• Clauses of a standard or framework
• List of objectives
• Drivers of performance/Excellence
• Competencies

It is particularly useful where specific numerical results are required to track performance over time and/or where consistency of audit/assessment approach is required. The system can also be used as a 'one-off' diagnostic to establish the current position and identify areas for improvement. 

Bespoke assessments provide the opportunity to build in organization specific issues and requirements.

The objective of Internal auditing is to support improvement activity through understanding where there are risks to process and/or compliance (hence the business), or identifying good practice that can be shared. The approach identifies risk and strong levels of performance, so is a valuable diagnostic tool that can be drawn on to support internal audit activity.

It is up to you to define the approach (and mix) that you use for internal auditing. A certification body will be looking to establish if you have an effective internal auditing process. As long as you can demonstrate that the risks in the business are understood, through scheduled internal audit activity, and that improvement activity has been effective, the certification body should accept that you have an effective internal audit process.

An assessment can be linked to one or more standards or frameworks, including their main clauses and sub-clauses. Where this is required, each one can be reported against individually. It will indicate the organisation's level of performance against the requirements and where there are specific risks of nonconformity.

UL ClearView is a diagnostic assessment methodology that looks at behaviour patterns, similar to psychometric testing for individuals. Its use indicates areas of business risk, allowing these risks to be managed more effectively.

The key differences between UL ClearView and current statistical techniques such as Six Sigma are:

• The UL ClearView behavioural assessment gathers information from a range of directions about the patterns of behaviour being experienced, which are what drive the actual activity that takes place (the out output of the system, processes and procedures); it provides lead indicators (indications that something is likely to happen or not i.e. the risk level, latent or present).
• Six sigma and other Statistical Process Control (SPC) techniques use hard data about what has actually happened to help analyse and control variability after the activity has been completed, providing lag indicators.
• Statistical Process Control techniques deal in hard facts, translating the actual outcomes of process performance into numbers and numeric profiles.

The same statistical methods cannot therefore be applied to both approaches, as they are non-comparable, with different variables to consider and different dynamics. One deals with 'what has happened', the other with 'what may happen'.

Six Sigma and other SPC techniques naturally compliment UL ClearView. They are tools that can be drawn on, if relevant, once an area is identified and has been prioritized and targeted for improvement activity, facilitating root cause identification.

The approaches are complimentary but different, relevant in different situations and in the intelligence that they seek to provide for an organisation.

The methods that you use to carry out auditing are entirely up to you to decide. The mix of activity that you use needs to effectively identify and manage the risks that face your organization, whilst meeting compliance requirements.

The online element of UL ClearView is an effective way of identifying areas of risk, so that on-site activity can be focused where required. The mix of auditing activity can be defined and then adjusted, as more is understood about the risks that face the organization.
In a certification environment UL will use a mix of online and on-site auditing to provide a comprehensive certification service.

UL customers have the option of whether they wish to use and benefit from the approach or opt for a traditional approach to certification. UL Clearview is currently available for ISO 9001 and ISO 14001. An OHSAS 18001 and ISO 13485 module will be available from Q3 2008.

The approach is a diagnostic tool that will indicate where potential risks lie in an organisation. Because it assesses organisational behaviour it identifies the risks that people are experiencing and those that are latent; likely to emerge in the future.  

When used to monitor the situation overtime it is a highly effective way of understanding the changing risk profile that an organisation faces.

The approach itself will not solve problems but indicate where they exist and are likely to exist in the future, so that improvement activity can be prioritised and implemented effectively.

UL ClearView contains statements and responses that have been designed to gather information on organisational behaviour that is being experienced by people that are taking part.

Rather than gathering people's 'perception' it gathers responses that describe what people are 'experiencing'. This is of greater value as it reflects what they are actually seeing and/or experiencing, it is much 'harder' evidence.

This may appear to be the case, especially when you are using a generic assessment, e.g. against a standard or framework. In this case, the statements and responses need to cover all potential users, so they may use general rather than industry or organization specific language.
In some instances there are subtle differences with individual responses, which are important in understanding the organizational behavior that is being experienced.
 
The key is to quickly choose the response that most closely matches your experience of the item covered by the statement, even if it is not expressed in exactly the way you would do so. Do not take too much time thinking about your response - select the one that feels most appropriate, it is almost invariably the right one for you.

Assessments are based either on a specific standard, framework, or process requirements. The assessment is created to determine how effectively these requirements are being addressed.

They allow you to identify the level of 'maturity' that is being achieved against known best-practice. Usually, most standards do not expect an Organisation to be operating at 'best-practice' level, but to be covering 'base' requirements and seeking to improve.

The online element of UL ClearView includes statements and responses that indicate the level of compliance being achieved and the effectiveness of it. For example:

• Document Control

Should a standard and/or your management system require that documents be controlled checking this requirement is written into the assessment. Users of the document will then be invited to select a response that reflects their experience of document control and the effectiveness of it.
The online assessment approach seeks responses on what actually happens in everyday activity rather than at a specific time. This is in contrast to an auditor visiting who will only see documents at the time of their visit. The online assessment checks for the on-going effectiveness of document control.

• Records management

Online Assessment gathers information from a range of users concerning the existence of records management and its effectiveness (e.g. existence, availability, legibility and accuracy) of records that have been identified as critical to the standard or process being assessed. In bespoke assessments, where needed, the specific names of records can be used in the statements and/or responses.
By reviewing the range of responses made about these documents, the analysis will provide an indication of the level of compliance that is being achieved in everyday activity.  For specific compliance requirements and high-risk areas we suggest that manual checks are also performed.
In a certification environment UL will check compliance requirements on-site throughout the certification cycle.

The approach is a natural evolution of the survey approach, with increased benefits available. By employing a 360-degree approach to assess and examine a given issue, it provides a complete picture of performance from those that have experience of it, as opposed to a one-dimensional view.

The accuracy of the approach has been proven repeatedly over the past three years. It has identified known issues and in almost every deployment highlighted issues that were not known. The approach has been proven to provide accurate indications of the level of performance with very low participation rates.

The approach has been constructed with a number of key elements that together make it a highly reliable (and proven) indicator of risks in the scope being assessed. The elements that contribute to this are:

• The collection of behavioural-based evidence
• The intelligent and consistent way this evidence is analysed
• The larger sample size that can be achieved using an online approach
• The confidentiality of participant's specific responses

UL ClearView is a globaly accredited approach for ISO 9001. It is accredited by UKAS (United Kingdom Accreditation Service).

When defining the scope of the assessment, you not only describe it in words, but also define the various departments/teams/functions that form part of that scope, including the approximate numbers of people in each.

We can ask local coordinators to invite further participation. If this is not an option we can alter the mix of online and on-site activity to address areas where we judge participation is unacceptably low. The assessment report indicates where insufficient participation has taken place and we cannot be confident of a valid result.

All responses made to assessments are held on a secure server, to which only system administrators have access. Responses are held against a User ID number, to control assessment access, rather than a specific name. To maintain the integrity of the assessment approach this information is never released. 

When assessment reports are generated, individual responses are accumulated and reported against the parameters defined in the assessment set up e.g. Departments/Functions/Teams, Roles and 'Main Involvement' Group. Care is taken when setting up an assessment not to define these parameters so as to isolate individuals or very small groups of people.

Maintaining this confidentiality is a key part of the assessment technique; it encourages participants to provide honest responses, hence more accurate results.

How often assessments are deployed is up to the client (subject to commercial arrangements). It is useful to allow time for improvement activity to take effect, following an assessment, before conducting another. The effectiveness of the improvement activity can then be gauged. Regular use will allow consistent benchmarking period-to-period.

There are exceptions to this e.g. where an assessment is being used to monitor on-going activity; customer satisfaction associated with projects delivered is an example.

• Assessment creation

Assessments (generic or bespoke) are created by a team that consists of specialist auditors, in the area being assessed, and importantly by people who have managed teams and businesses.
This way the knowledge of the team is captured in a balanced assessment that provides information about specific requirements and the wider business. 
Standards related assessments are quality checked by an independent third party (peer review). Bespoke assessments are always developed with the customer so that full involvement and relevance is achieved in creation of online assessment content.

• Assessment delivery

The staff involved in the delivery of UL ClearView complete program specific training and are subject to regular competence assessment.

• Program effectiveness

Customer feedback is regularly sought to assess the effectiveness of the program.