The primary role of a SIZA auditor is to assess compliance with the SIZA Standard Requirements and Audit Checklist. On the audit day, this includes identifying non-conformances and highlighting potential risks to enable remediation and drive continuous improvement in agriculture. However, a truly effective audit goes beyond identifying gaps. It also recognises what is working well. Actively seeking out, reporting, and celebrating Best Practices during audits, transforms the audit from a fault-finding exercise into a meaningful partnership focused on excellence and continuous improvement.
Primary subscribers, e.g. producers and packhouses, also have the option to load Best Practices external from audits on the MySIZA platform. These Best Practices are then evaluated and approved or rejected by the SIZA office, and become visible to their linked markets as additional practices beyond minimum compliance which are implemented outside of audit periods or aren’t necessarily identified during an audit.
Why is this important?
- It Provides Positive Reinforcement: Recognising best practices during audits encourages and reinforces the behaviours and systems that are working well. When people feel acknowledged for doing the right thing, they are far more likely to maintain and strengthen those practices.
- Identifies Opportunities for Shared Success: A best practice in one department, farm, or site can serve as inspiration for others. By highlighting these examples, auditors help organisations share knowledge, standardise effective processes, and strengthen performance across the supply chain.
- Builds Trust and Morale: Recognition enables collaboration and mutual respect between auditor and auditee. It shifts the dynamic from inspection to partnership, where both parties are working toward the same goal: social and sustainable improvement.
- Offers a Balanced and Accurate Perspective: A report that focuses only on shortcomings presents an incomplete picture. Highlighting strengths alongside areas for improvement provides a fair and holistic view of operational performance, enabling organisations to build confidently on their successes.
- Enhances Strategic Value and Reputation: Documented evidence of strong practices and a positive organisational culture demonstrates integrity and commitment to excellence. By positioning the audit function as a strategic partner that adds value, we help strengthen operational integrity and enhance the reputation of individual operations and the industry as a whole.
How to Identify a Best Practice
A true Best Practice is more than simply “something done well.” To be meaningful and valuable in a report, it should demonstrate the following qualities:
- Exceeds Legal Requirements: It goes beyond minimum compliance and reflects a proactive commitment to higher standards.
- Quantifiable and Ongoing: Its positive impact can be measured and demonstrated over time (for example, reduced water usage by 15% or achieving consistent record-keeping accuracy).
- Documented and Systematic: There is clear evidence — such as records, procedures, or photographs — showing that the practice is structured, intentional, and repeatable, rather than ad hoc.
- Sustainable: It is embedded in daily operations and forms part of the organisation’s culture, not something implemented only in preparation for an audit.
As an auditor, your report provides a valuable and holistic perspective. By documenting both areas for improvement and examples of excellence, you help build trust, support ongoing compliance, strengthen confidence in the audit process, and create a healthy balance between identifying gaps and recognising genuine commitment to continuous improvement.
