Putting The Quality In Audit Reports

How well you communicate that information is critical to getting management’s acceptance of your findings and their agreement with your recommendations. A well-written audit report adds value to your clients by providing information that is : 

• Accurate
• Objective
• Clear
• Concise
• Constructive
• Complete
• Timely

In addition to audit reports, these elements can apply to all kinds of writing including :

• Executive summaries
• Fraud investigations
• Consulting reports
• Memos
• General correspondence

The objective of this webinar is to:
1 . A review of the audit standards related to audit report quality
2 . A detailed review of each of the seven report quality elements

• Accurate
• Objective
• Clear
• Concise
• Constructive
• Complete
• Timely

3 . Various quality report exercises

The objective of any report is to provide important information to management in the area reviewed. It represents the end result of weeks of reviews, analyses, interviews, and discussions. The quality of that report will have an impact on how well the report is understood and accepted. A report with the best information and recommendations may not be acted upon if the report is poorly written and hard to understand. Poor quality reports can result in management:

• Misunderstanding the information and making the wrong decisions
• Getting too little information and making poor decisions
• Getting too much information and wasting valuable time in making decisions

Ideally, the audit report should provide management with enough information to understand:

• What was done
• What was found
• What management should do

• Chief Audit Executives
• Audit Directors
• Audit Supervisors
• Audit Managers
• Staff Auditors
• Government Auditors
• Compliance Auditors
• Internal Control Specialists
• Public Accountants
• Accounting Analysts
• Business Analysts
• Quality Control Specialists

Jonnie Keith has been in auditing for over 50 years. He retired in 2012 as the Assistant General Manager (AGM) of Internal Audit with the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) in Atlanta, Ga. He served in that capacity for over 10 years and was responsible for administering the overall audit activities. In this position, he was also responsible for the review and approval of all internal audit correspondence including audit reports, executive summaries, internal and external correspondence, etc.

Prior to that, he worked at MARTA as the Operational Audit Manager and Senior Contract Compliance Auditor. He also worked at Norfolk Southern Railway (formerly Southern Railway) as a senior operational auditor and started his career at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta as a bank examiner.

Jonnie Keith received a BA degree in Economics from Clark Atlanta University (formerly Clark College). His certifications include:

• Certified Internal Auditor (CIA)
• Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE)
• Certified Government Auditing Professional (CGAP)
• Certified Internal Control Auditor (CICA)

He has been a volunteer seminar instructor for the National Office of the Institute of Internal Auditors for several years.