RBA-Online has been designed to make it easy to complete the Self-Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ) online and share it with multiple customers. Below is a list of frequently asked questions about the SAQ.
1. I registered as a non-member and signed into my account, but I cannot find the SAQ.
There are detailed help guidance documents available on the help page in RBA-Online. The help page link will be in the top right of the RBA-Online page once logged in. In order to access the SAQ, you must first activate your RBA-Online account. After you register in the system, you will receive an email with your username and password. Follow the link the in email, sign in, and select "I want to activate my account" at the bottom of the page. This will take you to the payment screen where you can complete your registration and activate your account. The cost to use RBA-Online is $250 per facility per year for non-member suppliers.
Email us if you have registered but have not yet received your username and contact information.
2. Can I see a copy of the questions before I begin filling out the SAQ?
PDF versions of the corporate and facility SAQs are available as a reference -- please see our assessment page to download these documents. These PDF files cannot be filled out or loaded into RBA-Online.
3. Why are many of the questions in the offline questionnaire not in the online SAQ?
The SAQ in RBA-Online is a dynamic document and updates as you complete it. Only the questions relevant to your operations as indicated by your responses to the SAQ will populate as you progress through the questionnaire. Questions are generated through conditional login throughout the document, do not be alarmed if questions listed in the offline sample do not appear in your online version.
4. Why do some of my facility SAQs contain only certain sections of the SAQ, and some have all sections?
See answer to Question 3.
5. Can I import an Excel version of the SAQ into the system?
The system was designed for the user to easily complete their SAQ online within RBA-Online. An option to complete the SAQ offline in Excel is also available, but please note that questions requiring attachments do not export to Excel. There are approximately 240 questions across all sections of the Self-Assessment that will not export.
In order for a successful import of an Excel document to occur, the original Excel document that was exported out of RBA-Online must be the document used for import. The document is unique to that Self-Assessment. The Excel document must also be completed with macros and external content enabled.
6. What is the difference between selecting Products, Services, or Both Products and Services as my facility's primary deliverables?
You should select "Products" if your facility is a manufacturing facility. Select "Services" if your facility's primary deliverables are contracting, consulting, design, etc. Your answer to this question will determine which sections populate in the SAQ.
7. In the SAQ, what is the difference between a Management Representative and an Administrative Representative?
Management Representatives are anyone supervising factory, office, or other workers. Administrative Representatives are office, safety, finance, HR, planning, or buyer staff, or anyone not managing.
8. How do I share my SAQ results with my customers?
Please see the SAQ user guide's step by step instructions for sharing SAQ results.
9. I shared my SAQ results with my customer, but they are not able to view them.
After an SAQ is 100 percent complete in the system, you will need to "Release" before your customer can view them. An SAQ that has been released can still be edited at any time.
10. Is there a way to "unrelease" my SAQ?
Once you have released your SAQ, you will not be able to unrelease it again. If you would like to stop sharing an SAQ with a customer, you can select My Customers » Set Access Rights in RBA-Online and stop sharing your SAQ results. If you would like to change any of your SAQ answers, you can do so at any time during the SAQ's applicable calendar year without unreleasing the questionnaire.
11. I completed and shared my corporate SAQ, but I cannot find the facility SAQ.
Please consult the guidance documents available in RBA-Online on the Help page once logged in.
12. There used to be a Facility Risk SAQ and Traditional SAQ. What happened to the Risk SAQ?
The previous Facility Risk SAQ is now the primary SAQ. The previous traditional SAQ is now the optional VAP Prep Tool that can be used to prepare for a VAP assessment. The Facility SAQ utilizes the same smaller question set and scoring methodology as the previous Facility Risk SAQ. It also introduces an opportunity for scores to be improved by providing evidence of control mechanisms, and through an optional desktop validation of those controls.
13. How do I see the Corporate Headquarters SAQ? I only see the Facility-Level SAQ.
Only a company administrator has access to the Corporate SAQ. If you are a facility user and need access to the Corporate SAQ, or if you do not know if you are a company administrator, the Primary RBA-Online contact within your company will be able to help you.
If you are a company administrator, you can access the Corporate SAQ by clicking on SAQs » My Corporate SAQs .
14. Is the SAQ available in any language other than English?
The SAQ is available in English, Simplified Chinese, Japanese, Korean and Spanish.
15. If my supplier completes the SAQ in Chinese, will I be able to view it in English?
The SAQ questions have two types of inputs. Many questions have pre-loaded responses that are provided in drop down menus. These answers will display in Chinese for suppliers and English for the customer reviewing the SAQ. SAQ questions with text fields for responses will display exactly the text that is entered. If a supplier responds to these questions in Chinese, the customer will only be able to view the responses in Chinese.
Please respond to text questions in English if possible.
16. Can the current SAQ be pre-populated with the information from the previous year’s SAQ?
It is possible to pre-populate the 2024 Facility SAQ if you filled out the Facility Risk SAQ previously. If you did not use the Facility Risk SAQ before, you will need to fill in the SAQ with the necessary information.
17. What SAQ is required for a VAP assessment request?
Only the Risk Questions (Step 1) need to be completed to make a RBA VAP assessment request.
18. What does question “XXX” in the SAQ mean?
For clarity on the questions in the SAQ, please refer to the RBA VAP Standard document.
19. Is there a user guide that will take me through the SAQ?
The SAQ Guidance Document is available on the Help page available within RBA-Online.