Let’s talk about the audit no one brags about: what happens after the audit.
You get it. The problems are documented, the report’s shared, and then nothing. Crickets. A week goes by. Then another one. Maybe someone sends a reminder. Maybe they don’t. And the issues? They still exist.
It’s maddening, especially when you’re the one who originally called out the issue and now must keep reminding everyone to actually fix it.
We get it. We’ve done it. A lot. And after seeing this same phenomenon across industries, we thought we should do something about it.
Why Do Audit Issues Take So Long to Get Resolved?
Short answer? Because the system is broken.
Long answer? Because no one really owns the follow-up.
Here’s what usually happens: an audit happens, some findings get flagged (let’s say 12), and someone throws them into a spreadsheet. That sheet gets emailed to a team or shared in a drive. There’s probably a meeting. Everyone nods. “We’ll handle this.”
Then. real life intervenes. The warehouse becomes hectic. The site manager goes off for a few days. IT is busy with another project. And suddenly it’s three weeks later and someone says, “Hey, whatever happened to that fire extinguisher inspection thing?
Nobody recalls who was going to get it done. The problem’s still present.
And that’s how something straightforward becomes a compliance risk or worse, a repeat finding.
Let’s be real: not every audit issue is a ticking time bomb. But when they pile up, the risks multiply.
The Hidden Cost of Slow Audit Resolutions
It’s the small stuff that sneaks up on you. A missing label. A blocked exit. Expired documentation. It doesn’t take long before you’re staring at a mountain of little problems that look a lot like negligence.
We’ve talked to teams that lost contracts over unresolved audit findings. One compliance officer even told us:
“It wasn’t the issue itself that got flagged. It was the fact that it sat open for two months. That’s what made our client nervous.”
And fair enough. If you can’t close the loop, people start wondering what else is slipping through.
Why Spreadsheets and Emails Just Don’t Work Anymore
We used to think the problem was accountability. It’s not. It’s clarity.
Spreadsheets are fine, for about five minutes. But the minute you’ve got more than one site, or more than one person responsible for fixing things, you’re in trouble.
Here’s what typically goes wrong:
- Tasks are listed but not assigned.
- Due dates are vague or missing.
- Updates are hidden in random comment cells.
- There’s no visibility, unless you’re the one constantly asking for it.
- And emails? Let’s just say we’ve seen entire audit reports vanish into Outlook purgatory.
So. What Really Works?
This is what we learned: fixing begins with ownership. And ownership starts with real-time systems, not reports stuck in time.
At Fieldpie, we built our platform to solve exactly this problem, how to turn audit findings into actionable, trackable, and actually get them closed.
Here’s how it goes down:
- An inspector finds an issue in the course of an audit and puts it into their phone.
- That issue immediately turns into a task: assigned, due date, and supporting pics.
- The assignee gets a cell phone alert (no requirement to open their inbox three times daily).
- Progress is tracked in real time. Managers see what’s been resolved and what’s behind.
- When the task is complete, proof is posted, and the issue is closed.
That’s it. Simple, but revolutionary.
Request a demo and see how it can transform your operations!
