automation is not required immediately, which at least offers total automation as requested)
• Total cover for field auditors – many field auditors work remotely, or off-line. A comprehensive system would enable straight-forward collation of information on the field – eg via the use of hand-held devices - and if not immediate transfer of data, its later communication to the pertinent department
• Comprehensive monitoring of audit scores across the enterprise, supported by real-time responses and actions
• Auditability: the system should lend itself to being audited
• Flexibility and adaptability; global firms are continuously changing, and any system will need to be able to adapt accordingly.

My name is Sohel Ather, software engineer by profession and a content writer by passion, Technical writings, blogging etc are stuff that I do as hobby.