Forge A Partnership Between Internal And External Auditors To Enhance Your Financial Reporting
While preparing for audit fieldwork to begin, remember that effective preparation isn’t isolated to pulling together reports. A little proactive interpersonal relationship-building can elevate the relationship between internal and external auditors into an effective and valuable partnership. Are you in search of tips that can help you maximize your business relationships? Keep reading to discover four effective strategies that will improve the relationship between your internal and external auditors.
Read Also: 5 Steps To A Smoother Audit
1. Reach Out Regularly
Simply making an effort to schedule meetings between internal and external audit team members, can go a long way in setting the stage for a more efficient audit process. During these meetings, you might discuss emerging issues such as how the company intends to apply a new accounting standard or the status of internal control remediation efforts.
In preparation for an audit, auditors can meet to compare the internal audit department’s work plan to the external auditor’s audit plan. This comparison can help minimize duplication of effort and identify areas where the teams might work together — or at least complement each other’s efforts, without compromising either team’s independence or objectivity.
2. Provide Access To Internal Audit Reports
The external audit team can’t rely exclusively on the internal audit department’s reports for their audit. However sharing in-house findings provides the external auditors with a bird’s-eye view of the company’s operations, including high-risk areas that deserve special attention.
Designate an individual on your internal audit team to act as a liaison with external auditors. This person should share reports. This will give your external auditors adequate time to review your in-house reports and avoid hasty decision-making.
3. Help External Auditors Navigate The Organization
During fieldwork, external auditors will need access to employees, executives, and data dispersed throughout the enterprise. Internal auditors can assist by sharing key documents they compiled during their audit procedures. Examples include:
- Company’s organization charts.
- Copies of audit reports from previous years
- A schedule of unresolved internal control deficiencies.
This information goes a long way in helping educate external auditors while helping identify employees to interview during audit inquiries.
4. Conduct Joint Training Sessions
Internal and external audit teams require continuing professional education (CPE) to maintain their licenses and improve their understanding of issues they might encounter during an audit. For example, training sessions might explain new accounting standards, emerging fraud scams, and technology-driven auditing methods.
Participating in joint training sessions can help internal and external auditors share best practices and forge lasting bonds with others on the audit team. Plus, it might be more cost-effective for internal and external auditors to share fixed CPE costs.
Partnerships Are Key
Audit season is just the starting point for building this partnership. If you’d like to learn additional ways to bring your internal and external auditors together or would like to learn more about the financial reporting benefits associated with improved collaboration, reach out to our dedicated assurance professionals today. GBQ’s assurance services team is committed to keeping your business compliant while empowering your team and improving the audit experience. Contact us today to learn more.
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