An Organization’s First Achilles UVDB CAT C Audit and a New UK Business Entity
Auditing is often perceived as a rigorous and sometimes unforgiving process, but it plays an important role in ensuring that organizations meet industry standards and regulations.
In this blog, we share experiences from a recent first-time Achilles UVDB CAT C audit for a newly established UK business entity to highlight both the challenges that are often faced and the valuable insights that can be gained from the audit process.
The Setting: An Ambitious Newcomer to the UK Market
This audit was unusual from the outset. The organization, an established player service provider in overseas markets, was keen to break into the UK’s utility sector. As a new business unit, they had high aspirations but were also facing the complex landscape of UK legislation and industry-specific standards. The company was already certified under ISO 9001:2015, which provided a solid foundation for their quality management systems globally, however, they had yet to secure third-party assurances for their health, safety, and environmental (HSE) management systems—an area where UK buyers have stringent requirements.
The Audit: A Reality Check
The audit was scheduled to last one day, however, it quickly became apparent that while their global practices were strong, there were significant gaps in their UK-specific operations.
Audit Score: 79%
The overall audit score of 79% may seem reasonable at first glance, but the red traffic light allocation painted a different picture. The organization was issued 13 non-conformances, with 7 categorized as major.
Here’s a breakdown of the critical findings:
Major Non-Conformances
- Right to Work Act Compliance (4.2): The organization had not fully implemented this act across all staff members, which posed significant risks, including the potential employment of illegitimate workers and breaches of modern slavery regulations.
- Health and Safety Legislation Compliance (7.1): The organization could not demonstrate adherence to UK health and safety laws, a serious oversight that could lead to unsafe working conditions.
- UK Organizational Structure (7.3): There was no established UK-specific organizational chart, and the competence of external consultants had not been verified, leading to unclear reporting lines and responsibilities.
- Targets, Objectives, and Leadership Tours (7.4): The company lacked defined UK targets and objectives, and leadership tours had not been initiated — a missed opportunity for senior management to engage with the operational environment directly.
- Accident Reporting Procedure (7.10): There was an absence of global and UK-specific accident reporting processes in place, which are essential for addressing incidents, conducting root cause analyses, and implementing preventive measures.
- Environmental Legislation Compliance (10.2): The organization failed to demonstrate compliance with UK environmental laws, exposing them to potential legal and financial penalties.
- Aspect and Impacts Assessment (10.3): An environmental aspects and impacts assessment was missing, which is essential for understanding and mitigating environmental risks.
Key Takeaways: Risks and Consequences
While the audit revealed significant deficiencies, it also provided the organization with a clear roadmap for improvement.
The non-conformances highlighted several critical risks:
- Employment Law Breaches: Failing to verify the right to work can lead to the employment of unauthorized individuals, modern slavery risks, and legal penalties.
- Health and Safety Gaps: Non-compliance with HSE legislation could result in unsafe working conditions, increasing the likelihood of accidents and injuries.
- Lack of Organizational Clarity: Without a defined hierarchy and clear roles, the UK entity risked operational inefficiencies and a breakdown in accountability.
- Environmental Compliance: Ignoring environmental regulations could lead to harmful practices, environmental damage, and significant fines.
Moving Forward: Corrective Actions and Continuous Improvement
Despite the challenges, the audit served as a valuable learning experience for the organization. We spent considerable time discussing the necessary corrective actions and how they could leverage external HSEQ consultants to bridge the gaps in their UK compliance efforts.
The Achilles Non-Conformance module emerged as a crucial tool in this journey. It allows the organization to plan and implement corrective actions at their own pace, submit evidence for review, and ultimately improve their audit score.
The company’s determination to succeed in the UK market was evident in their commitment to address the findings. They understood that this audit wasn’t just a regulatory hurdle but a pathway to enhancing their operational standards and achieving long-term goals.
Looking Ahead: Anticipating Growth and Success
Overall, this audit experience provided many reasons to be optimistic about the organization’s future. They had a clear understanding of the steps needed to align with UK standards and a willingness to make the necessary changes and establish a strong position within the UK utilities value chain.
The auditees final words during the audit left a lasting impression:
“This audit process helps us to improve our procedures. We will prepare our action plan and provide you the evidence next week and ensure that we meet the requirements.”
With this mindset, we’re confident that this organization’s next audit will tell a story of growth, compliance, and success.
