The DQS 2023 National Auditor Meeting

The National Auditor meeting gives the auditors the opportunity to connect and further develop their knowledge and competence for their respective sectors. The meeting also allows them to come together to share accomplishments and analyze how the company can advance whether internally or with current and future partners in the field. 

The Sales team meets ahead of the Auditor Meeting, with this year’s meeting on Wednesday, April 26th; finally again in-person, sharing what the team has accomplished and seeing where the team can collaborate with the Marketing team to accomplish goals. Seeing how the team expanded since the last in-person meeting and the progress that’s been made can be seen in presentations as well as in the comradery within the meeting space.

The night is when DQS Inc. has the first opportunity to be all together with the Social. Seeing auditors who have not seen each other in years warmly saying hello and laughing like no time has passed in between the two events really shows that time [and the pandemic] can do little for teams that rely on each other to get work done. New employees get to meet those from daily emails and remote meetings for the first time, having a face [and height] to put with the name. DQS Academy rolled out their trivia game about training courses and to bring experienced and new employees together at tables [you can see what DQS Academy offers by visiting the course catalog at dqsacademy.com]. One question did stump a few: what are 5 of the new courses being delivered in 2023? Hint: Some have already been announced our social media: LinkedIn Facebook Twitter.

The next day for the main group event, opening remarks began with Christopher James, Sector Manager - Quality, Brad McGuire, President & CEO, Jeff Belden, VP Finance, Lisa Brandon, VP Business Development, Beth Gatewood, DQS Academy Manager, and Behzad Sadegh, Director of Consumer Products & Sustainability. Officially, this is when the team is all together, in one room to collaborate – Customer Service, Auditors, Sales, Marketing, IT, Planning, Verification, and Administration. Those who aren’t usually in meetings with one another getting the chance to get a different perspective and learn more about what is going on in the DQS Inc. offices or out in the field with auditing: growth with dozens of new employees brought on after 2020, new knowledge to bring the company into the future and provide the most up-to-date offerings and information. These give DQS Inc. opportunities to try new things and venture down new avenues that the company has not had the capacity to do before.

From presentations to breakout sessions, auditors within their sectors can come together, talk about their experiences, lessons learned, changes within the field, and more. During breaks, different sectors can socialize and gain insight on other experiences and changes. This is where growth can begin – auditors may learn how to expand their knowledge of different standards, how to improve their audit and service approach, and hear about opportunities to become an instructor for DQS Academy. Those in departments outside of auditing get to hear and learn more about auditor experiences and learn what information to provide during the pre-audit process to evolve the certification experience.

From dinner to the photobooth pictures, laughter and tired eyes the next morning, you can hear teams stating to have more in-person connections whether with team building or conferences, to get out of the day-to-day of work. DQS Inc. isn’t just about certification – it’s about people. Whether it’s clients or your own team, you can’t have success without a team that can work well together.

The final day, Friday, 4/28, was the day of sector-specific workshops. The sector workshops are small group learning experiences that focus on industry changes and knowledge enhancement, ensuring consistent interpretations, and developing evolving techniques specific to the sector. Sector management conducts these workshops in a fun and engaging manner. And before everyone knew it, it was time for goodbye.  Whether it was a “great to meet you” or a “it was great seeing you again’ you could see that it doesn’t matter how many new additions there were these few years, you still have the same feeling of when it was a smaller and local team. And when the team returned to their respective offices, turn on the computer on Monday, they now have an experience to remember the person behind that name of the email sender.

As a new employee starting in January 2023, familiar with Certification Bodies and marketing, I’ve already grown with skills and opportunities. From a supportive team, to overcoming challenges, and being able to look back at a day’s work knowing that I’ve made some type of impact with the business and how it will run moving forward gives a feeling of accomplishment in what I do. Meeting those I’ve had meetings within person and those I haven’t, I can see the talent that many have in their respective roles and the mentorship that they’ve given others. Hearing stories of those who have come and passed to other companies and how they’re continuously being kept up with, or those who have left and come back, give me great hope in the future of the culture of DQS Inc. Whether a customer chooses DQS as their CB or not, I know that with the interactions I’ve had the customer has had a great impression of the people who work here because I know I sure have.