With basic inspections, a simple pass/fail determination by the inspector is all that’s necessary.
But with audits, more detail is typically needed. An auditor often needs to be able to quantify the degree to which an item is out of compliance with internal or external standards. This quantification helps greatly when prioritizing the correction of deficiencies.
That’s why we include a scoring capability in The Checker Software. Using this feature, each item in an audit doesn’t just pass or fail; it is assigned a number of points on a scale you determine. And you are completely in control of which items to include.
This capability enables you to use the software for any type of audit you need to conduct (facility audits, hazard assessments, safety committee reviews, etc.). You gain the efficiencies of software without sacrificing any detail.
How It Works
One of the plusses of our scoring feature is that it’s so easy to use. It’s not a cumbersome process involving lots of manual typing and clicking between screens.
The set-up is simple. Using our Administration Module, you can easily create the scoring scale that make sense for each item you’re auditing. Then when users are auditing, all they must do is select the appropriate score from a drop-down menu.
The software shows you the subtotal for each item and calculates the total score and percentage score. No one has to manually enter numbers or use a calculator.
To help users decide the appropriate score, you can add in definitions of each scoring level, which users will see in the drop-down menu when they are making their selection. (Even in a pass/fail situation, you can use this feature to require users to select a deficiency level, such as the amount of risk a hazard poses.) And users always have the option to add in comments, or even attach photos or documents, to clarify why they gave the score they did.
Another advantage is that if you develop a scoring system that you discover doesn’t make sense, you can promptly make necessary adjustments, without the time and expense of creating new paper forms (if you’re using paper for your audits) or being forced to get IT involved (if you’re using complex software such as Enterprise Application Software that isn’t specifically designed to make audits easier). For example, if you set a low score as a zero, but you realize the condition correlated with that score isn’t really as bad as it gets, you can make an adjustment in no time at all, avoiding having to use negative numbers for conditions worse than your original zero.
The value of our scoring feature doesn’t end when audits are conducted and corrective actions taken. The more-detailed data provided by scoring compared to pass/fail results in better information when making important business decisions such as determining the frequency of preventative maintenance or deciding which operational processes need to be improved. Because the data is instantly archived and you can create custom automatic reports, you can almost effortlessly gain insight into areas of concern.Takeaway
The capability to score items—instead of just passing or failing them—is essential to get the most value out of audits. The Checker Software’s scoring capability increases efficiency (i.e., saves money) by making the scoring process easier and more effective for management and users in the field.
