Saving Time on Audits: A Potpourri

Upon successful completion of this course, participants will be able to:

Part 1

• Recognize strategies to increase profits through ongoing client investigations and save time with quality control.
• Identify ways to modify practice aids.
• Recognize the importance and benefits of investing in staff training.

Part 2

• Recognize the optimum order for audit planning, noting the results of performing planning procedures out of order, planning on the run, or failing to plan.
• Identify various reporting frameworks and select an appropriate framework to maximize time savings.
• Recall ways to maximize time when reviewing prior year’s working papers.
• Cite changes that an auditor can make to gather lesser amounts of evidence while still complying with the requirements of applicable auditing standards.
• Cite engagement activities that maximize on-the-job-training, ways to maximize substantive evidence from risk assessment procedures, and the use of a planning document to guide planning activities.
• Recognize cost-beneficial audit strategies, noting the effects of inherent risk, control environment on control risk, and low-reliance tests of controls or walk-through procedures.

Part 3

• Recognize the components of key controls at the entity level and at the activity level.
• Cite the steps involved in using professional judgment to minimize the size and number of practice aids.
• Cite ways to minimize audit documentation and design cost-beneficial audit strategies.
• Identify the basic elements of a quality control system and how these elements can be applied on audit, review, and compilation engagements.
• Recall the process for modifying a standard audit program considering the nature, size, and complexity of a reporting entity.