QMS ISO 9001:2015 Lead Auditor Exam
Last Update Nov 30, 2025
Total Questions : 228
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An audit team of three people is conducting a Stage 2 audit to ISO 9001 of an engineering organisation that manufactures sacrificial anodes for the oil and gas industry in marine environments. These are aluminium products designed to prevent corrosion of submerged steel structures. You, as one of the auditors, find that the organisation has shipped anodes for Project DK in the Gulf of Mexico before the galvanic efficiency test results for the anodes have been fully analysed and reported as required by the customer. The Quality Manager explains that the Managing Director authorised the release of the anodes to avoid late delivery as penalties would be Imposed. The customer was not informed since the tests very rarely fall below the required efficiency. You raise a nonconformity against clause 8.6 of ISO 9001.
At the Closing meeting, the audit team leader presents the findings of the audit and comes to the above
nonconformity. The Quality Manager produces the test report for Project DK, which shows an acceptable galvanic efficiency, and presents an email from the customer confirming acceptance of the anodes. He asks that the nonconformity be withdrawn.
Which two of the following responses by the audit team leader would be acceptable?
Takitup is a small fabrication organisation that manufactures steel fencing, stairs and platforms for the construction sector. It has been certified to ISO 9001 for some time and has appointed a new Quality Manager. The audit plan during a surveillance audit covers the organisation's improvement actions and the auditor asks to see the most recent management review meeting minutes.
The auditor finds that the management review report records that none of the improvement actions set by the previous review has been realised for a second time. A new Quality Manager has been brought in at the middle management level to rectify the situation as the organisation is concerned that it might lose its certification.
Select three options that would provide evidence of conformance with clause 10.3 of ISO 9001.
Scenario 2:
Bell is a Canadian food manufacturing company that operates globally. Their main products include nuts, dried fruits, and confections. Bell has always prioritized product quality and has maintained a good reputation for many years. However, the company's production error rate increased significantly, leading to more customer complaints.
To increase efficiency and customer satisfaction, Bell implemented a Quality Management System (QMS) based on ISO 9001. The top management established a QMS implementation team comprising five middle managers from various departments, including Leslie, the quality manager.
Leslie was responsible for assigning responsibilities and authorities for QMS-related roles. He also suggested including a top management representative in the QMS team, but top management declined due to other priorities.
The team defined the QMS scope as:
"The scope of the QMS includes all activities related to food processing."
Leslie established a quality policy and presented it to the team for review before top management approval. Top management also proposed a new strategy for handling customer complaints, requiring biweekly customer surveys to monitor customer perceptions.
Which of the following indicates that Bell has defined its quality objectives?
You will lead a third-party audit next Monday on ABC, an organisation that provides services for cleaning windows from the outside of tall buildings. They work on demand, and usually have 4-5 orders per week. All documented information on these activities is kept at the central office.
On Friday evening, before the audit, you are informed by mail that customers cancelled all orders for the next week; therefore, the auditors will not have the chance to see them working at the customer's premises, but the field supervisors will be available at the ABC offices.
You have prepared the audit plan and the checklist. Choose the best action you would take:
Select the term that best describes the purpose of retaining documented information in a quality management system to ISO 9001.
In the context of a management system audit, identify the sequence of a typical process for collecting and verifying information. The first one has been done for you.
To complete the sequence click on the blank section you want to complete so it is highlighted in red and then click on the applicable text from the options below. Alternatively, drag and drop the options to the appropriate blank section.

A Health Trust has contracted with Servitup, a catering services company that has been certified to ISO
9001 for one year. It provides services to 10 small rural hospitals in remote locations involving the
purchase and storage of dry goods and fresh produce, preparing meals and loading heated trolleys for
ward service by hospital staff. You, as auditor, are conducting the first surveillance audit at one site with
the Deputy Catering Manager (DCM).
DCM: "I apologise for the absence of the Catering Manager. He has called in sick today and we are really
short of staff."
You: "I see. It really shouldn't affect the QMS so the audit can progress as normal."
DCM: "The Catering Manager set up the system. I'm afraid I'm not as familiar with it as he is."
You: "OK, let's start with the Quality Policy. What are the main issues for the QMS here?"
DCM: Give me a minute. I need to look at the Quality Policy on the noticeboard in his office.
You find that two internal audits have been carried out in the first year by the Catering Manager. One of
them indicates that complaints from patients are increasing in number, mainly due to food being served
too cold. The DCM comments that the trolley thermometer is often unreliable.
Which two of the following actions would be "correction" in dealing with the complaints?
During a second-party audit of a dairy farm (by a potential customer) complying with ISO 9001:2015, the auditor verifies that there is large variability in the daily production of the milking yard. The current agreement with their only customer is to provide 2,000 litres per day. However, in the last two years, they have noticed an increasing variability in daily production.
If they produce less than 2,000 litres, they are penalised with a fine of 1.5 pesos for every litre that they do not provide. If they produce more than 2,000 litres, they use the extra milk to feed the pigs.
This process has been in operation for decades. The dairy farm was founded by the grandfather of the current owners, who did not want to alter the established practices.
The auditor raises a nonconformity on the basis that the process is not under control (Clause 8.1).
If you had been the auditor, which one of the following actions would you have accepted?
Scenario 6: Davis Clinic (DC) is an American medical center focused on integrated health care. Since its establishment DC was committed to providing qualitative services for its clients, which is the reason why the company decided to implement a quality management system (QMS) based on ISO 9001. After a year of having an active QMS in place, DC applied for a certification audit.
A team of five auditors, from a well-known certification body, was selected to conduct the audit. Eva was appointed as the audit team leader. After three days of auditing, the team gathered to review and examine their findings. They also discussed the audit findings with DC's top management and then drafted the audit conclusions.
In the closing meeting, which was held between the audit team and the top management of DC. Eva presented two nonconformities that were detected during the audit. Eva stated that the company did not retain documented information regarding its outsourced services for an analysis laboratory and regarding the conducted management reviews. During the closing meeting, the audit team required from DCs top management to come up with corrective action plans within two weeks. Although the top management did not agree with the audit findings, the audit team insisted that the auditee must submit corrective actions within the given time frame in order for the audit activities to continue.
Once the action plans were evaluated, the audit team began preparing the audit report. Eva required from the team to provide accurate descriptions of the audit findings and the audit conclusions. The report was then distributed to all the interested parties involved in the audit, including the certification body Based on the report, the certification body together with Eva, as the audit team leader, made the certification decision.
Based on the scenario above, answer the following question:
Why is it important to discuss the audit findings with DC’s top management prior to the closing meeting and the submission of the final audit report?
You are conducting an audit at an organisation seeking certification to ISO 9001 for the first time. The organisation offers health and safety training to customers. Training courses are offered either as open courses, delivered at a public venue, or online, or as courses that are tailored to meet specific requirements. The business operates from a single office and those who deliver the training are either full-time employees or subcontractors.
You have gathered audit evidence as outlined below. Match the ISO 9001 Clause 8 extract to the audit evidence.

You are carrying out an annual audit at an organisation that offers home security services. You are interviewing the Quality Manager (QM)
You: "Would you tell me about your management review process?"
QM: "The senior management team plans to review the management system every six months. The review follows a set agenda and records are maintained."
You: "May I see the records from the last two management reviews?"
Narrative: The Quality Manager gives you the latest record, which shows the last management review took place nine months ago.
The Quality Manager then gives you the previous management review record, which took place one year before the latest review.
You: "Are there any other review reports in the last two years?
QM: "No, these are the only ones."

Scenario 5: Mechanical-Electro (ME) Audit Stages
Mechanical-Electro, better known as ME, is an American company that provides mechanical and electrical services in China. Their services range from air-conditioning systems, ventilation systems, plumbing, to installation of electrical equipment in automobile plants, electronic manufacturing facilities, and food processing plants.
Due to the fierce competition from local Chinese companies and failing to meet customer requirements, ME's revenue dropped significantly. In addition, customers' trust and confidence in the company decreased, and the reputation of the company was damaged.
In light of these developments, the top management of ME decided to implement a quality management system (QMS) based on ISO 9001. After having an effective QMS in place for over a year, they applied for a certification audit.
A team of four auditors was appointed for the audit, including Li Na as the audit team leader. Initially, the audit team conducted a general review of ME's documents, including the quality policy, operational procedures, inventory lists, QMS scope, process documentation, training records, and previous audit reports.
Li Na stated that this would allow the team to maintain a systematic and structured approach to gathering documents for all audit stages. While reviewing the documented information, the team observed some minor issues but did not identify any major nonconformities. Therefore, Li Na claimed that it was not necessary to prepare a report or conduct a meeting with ME's representatives at that stage of the audit. She stated that all areas of concern would be discussed in the next phase of the audit.
Following the on-site activities and the opening meeting with ME's top management, the audit team structured an audit test plan to verify whether ME’s QMS conformed to Clause 8.2.1 (Customer Communication) of ISO 9001.
To do so, they gathered information through group interviews and sampling. Li Na conducted interviews with departmental managers in the first group and then with top management. In addition, she chose a sampling method that sufficiently represented customer complaints from both areas of ME's operations.
The team members were responsible for the sampling procedure. They selected a sample size of 4 out of 45 customer complaints received weekly for electrical services and 2 out of 10 complaints for mechanical services.
Afterward, the audit team evaluated the evidence against the audit criteria and generated the audit findings.
Li Na chose a sampling method that sufficiently represents customer complaints from both areas of ME’s operations. Which sampling method fits that description?
In the context of a third-party certification audit, it is very important to have effective communication. Which is not the responsibility of the audit team leader?
You are carrying out an audit at a single-site organisation seeking certification to ISO 9001 for the first time. The
organisation manufactures cosmetics for major retailers and the name of the retailer supplied appears on the product
packaging. Sales turnover has increased significantly over the past five years. The organisation uses a software programme called SWIFT, which is used to record sales, plan production, purchase supplies, print despatch notes, track new product development, perform traceability exercises, carry out mass balance checks, raise invoices, create budgets, and support financial control.
You are nearing the end of the audit and you are reviewing your audit notes. You notice a recurring trend concerning the SWIFT database as shown below:

You ask the Quality Manager to explain how the SWIFT database is controlled. You learn that the Operations Director is
responsible for determining and progressing SWIFT software updates. You decide to meet the Operations Director (OD).
You: "Good afternoon."
OD: "Good afternoon."
You: "What responsibility do you have concerning the SWIFT database?"
OD: "I maintain it. If anyone wishes to propose an update to the database, they send me an email with
details of their proposal. I then either process the database update myself, or I send the request to the
consultant who designed the database 20 years ago. The necessary software changes are made, and the
amended software is immediately released to users."
You: "Would you explain how the software amendments are controlled?"
OD: "Of course. I personally update every computer myself."
You: "Do you inform the database users of the changes?"
OD: "No I don't. They find out for themselves by using the software, or they come to see me if they have
any questions."
You: "How do you ensure that the database users use the latest version?"
OD: "That's easy, I update every computer myself."
You: "During the audit, I noted there were several versions of SWIFT in use (you refer to your audit
notes)."
OD: "I know. That's because some versions work better than others, and depending on user needs and
experiences, we allow users to revert to using an earlier version if they find it works better for them."
Based on the scenario, which two of the following statements are true? There is evidence of
nonconformity with a requirement defined in ...
You are carrying out an audit at a single-site organisation seeking certification to ISO 9001 for the first time. The organisation manufactures
cosmetics for major retailers.
You are interviewing the Manufacturing Manager (MM).
You: "I would like to begin by looking at the cleaning controls."
MM: "We record the cleaning of the equipment at the end of every batch. This document details the minimum cleaning frequency and the
procedures to follow for all areas and each item of equipment. The person who carries out the cleaning puts their initial on the document and records
the time and date alongside."
Narrative: You sample production records over 3-days and note down evidence of nonconformity as per the table below.


XYZ Corporation is an organisation that employs 100 people. As audit team leader, you are conducting a
certification audit at Stage 1. When reviewing the quality management system (QMS) documentation, you
find that quality objectives have been set for every employee in the organisation except top management.
The Quality Manager complains that this has created a lot of resistance to the QMS, and the Chief Executive
is asking questions about how much it will cost. He asks for your opinion on whether this is the correct
method of setting objectives.
Three months after Stage 1, you return to XYZ Corporation to conduct a Stage 2 certification audit as Audit
Team Leader with one other auditor. You find that the Quality Manager has cancelled the previous quality
objectives for all employees and replaced them with a single objective for himself. This states that "The
Quality Manager will drive multiple improvements in the QMS in the next year". The Quality Manager indicates
that this gives him the authority to issue instructions to department managers when quality improvement is
needed. He says that this approach has the full backing of senior management. He shows you the latest
Quality Improvement Request that was included in the last management review.

After further auditing, the issues below were found. Select three statements that apply to the term 'audit trail'
During the opening meeting of a third-party audit of a pharmaceutical organisation (CD9000) with seven COVID-19 testing laboratories in various terminals at a major international airport, you are asked if you could
visit all laboratories. As audit team leader you say that, based on sampling criteria, you had planned to audit only three of them as CD9000 is a multisite organisation.
They tell you that they have worked so hard to get ready for the audit that the supervisors of those laboratories that would not be visited would be quite disappointed.
The following are possible responses to the request, select the two best responses:
XYZ Corporation is an organisation that employs 100 people. As audit team leader, you are conducting a
certification audit at Stage 1. When reviewing the quality management system (QMS) documentation, you
find that quality objectives have been set for every employee in the organisation except top management.
The Quality Manager complains that this has created a lot of resistance to the QMS, and the Chief Executive
is asking questions about how much it will cost. He asks for your opinion on whether this is the correct
method of setting objectives.
Three months after Stage 1, you return to XYZ Corporation to conduct a Stage 2 certification audit as Audit
Team Leader with one other auditor. You find that the Quality Manager has cancelled the previous quality
objectives for all employees and replaced them with a single objective for himself. This states that "The
Quality Manager will drive multiple improvements in the QMS in the next year". The Quality Manager indicates
that this gives him the authority to issue instructions to department managers when quality improvement is
needed. He says that this approach has the full backing of senior management. He shows you the latest
Quality Improvement Request that was included in the last management review.

After further auditing, the issues below were found. Select two statements that apply to the term
`nonconformity'.
ABC is a worldwide fast-food organisation. One of the branches, in downtown Cape Town, decided to
implement an ISO 9001 quality management system and you are the audit team leader (with two other
auditors) that will carry out the certification audits, Stage 2.
ABC receive the orders by phone or internet; some of the employees deliver the ordered food to indicated
addresses. The normal menu includes 15 different types of hamburgers; however, in the last two weeks,
due to a shortage of a special type of meat, they can only prepare six of the 15 varieties.
During the internal meeting of the audit team, you ask one of the auditors to describe what she has
observed. She audited the reception of orders from customers (via phone or internet) and the
communication of the orders to the kitchen. She noticed that the menu offering food on the website is still
the normal one, with 15 different hamburgers, and during a 30-minute period, she observed many
customers reluctantly accepting something other than the hamburger they preferred.
You, as audit team leader, inform the Quality Manager of your concern about the major nonconformity,
since you consider this a serious breach of the basic principles of quality that lasted two weeks without
action being taken.
Right at the beginning of the Closing meeting, you discuss the nonconformity with the General Manager.
She got quite upset and said she was going to make a complaint to the certification body and left the
room; the Quality Manager was the only member of ABC left with the audit team. The Quality Manager said the General Manager would not come back to the meeting.
What would you do? Choose the best from the following options:
In a third-party audit to ISO 9001, select two options of when the organisation is required to act in response to reported findings.
Knowledge and skills are requirements of the auditor's competence. Select two from the following topics of knowledge that apply to every member of an audit team auditing an ISO 9001 quality management system.
In the context of a third-party audit, match the activity with the party responsible in relation to the audit process.

Which action indicates that an organization is meeting the requirements of ISO 9001 regarding nonconforming outputs?
In the context of a third-party audit, match the event with the responsibility for conducting it.

According to the ISO 9001 standard, which one of the following is a defined responsibility of top management?
An audit team of three people is conducting a Stage 2 audit to ISO 9001 of an engineering organisation that manufactures sacrificial anodes for the oll and gas industry in marine environments. These are aluminium products designed to prevent corrosion of submerged
steel structures. You, as one of the auditors, find that the organisation has shipped anodes for Project DK in the Gulf of Mexico before the galvanic efficiency test results for the anodes have been fully analysed and reported as required by the customer. The Quality
Manager explains that the Managing Director authorised release of the anodes to avoid late delivery as penalties would be imposed. The customer was not informed since the tests very rarely fall below the required efficiency. You raise a nonconformity against clause 8.6 of ISO 9001.
Which of the following options for the best description of the nonconformity?
You are conducting an audit at a single-site organisation seeking certification to ISO 9001 for the first time. The organisation manufactures cosmetics for major retailers and the name of the retailer supplied appears on the product packaging. Sales turnover has increased significantly over the past five years.
You are interviewing the new Product Development Manager. You note that a software application called SWIFT is used to help control the product development process.
You have gathered audit evidence as outlined in the table. Match the ISO 9001 clause 8.3 extracts to the audit evidence.
Noitol is an organisation specialising in the design and production of e-learning training materials for the insurance market. During an ISO 9001 audit
of the development department, the auditor asks the Head of Development about the process used for validation of the final course design. She states that they usually ask customers to validate the product with volunteers. She says that the feedback received often leads to key improvements.
The auditor samples the design records for a recently completed course for the 247 Insurance organisation. Design verification was carried out but there was no validation report. The Head of Development advises that this customer required the product on an urgent basis, so the validation stage
was omitted. When asked, the Head estimates that this occurs about 50% of the time. She confirms that they always ask for feedback and often make changes. There is no record of feedback in the design file for the course.
The auditor raises a nonconformity against ISO 9001. Which one of the following options is the basis for the nonconformity?
The Closing meeting of a second-party audit was planned for 6 pm with the general manager and the quality manager.
At 6 pm, when the audit team enters the meeting room, only the Quality Manager is present and walting for them.
The dialogue among them is as follows:
Auditor team leader: "Good evening, could you please inform the general manager that we are ready to start with the closing meeting?"
Quality manager: "Good evening. I am sorry to inform you that the general manager will not be able to attend the meeting. He will try to
participate virtually to make some closing remarks."
Auditor team leader: "OK. We identified seven nonconformities - these are the reports. Could you please review them and sign them?"
Quality manager: "OK. As you know, I reviewed them after yesterday's meeting and accept of all them, where shall I sign?"
General manager (from speakers in the room and addressing the quality manager): "Hold on! Do not sign the two nonconformities related to ABC
Bank! I have just checked, and we did not provide any services to ABC Bank during September! You can sign the remaining five nonconformities."
How would you proceed with the audit? Select one.
Scenario 6: Davis Clinic (DC) is an American medical center focused on integrated health care. Since its establishment DC was committed to providing qualitative services for its clients, which is the reason why the company decided to implement a quality management system (QMS) based on ISO 9001. After a year of having an active QMS in place, DC applied for a certification audit.
A team of five auditors, from a well-known certification body, was selected to conduct the audit. Eva was appointed as the audit team leader. After three days of auditing, the team gathered to review and examine their findings. They also discussed the audit findings with DC's top management and then drafted the audit conclusions.
In the closing meeting, which was held between the audit team and the top management of DC. Eva presented two nonconformities that were detected during the audit. Eva stated that the company did not retain documented information regarding its outsourced services for an analysis laboratory and regarding the conducted management reviews. During the closing meeting, the audit team required from DCs top management to come up with corrective action plans within two weeks. Although the top management did not agree with the audit findings, the audit team insisted that the auditee must submit corrective actions within the given time frame in order for the audit activities to continue.
Once the action plans were evaluated, the audit team began preparing the audit report. Eva required from the team to provide accurate descriptions of the audit findings and the audit conclusions. The report was then distributed to all the interested parties involved in the audit, including the certification body Based on the report, the certification body together with Eva, as the audit team leader, made the certification decision.
Based on the scenario above, answer the following question:
According to Scenario 6, the audit team required DC’s top management to submit corrective action plans within two weeks. Is this action acceptable?
An ISO 9001 certified organization sells packaged food. To maximize the benefits of third-party certification to the organization and stakeholders, the organization has labelled their product 'ISO 9001 certified product' and is selling it as 'quality food'.
Which TWO of the following describes this situation in the context of the purpose and benefits of third-party ISO 9001 certification?
During an ISO 9001 audit of an electric cable manufacturer, you are reviewing the customer file for XYZ Construction in the Sales Department. This contract specifies that the installation configuration of the cable runs should meet national fire safety standards for Category A.
You discover that the customer later agreed to the approval of a less stringent Category B configuration instead.
The organization has the following quality policy document displayed in the reception area.
"This organization is committed to providing electric cables to customers' requirements, in accordance with statutory regulations for their use. Continual improvement is a permanent objective of the organization. This policy shall be communicated to all employees and, where required, to all interested parties."
Referring to the scenario, select the two options for which the organization is meeting its policy commitments.
During a third-party audit of a pharmaceutical organisation (CD9000) site of seven COVID-19 testing laboratories in various terminals at
a major international airport, you interview the CD 9000's General Manager (GM), who was accompanied by Jack, the legal compliance
expert. Jack is acting as the guide in the absence of the Technical Manager due to him contracting COVID-19.
You: "What external and internal issues have been identified that could affect CD9000 and its quality management system?"
GM: "Jack guided us on this. We identified issues like probable competition of another laboratory organisation in the airport, legal
requirements on COVID-19 continuously changing, the shortage of competent laboratory analysists, the epidemic declining soon,
shortage of chemicals for the analysis. It was quite a good experience."
You: "Did you document these issues?"
GM: "No. Jack said that ISO 9001 does not require us to document these issues."
You: "How did you determine the risks associated with the issues and did you plan actions to address them?"
GM: "I am not sure. The Technical Manager is responsible for this process. Jack may be able to answer this question in his absence."
Select two options for how you would respond to the General Manager's suggestion:
A small cleaning services organisation is about to start work on a hospital cleaning contract for the local Health Trust. You,
as auditor, are conducting a Stage 2 audit to ISO 9001 and review the contract with the Service Manager. The contract
requires that a cleaning plan is produced.
You: "How was the cleaning plan for the contract developed?"
Service Manager: "We have a basic template that covers the materials, labour requirements and cleaning methods to be
employed. Some of that is specified by the customer."
You: "How does the plan deal with locations like the intensive care wards and the operating theatres, which are included
in the contract?"
Service Manager: "The basic plan covers general wards, but we will do more frequent cleaning in those areas if the
hospital requests it."
You: "Are you aware of the regulatory requirements for cleaning standards in hospitals?"
Service Manager: "No. We depend on the hospital to look after that side of things in the contract."
You decide to raise a non-conformity against section 8.2.2.a.1 of ISO 9001.
You decide to raise another non-conformity against section 8.2.4 of ISO 9001 when finding that the
cleaning plan was amended without the agreement of the Health Trust. A different cleaning chemical was
substituted to that specified in the contract. At the follow-up audit, the corrective action proposed was to
"obtain a concession from the Health Trust for use of the new chemical."
Which one of the following options is the reason why you did not accept this action taken?
An audit team leader arrives at a printing organisation to carry out a Stage 2 audit for a certification body. At a meeting with the Quality Manager, she is told that they have won their biggest contract from a computer
manufacturer to print and compile computer documentation packages. They have leased the unit next door for space reasons but have never worked in this sector before. The Quality Manager wants the ISO 9001
certificate to cover the new contract.
Which one of the options is the correct response by the auditor?
An organisation wants to certify their ISO 9001:2015-based QMS for the first time. Arrange the activities in the correct sequence from 2 to 5.
To complete the sequence, click on the blank section you want to complete so it is highlighted in red and then click on the applicable text from the options below. Alternatively, drag and drop the
options to the appropriate blank section.

Which statement below indicates that an organization has developed its communication strategy by taking into account the principle of appropriateness?
Scenario 5: Mechanical-Electro (ME) Audit Stages
Mechanical-Electro, better known as ME, is an American company that provides mechanical and electrical services in China. Their services range from air-conditioning systems, ventilation systems, plumbing, to installation of electrical equipment in automobile plants, electronic manufacturing facilities, and food processing plants.
Due to the fierce competition from local Chinese companies and failing to meet customer requirements, ME's revenue dropped significantly. In addition, customers' trust and confidence in the company decreased, and the reputation of the company was damaged.
In light of these developments, the top management of ME decided to implement a quality management system (QMS) based on ISO 9001. After having an effective QMS in place for over a year, they applied for a certification audit.
A team of four auditors was appointed for the audit, including Li Na as the audit team leader. Initially, the audit team conducted a general review of ME's documents, including the quality policy, operational procedures, inventory lists, QMS scope, process documentation, training records, and previous audit reports.
Li Na stated that this would allow the team to maintain a systematic and structured approach to gathering documents for all audit stages. While reviewing the documented information, the team observed some minor issues but did not identify any major nonconformities. Therefore, Li Na claimed that it was not necessary to prepare a report or conduct a meeting with ME's representatives at that stage of the audit. She stated that all areas of concern would be discussed in the next phase of the audit.
Following the on-site activities and the opening meeting with ME's top management, the audit team structured an audit test plan to verify whether ME’s QMS conformed to Clause 8.2.1 (Customer Communication) of ISO 9001.
To do so, they gathered information through group interviews and sampling. Li Na conducted interviews with departmental managers in the first group and then with top management. In addition, she chose a sampling method that sufficiently represented customer complaints from both areas of ME's operations.
The team members were responsible for the sampling procedure. They selected a sample size of 4 out of 45 customer complaints received weekly for electrical services and 2 out of 10 complaints for mechanical services.
Afterward, the audit team evaluated the evidence against the audit criteria and generated the audit findings.
According to scenario 5, Li Na conducted group interviews with departmental managers and top management by herself. Is this in accordance with audit best practices?
An internal auditor of a manufacturer of polystyrene packaging products for the electronics industry raised a nonconformity against
section 10.3 of ISO 9001 in Report IA202. The nonconformity (NC 3) stated:
"The reject rate of 'finished' product of 9.7% needs improvement as it doesn't meet the stated objective of top management of 5%."
Just before the Closing meeting of a third-party audit, the audit team leader is invited to a meeting with the Quality Manager. He tells
the audit team leader that a member of the audit team was seen taking photographs of the factory on his phone during the day and
wants him suspended from the Closing meeting with any nonconformities raised by him rescinded. The issue of photographs was not
discussed during the opening meeting.
Select the three options for how the audit team leader might deal with this situation.
Which of the following is a principle of maintaining audit work documents?
Whistlekleen is a national dry cleaning and laundry company with 50 shops. You are conducting a surveillance audit of the Head Office and are sampling customer complaints. You find that 80% of complaints originate from five shops in the same region. Most of these complaints relate to damage to customer laundry. The Quality Manager tells you that these are the oldest shops in the company. The cleaning equipment needs replacing but the company cannot afford it at the moment. You learn
that the shop managers were told to dismiss most of the claims on the basis of the poor quality of the laundered materials.
On raising the matter with senior management, you are told that there are plans to replace the equipment in these shops over the next five years.
When reviewing the customer complaint file, you find that the organisation is facing a legal dispute with a customer over damage to an expensive cashmere coat.
Select the best option for how this should be handled by the Quality Management System.
Select one option that must be considered when determining the scope of a QMS to ISO 9001.
In the context of a second-party audit, match the activity with the party responsible for conducting it.
One of the conflict resolution techniques is toning down. How is the conflict managed in that case?
Which one of the following documents addresses audit time calculation for third-party certification audits?
Scenario 5: Mechanical-Electro (ME) Audit Stages
Mechanical-Electro, better known as ME, is an American company that provides mechanical and electrical services in China. Their services range from air-conditioning systems, ventilation systems, plumbing, to installation of electrical equipment in automobile plants, electronic manufacturing facilities, and food processing plants.
Due to the fierce competition from local Chinese companies and failing to meet customer requirements, ME's revenue dropped significantly. In addition, customers' trust and confidence in the company decreased, and the reputation of the company was damaged.
In light of these developments, the top management of ME decided to implement a quality management system (QMS) based on ISO 9001. After having an effective QMS in place for over a year, they applied for a certification audit.
A team of four auditors was appointed for the audit, including Li Na as the audit team leader. Initially, the audit team conducted a general review of ME's documents, including the quality policy, operational procedures, inventory lists, QMS scope, process documentation, training records, and previous audit reports.
Li Na stated that this would allow the team to maintain a systematic and structured approach to gathering documents for all audit stages. While reviewing the documented information, the team observed some minor issues but did not identify any major nonconformities. Therefore, Li Na claimed that it was not necessary to prepare a report or conduct a meeting with ME's representatives at that stage of the audit. She stated that all areas of concern would be discussed in the next phase of the audit.
Following the on-site activities and the opening meeting with ME's top management, the audit team structured an audit test plan to verify whether ME’s QMS conformed to Clause 8.2.1 (Customer Communication) of ISO 9001.
To do so, they gathered information through group interviews and sampling. Li Na conducted interviews with departmental managers in the first group and then with top management. In addition, she chose a sampling method that sufficiently represented customer complaints from both areas of ME's operations.
The team members were responsible for the sampling procedure. They selected a sample size of 4 out of 45 customer complaints received weekly for electrical services and 2 out of 10 complaints for mechanical services.
Afterward, the audit team evaluated the evidence against the audit criteria and generated the audit findings.
Which stages of the audit were performed?
For each of the following scenarios, select four that are corrective actions.
The ISO 9001 clause 5.1.1 states top management shall demonstrate leadership and commitment with respect to the quality management system.
In the context of the ISO 9001 management system certification, select the one correct description of top management's responsibilities.
You are leading a Stage 2 certification audit of a multi-site organisation and have received the audit schedule below;
Head Office and Site 1 - Day 1
Site 2 (150 Km from HQ) - Days 2 and 3
During Day 1 of the audit, the dient informs you that the laboratory at Site 2 has been dosed for decontamination due to a serious outbreak of an infectious disease among workers. In Site 2, all other functions could be audited as planned.
As the audit team leader, what would you do?
Choose the best acceptable action you could take:
® Ask the audit Programme Manager for direction.
Complete the audit on day 3 and report back to the certification body for a certification decision.
Continue the audit on days 2 and 3 and return later to audit the Site 2 laboratory.
Immediately cancel the audit since the audit plan cannot be completed.
Who has the responsibility for assigning work to the audit team?
You are carrying out an audit at a single-site organisation seeking certification to ISO 9001 for the first time. The organization manufactures cosmetics for major retailers.
You are interviewing the Manufacturing Manager (MM).
You: "I would like to begin by looking at the cleaning controls."
MM: "We record the cleaning of the equipment at the end of every batch. This document details the minimum cleaning frequency and the procedures to follow for all areas and each item of equipment. The person who carries out the cleaning puts their initial on the document and records the time and date alongside."
Narrative: You sample production records over 3-days and note down evidence of nonconformity as per the table below.


At the end of a second-party audit, the audit team enters the meeting room to hold the closing meeting; only
two people are present and waiting for them: the Health and Safety supervisor and the Administrative Officer.
Neither has participated in the audit. However, the team had previously agreed with the auditee Quality
Manager on two nonconformities identified during the audit (NC1 and NC2).
They said:
Health and Safety Supervisor: "Good evening. We are sorry to inform you that the general manager was
involved in a serious car accident, and the other two managers have had to leave urgently to attend to the
emergency."
The Administration Officer: "Concerning 'nonconformity 2', the General Manager left a message asking us
to tell you that he does not accept it and requests you not to include it in the audit report. Here is a note in
which he explains why."
Which one of the following would be your preferred answer (as team leader) to the General
Manager's request?
Scenario 4:
TD Advertising is a print management company based in Chicago. The company offers design services, digital printing, storage, and distribution. As TD expanded, its management recognized that success depended on adopting new technologies and improving quality.
To ensure customer satisfaction and quality improvement, the company decided to pursue ISO 9001 certification.
After implementing the QMS, TD hired a well-known certification body for an audit. Anne Key was appointed as the audit team leader. She received a document listing the audit team members, audit scope, criteria, duration, and audit engagement limits.
Anne reviewed the document and approved the audit mandate. The certification body and TD’s top management signed the certification agreement.
Before contacting TD, Anne reviewed the audit scope and noticed that TD made changes to it due to the adoption of new printing equipment. However, Anne disagreed with the changes, stating they would affect the audit timeline. She considered withdrawing from the audit.
How do you assess the situation presented in the last paragraph of scenario 4?
You are preparing for interviews with two members of top management. Based on the information that you gathered about the organization, you conclude that it is the top management who takes all the important decisions and closely supervises and controls employees. Based on this, which management style is practiced in the organization?
At the end of a second-party audit, the audit team enters the meeting room to hold the closing meeting; only two people
are present and waiting for them: the Health and Safety supervisor and the administrative officer. Neither has participated in
the audit. However, the team had previously agreed with the auditee Quality Manager on two nonconformities identified
during the audit (NC1 and NC2).
They said:
Health and Safety supervisor: "Good evening. We are sorry to inform you that the general manager was involved in a
serious car accident, and the other two managers have had to leave urgently to attend to the emergency."
Administration officer: "Our quality manager, before leaving, left a written message about 'NC2'. He declares that the
correction and corrective action have been already implemented and has attached some documents to the message as
evidence of these actions. Therefore, he expects that 'NC2' will not be included in the report."
Which one of the following would be your preferred answer to the Quallty Manager's request?
Match each of the following statements into the table below to show whether they apply to first-party audits, second-party audits or third-party audits:

A person who provides specific knowledge or expertise to the audit team during the audit is known as a/an:
At the end of an initial third-party certification audit, the audit team enters the closing meeting room to hold the closing meeting. Only two people are present and waiting for them, the Health and Safety Supervisor and the Administrative Officer. Neither has participated in the audit. However, the team had previously agreed with the auditee Quality Manager on a major non-conformity.
They said:
Health and Safety Supervisor says: "Good evening. We are sorry to inform you that the General Manager was convened by the CEO of the organization to analyze an unexpected, very serious situation with the personnel.
The Administration Officer: "Concerning the major non-conformity, the General Manager called us on the phone asking us to tell you that he agrees with the non-conformity and that the correction will be taken this week, and the corrective action is to be implemented before the end of this month. He also asked us to tell you that it would be a pity to postpone the recommendation for certification due to this ongoing issue that can be solved so easily. Do you want me to describe to you what he told me he would do?"
Which one of the following would be the correct response (as team leader) to the General Manager's request?
Whistlekleen is a national dry cleaning and laundry company with 50 shops. You are conducting a surveillance audit of the Head Office and are sampling customer
complaints. You find that 80% of complaints originate from five shops in the same region. Most of these complaints relate to damage to customer laundry. The Quality
Manager tells you that these are the oldest shops in the company. The cleaning equipment needs replacing but the company cannot afford it at the moment. You learn
that the shop managers were told to dismiss most of the claims on the basis of the poor quality of the laundered materials.
On raising the matter with senior management, you are told that there are plans to replace the equipment in these shops over the next five years.

During a second-party audit, the auditor examines the records that are available for the external provider, ABC Forgings, to whom manufacturing has recently been outsourced.
There are standard external provider checklists for three competitors for the contract and there are inspection records from the trial manufacturing batches produced by ABC Forgings. There is no documented evidence of the criteria used to confirm the appointment of ABC Forgings, and no contract or terms and conditions. Ongoing monitoring indicates that external provider performance is satisfactory, but no documented information has been retained.
Select two options for the evidence which demonstrates a nonconformity with clause 8.4 of ISO 9001.