Many faces of auditors

Auditor Grades

There are five grades of certification, most auditors progress from provisional auditor to the auditor grade and then to either lead or principal grades (these last two are considered the most advanced grades). The internal grade is a specialist grade but many auditors use this as a starting point before moving to the other grades.

A specific description of each grade within the criteria for each auditor is summarized below:

Internal Auditors

• Are those who conduct internal audits of their organization's management system.
• Recognizes: personal attributes, education, professional and technical competencies

Provisional Auditors

• Are entry level/trainee auditors seeking a career in auditing and experienced auditors taking a break from auditing or moving into management
• Recognizes: personal attributes, education, professional and technical competencies

Auditor

• Are audit team members
• Recognizes: auditor competence and contribution as an effective member of an audit team

Lead auditor

• Are audit team leaders who typically work for certification bodies or perform supplier audits for large organizations
• Recognizes: competence at managing audits and leading teams

Principal auditor

• Are experienced auditors who operate on their own (i.e. as a team of one, performing sole audits). We designed this grade as an alternative to the lead auditor grade
• Recognizes: experience and competence of two categories of auditors:

1. consultancy background: competence in implementing management systems and performing all aspects of the audit process
2. lead auditor background: competence in audit management and team leadership