Our Auditor: Experienced Specialist, Not a Checklist Reader
The value of an audit depends on who conducts it. QMClouds audits are carried out by Ilkka Sillanpää, PhD in Technology and Business Administration and docent in industrial management, with 20 years of experience in industrial procurement and supply chain leadership.
Internal Audit, Pre-Audit, and Supplier Evaluation are all expert tasks. The same day at your site either produces a mechanical observation list or insight into where your operations truly leak. The difference lies in the auditor. Our audit is performed by a person who has led global procurement organizations, researched supplier evaluation at the doctoral level, and sat on both sides of the table as auditee and auditor.
Experience shows in what the auditor knows to ask.
This is how the audit proceeds with us
Introductory discussion and audit scoping
Familiarization with your operations and materials
Audit day: interviews and observations
Report and review of development areas
- No mechanical checklist walkthrough
- No auditor unfamiliar with your industry
- No observations without business relevance
Ilkka Sillanpää, PhD, DBA
Ilkka is a founding partner of QMClouds, chairman of the board, and lead expert in audits. He holds two doctoral degrees, a docent position at the University of Oulu, and has two decades of experience in industrial management. This ensures that an audit does not just read the standard requirements but identifies which ones truly matter for your operations.
Qualifications based on:
- PhD in Technology (Industrial Management) from University of Oulu and Doctor of Business Administration from University of Vaasa.
- Docent in Industrial Management at University of Oulu since 2017.
- Over 20 years of experience in industrial production, procurement, and management roles.
- Leadership of global supplier networks in Europe and Asia.
- Peer-reviewed publications on supplier evaluation and development.
An audit is not a formality but a management tool. A good auditor leaves behind an understanding of what should really be done differently, not just a list of nonconformities.
Auditor's Background in Brief
- years of experience in industrial procurement and management
- 20+
- doctoral degrees: PhD in Technology and Doctor of Business Administration
- 2
- management system standards: ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001
- 3
- since founding partner and chairman of QMClouds
- 2018
Education and Academic Background
The expertise used in auditing does not come from a weekend course. It has been built through years of research and continues through university cooperation.
Doctor of Science in Technology, Industrial Management
Dissertation at the University of Oulu on industrial management. Built on a master’s degree in mechanical and production engineering from the same university, ensuring technical understanding of production from the beginning.
Doctor of Business Administration, Business Studies
Second dissertation at the University of Vaasa in management and organizations. The combination of technology and business means audit observations connect to both the process and its business impact.
Docent and Researcher
Docent of Industrial Management at the University of Oulu, formerly assistant professor and postdoctoral researcher at University of Vaasa, and visiting researcher at Corvinus University in Budapest. Also an expert in the European Commission’s Horizon 2020 program.
Published research topics repeatedly cover supplier evaluation and selection, supplier development, and measuring supply chain performance. These are exactly the same issues addressed in Supplier Evaluation in practice.
Career Path: Where Experience Has Been Gained
An auditor’s credibility comes from having been responsible for the things they evaluate. Here is the brief path from which QMClouds' auditing expertise originates.
Industry Production and Procurement (2004–2011)
Career began with production and procurement roles at Metso Paper and continued at Rautaruukki, where responsibility included group-level global procurement.
- Production and procurement roles at Metso Paper Oy
- Rautaruukki Oyj: building subcontracting category strategy at group level
- Senior Sourcing Manager, leading category managers for global procurement
Years when supplier evaluation was learned at the buyer's desk, not from textbooks.
Konecranes: Global Category Manager (2011–2016)
Responsible for global procurement and supply chain of main carriages and steel, and managing procurement matrix organization in Europe and Asia.
- Building and developing global supplier networks across two continents
- Supplier relationship management: long-term contracts and performance improvement
- Leading procurement and supply chain cooperation in joint ventures
Years of experience seeing firsthand what a functioning and failing supplier quality management system looks like.
Research and Teaching (2014–)
Alongside industrial career, academic career as postdoctoral researcher and assistant professor at University of Vaasa, visiting researcher at Corvinus University, and docent at University of Oulu.
- Research topics include strategy implementation, supplier development, and performance measurement
- Peer-reviewed publications on supplier evaluation and selection frameworks
- European Commission’s Horizon 2020 program evaluating expert since 2018
Audit evaluation criteria are based on researched knowledge, not habit.
Entrepreneur, Board Professional, and Auditor (2018–)
Currently Ilkka is a founding partner and chairman of QMClouds and acts as advisor and board member in several Finnish companies.
- QMClouds: founding partner and chairman since 2018
- Board and advisory roles in industrial companies, including Urjala Works Oy
- Business development advisor for owners and management teams of SMEs
Auditing is done through entrepreneur and board professional perspective: what observation truly affects the business.
Practical experience as buyer and leader, researched knowledge of evaluation methods, and board work perspective on business. This combination separates useful auditing from formality.
What This Means For Your Audit
The CV is interesting only if it shows in the audit day. This is how it shows.
The auditor knows how to ask the right questions. Having led procurement and supply chains, they quickly recognize what in the process description is written just for the audit and what actually guides the work.
In Supplier Evaluation, the assessor's background matters. Supplier evaluation and selection criteria have been Ilkka’s research topic and daily work, so evaluations do not remain at the level of a form questionnaire.
Industry and production are familiar from the inside. Machine shops, subcontractor networks, and industrial supply chains require no separate orientation before getting to the point.
Observations are linked to business. A nonconformity is only interesting when it is explained what it costs or what risk it increases. Board experience brings this perspective.
Conversations with leadership are in management language. Experience at management and board level means audit results are presented in a form based on which decisions can be made.
The role remains independent. The auditor has not built or maintained the audited system, so the view stays external and impartial.
The same auditor performs Internal Audits, Pre-Audits, and Supplier Evaluations. You will know before contracting who will do the work and with what experience.
When Auditor’s Experience Matters Most
Even an inexperienced auditor can get a note in the audit plan. Differences appear in situations where more than a formality is expected from the audit.
Do you recognize your situation from these?
If your situation matches any of these, the introductory discussion will concretely cover what the audit would deliver in your case.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Auditor
- Audits are conducted by Ilkka Sillanpää, founding partner and chairman of QMClouds. He holds a Doctor of Science in Technology (Industrial Management, University of Oulu), Doctor of Business Administration (University of Vaasa), and is docent in industrial management at University of Oulu. Initial contact and need assessment is usually handled by our sales team, but the audit itself is managed by the same expert from start to finish: planning, audit day, and report review. The work is not delegated after contract conclusion.
- Three things. First, practical experience: over 20 years in industrial production, procurement, and leadership roles, including as global category manager at Konecranes and head of global procurement at Rautaruukki. Second, researched knowledge: two doctoral degrees and peer-reviewed publications on supplier evaluation and supply chain performance measurement. Third, management perspective: board and advisory roles in industrial companies bring a business perspective to auditing.
- Yes. The auditor has not built the audited management system nor is responsible for its maintenance, so their assessment remains external. In Internal Audit, independence is a core standard requirement: the auditor must be independent of the audited operation. Using an external party addresses this issue in SMEs where internal staff would inevitably audit their own work.
- The strongest experience is in manufacturing industry, machine shops, and industrial supply chains, where the auditor has worked in global leadership positions. However, the logic of management systems is the same regardless of industry, and audits have also been conducted in service sectors and construction. The introductory discussion openly reviews how well the experience matches your operations.
- Yes, and we recommend it. When contacting us, please state that you want to meet the expert who will conduct the audit, and we will arrange a meeting. This lets you see for yourself whether the experience meets your needs.