Internal audit knowledge – what should an audit do to control the internal control of an organization?
ID: Internal auditor practice and actual combat
Internal control, if it is just to establish a set of internal control framework or institutional system, is too child's play!
The value of audit to internal control lies more in promoting the continuous improvement of the effectiveness of internal control and the continuous improvement of governance.
For the management of "internal control", as internal auditors, we can start from several aspects:
1. Engage in training: train them on how to continuously improve control and self-monitoring
First of all, the auditor must understand the internal control and understand the control points of business operations, and then it can be trained.
If you don't know the specific business, you can also train them on the basic theoretical knowledge of internal control and urge them to carry out self-supervision.
Popularize the concepts, theories and concepts of internal control into all business functions.
2. Promote self-assessment: Management should be allowed to conduct risk and internal control assessment activities on a regular basis
After all, due to the limitations of personnel and energy, it is impossible for auditors to directly train or supervise, and it is impossible to promote it comprehensively.
The best way to promote self-improvement is to engage management and business units, pay attention to internal control and risk, and conduct relevant assessment activities and meetings on a regular basis.
It is better to teach a man to fish than to teach him to fish!
3. Assist in setting up the control structure: help them pull up the control body!
The whole organization is a set of control system, and each business is also a set of systematic control procedures.
What the audit needs to do is to help the management establish the control structure, which is the skeleton, and the specific blood and muscles need to be perfected by the management or the business leader.
The dominant function of this architecture is to document, analyze and evaluate the design and operation of internal controls.
4. Find defects and countermeasures: help management develop a process to deal with control defects.
Although it is the responsibility of auditors to identify management deficiencies and make management recommendations, more detailed and professional management deficiencies still need to be corrected by the management and the business level.
What an audit does is help them establish a defect-finding business process that helps them identify defects and close control gaps on an ongoing basis.
5. Grasp learning: learn laws and regulations, and learn benchmarks
For management and business units, in addition to finding faults, it is also necessary to promote their learning and improvement, and strengthen the value of functions.
Especially for some new management models, new businesses, and new control requirements, if there is a lack of promotion, it is difficult or unwilling for business personnel to improve themselves.
That's where audits come in: helping them learn and stay on top of the latest cases and laws and regulations on control requirements.
6. Management Technology Improvements: Keep track of technological advancements that may help control efficiency and effectiveness
New businesses, new functions, and new tools all have more or less deficiencies or poor control effectiveness.
If auditors want to make achievements in this area, they need to keep track of technological progress, including management technology and professional technology, with the core of improving control efficiency and effectiveness.
epilogue
You should also be able to see that the value of audit for the improvement of internal control is still to provide sufficient "consulting services"!
However, in reality, the internal audit work of many enterprises is still in the stage of compliance audit, and the business of consulting services is rarely done and it is difficult to do.
But I still have to encourage: even if we are in the abyss, we must have our hearts in the nine heavens, and we must also hide the stars and the sea in our chests!
Dear, pay more attention to forwarding!