First: is it really missed?
Your own audit procedure decides how far an audit can move before it counts as missed. If your procedure says nothing, that is worth a check too: a written rule for moving audits makes the next slip easier to handle. Our own working cut-off for this page: an audit more than two weeks past its planned date, without a recorded new date, is treated as missed.
What to record about why it was missed
- The audit as planned: process or area, planned date, planned auditor.
- Why it did not happen, in plain words: auditor absent, no auditor independent of the area, production peak, area changed, planned too many in one month.
- Who agreed to move it, and when.
- The new date and the new auditor.
- Whether anything changed in the area since the last audit that makes the catch-up more urgent: new line, new product, complaints, staff turnover.
Write it in the audit plan itself, next to the audit, not only in an email. An auditor may also look at how changes to the audit plan are recorded.
How to reschedule
- Oldest first, unless an area has new risk: new product, complaints or a process change. Then that one first.
- Pick an auditor who does not audit their own work. If you have only one trained auditor, that is worth a check in the training matrix.
- Do not squeeze all missed audits into one week. Spread them so each gets a proper look.
- Keep the original date visible in the plan. Overwriting it hides the slip instead of explaining it.
A three-week catch-up plan (our own suggestion)
The weeks are our own suggestion, not a rule. Stretch them if you have several audits to catch up.
| When | What to do |
|---|---|
| Week 1 | List every audit past its planned date. Record why each one slipped. Agree a new date and an auditor for each, oldest first. |
| Week 2 | Run the oldest audit, or the one on the process with the most open issues. Update the plan with the new dates and the reason for each change. |
| Week 3 | Run the next ones. Check that the findings from the catch-up audits have an owner and a due date. Look at why the plan slipped and change what caused it. |
Example (fictional)
A made-up plant, as of Monday 19 October 2026:
| Area | Planned | Why it moved | New date and auditor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goods receipt | Thu 17 Sep 2026 | Auditor on sick leave | Tue 27 Oct 2026, second trained auditor |
| Line 2 assembly | Thu 22 Oct 2026 | Not missed yet; only trained auditor works on line 2 | Wed 4 Nov 2026, auditor from the paint shop |
| Calibration | Fri 6 Nov 2026 | Not missed yet; moved back to spread the load | Fri 13 Nov 2026 |
The Line 2 move traces back to having only one trained auditor for the area. That is the cause worth fixing, for example by training a second auditor per shift.
Worth a check afterwards
- Did the catch-up audits get the same depth as planned ones, or were they rushed?
- Do the findings have an owner and a due date?
- Is the cause of the slip handled, so the plan holds next quarter?
Advisory only. Your own procedure and your customers decide how audits are planned and moved.