Tools for Lead Auditors

Who will benefit from this course?

This course is intended to equip participants with the essential understanding, skills, and techniques to effectively, and confidently, complete their critical role as lead internal auditors. This course is designed for the lead internal auditor — with 2+ years of experience — who has a desire to boost their internal audit skills to successfully lead an audit engagement with confidence and become an effective and trusted advisor within their organization.

Course Objectives

• Explain the foundational frameworks and standards that guide the lead auditor role, including the Global Internal Audit Standards, the COSO Internal Control Framework, and the internal audit model.
• Differentiate the roles and responsibilities of audit management, the lead auditor, and the activity under review throughout the audit lifecycle.
• Apply effective leadership, communication, and mentoring principles to lead audit teams and support staff development.
• Plan audit engagements by applying best practices in engagement planning, risk assessment, walkthroughs, audit program development, and opening conferences.
• Identify the review requirements for engagement fieldwork and testing.
• Describe the best practices for reviewing audit findings and recommendations.
• Demonstrate the steps necessary to conduct effective reporting, exit conferences, and audit wrap up activities after the report is issued.
• Recognize the formal quality assurance standards that the internal audit function is required to follow.
• Interpret the formal quality assurance standards that govern the internal audit function.

Course Topics

Unit 1: The Global Internal Audit Standards and the Audit Model

• The Global Internal Audit Standards.
• The audit model.

Unit 2: Overview of the Internal Control Environment

• Control terms.
• Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) Framework.
• U.S. Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (Sarbanes-Oxley) overview.
• Risk in the control environment.
• Enterprise risk management.

Unit 3: Audit Governance, Roles & Responsibilities

• Governance.
• Audit governance roles and responsibilities.
• Qualifications of audit team members (by level).
• Mission statement, vision statement, and audit charter.
• Independence and reporting relationships.
• Case study overview.

Unit 4: Staff Development and Leadership

• Effective monitoring and feedback.
• Soliciting feedback from stakeholders.
• Mentoring.
• Leadership development.
• Characteristics of an effective leader.
• Promoting the internal audit function.
• Qualities of a successful lead auditor – Personal skills and abilities.

Unit 5: Audit Planning

• Applicable Standards
• Audit model – Planning phase.
• Planning considerations.
• Preliminary activity under review survey.
• Audit planning memo.
• Business case example.
• Documenting and reviewing the risk and control matrix (RCM).
• Creating and updating process flow documentation.
• Walkthroughs.
• Audit opening conference.
• Qualities of a successful lead auditor – Planning and controlling audits.

Unit 6: Test Plan & Work Program Development

• Applicable Standards.
• Creating the test plan.
• Developing a work program.
• Allocating resources.

Unit 7: Reviewing Audit Evidence & Workpapers

• Applicable Standards.
• Audit evidence.
• Reviewing audit evidence.
• Sampling methodology.
• Data analytics.
• Reviewing workpapers.

Unit 8: Audit Findings & Recommendations

• Applicable Standards.
• Communicating audit findings and recommendations.
• Reviewing audit findings.
• Potential client reactions to audit findings.
• Selling audit findings.
• Developing recommendations.

Unit 9: Audit Reporting & the Exit Conference

• Applicable Standards.
• Audit reporting and the exit conference.
• Audit report key elements.

Unit 10: Audit Wrap-Up & Report Issuance

• Audit wrap-up and report issuance.
• Audit wrap-up responsibilities.

Unit 11: Audit Follow-Up

• Applicable Standards.
• Audit follow-up.
• Issue follow-up, validation, and risk acceptances – Tips for success.
• Monitoring, follow-up, validation, and resolution process.

Unit 12: Quality Assurance & Improvement Program

• The Quality Assurance and Improvement Program (QAIP).
• Applicable Standards.
• The QAIP Framework.
• Implementing Quality Programs.
• Assessing quality.