AUDIT 15 FUN

Are annual audit plans useless? It's a hot topic, so it is AUDIT DUEL debate-worthy! Have you heard of the 3 + 9 or 6 + 6 audit plan approach? That was an idea Abbas Al Lawati, Head of Internal Audit at OQ8, brought up during the duel. Jasim Khawaja, Portfolio Head of Internal Audit at United Arab Bank, argued risk profiles are different between organizations and industries, so audit plans have to...

Is the one-page audit report a myth or reality? Why do auditors struggle to explain the root cause of issues in their audit reports? Why is Tracie doing a 60-days to shorter audit reports webinar? Register for the webinar here: https://tinyurl.com/43shrr9

Audit recommendations are useless. That was Robert Berry's proposition. They waste time and negatively affect relationships with clients. Qadir Abdul's position was that they are not useless. Recommendations are part of the dynamic of change. What do you think?

Do you have to present information in your non-native language? Have you noticed how the tone of your voice sounds different in your native language vs. other languages? You are not alone. Many cultures, unfortunately, still associate accents and "different" tones with the speaker's education and even intelligence. What can you do to sound more confident? Listen to voice expert Nic Redman to find...

Last December I wrote this article with my friend Alex Ruehle on how to pitch Internal Audit to Elon Musk: https://tinyurl.com/ub5dcfjn We received several responses from the Internal Audit community and selected four (LinkedIn poll limit) to participate in a MASKED PITCH competition. What is a MASKED PITCH competition? Well, have you heard of the MASKED SINGER competition? It's similar, but we an...

Are auditors responsible for finding fraud? That was the debate between Alaba Awolaja, Chief Managing Consulting at GOARISC and Oversight, and Emmanuel Johannes, CEO at Kepler Associates. The audit profession has had recent developments in this space lately: - Last December, three audit and risk officers at Wells Fargo faced potential multi-million dollar fines for their role in the fake account s...

Annual Audit Plans are useless. Risks evolve and we need to revamp the plan as needed. How should you respond to your Audit Committee if they still ask for an annual audit plan? Will performing a continuous risk assessment really take more time than once a year? What if you don't hear back from the business when you want their input more often? These were the questions answered by Michele Variale,...

What is better than an AUDIT DUEL? An AUDIT TRUEL! What an instant classic with David Hill, Renato Trisciuzzi, and Tracie Marquardt, as they debated better ways to communicate audit results. What is your strategic communication plan? Can we just use a dynamic dashboard instead of audit reports? Why do we need the audit reports in the first place? Why can’t we let go of these ‘audit traditions’? Th...

Is artificial intelligence overhyped? In this AUDIT DUEL, Alex Ruehle, CEO of zapliance, and Darren Roberts, Technology and Digital Director at SWAP Internal Audit Services, debate the issue. Alex says that we can't leave AI to the data geeks and IT auditors, and must embrace the technology so that we are not left behind, while Darren questions what the "A" in AI really stands for, augmented or ar...

A large retailer in Brazil recently had a $4 billion "accounting inconsistency." What happened? Was it fraud or an accounting error? If it was a fraud, should the auditors be responsible for it? These were the questions answered by Marcelo Almeida, host of the Voice of Integrity podcast. Marcelo's website: https://compliancebsb.com.br/

Feedback episode. How can you engage with the podcast? There are four ways: 1) Take part as a guest, in short 15 minute-interviews (most of the time). 2) Take part in the AUDIT DUEL segment. Do you have a controversial, non-conformist idea to debate and share with the Internal Audit community? I want to hear from you. 3) Take part in the AUDIT FAIL segment. Do you have a failure experience you can...

Why do auditors get blamed so much for fraud and is that fair? What is the best free fraud detection tool? What are some other resources auditors should use? These were some questions answered by Haddon Fields. He is the Special Investigations Trainer with The PsyFIN Group which focuses on training investigators, auditors and other investigative personnel in innovative means of investigation, frau...

Why do auditors need to do a better job of marketing themselves? If you had 20 seconds to pitch Internal Audit to Elon Musk, what would your pitch be? If you were asked to create a short internal audit slogan, what would it be? These were the questions answered by Charles Schrock, publisher of the Audit Explainer website, and retired CAE. Follow him for some of the most fantastical internal audit...

The second episode of 2023, and the second episode of the AUDIT FAIL series. Auditors are taught not to trust. Trust but verify, right? But how about your co-worker? Should you fully trust that person? In this episode, Abbas Al Lawait, Head of Audit at OQ8 in Oman, discusses the risks of 'blind trust'. Don't trust me? Listen in to find out.

The first episode of 2023, and the first episode of the AUDIT FAIL series. Perhaps as important as setting goals for 2023 is to reflect on lessons from the past. Reflection builds resilience and wisdom. Robert shared some of the lessons he learned from a high-conflict situation where an audit client he worked with left a note on his desk. What did the note say? What was Robert's reaction? Listen i...

Do CPEs lead to new skills? If a doctor or a teacher does not keep up with current practices and knowledge, they get instant 'customer' feedback, but does the same happen with internal auditors? That was one of the many questions raised during the duel by Nicola. Jamie proposed that with the right experts, content, and platform, CPEs add value. What do you think?

In this episode, I spoke with David Hill, CEO of SWAP Internal Audit Services, about non-financial audits. David explained why auditors should care more about non-financial audits, some skills required for non-financial auditors, and what audit leaders can do to better equip their teams. What transferable skills can a firefighter, pub landlord, or archaeologist bring to the internal audit professi...

Should auditors provide an opinion on engagements or is there a risk to it? How about ratings? Do they help or hurt? In this AUDIT DUEL, Richard Chambers, former CEO and President of the IIA, and Norman Marks, former Chief Audit Executive, debate the issue. Richard thinks that "internal auditors must exercise caution whenever assigning opinions" and that "audit leaders must be as diplomatic and co...

In this episode, I interviewed Adefisayo Adefarakan, CEO and Managing Partner of Pharakan & Associates to talk about Quality Assessment Reviews (QARs). Adefisayo covered why Internal Auditors should care about QARs, other than because it’s an IIA requirement, and also discussed some of our blind spots and quick-wins he has learned in performing QARs. I hope you enjoy it! His website: https://w...

In this episode, I spoke with Vuyo Gwayi about common Internal Audit misconceptions. Vuyo also shared how she would explain Internal Audit to a group of 4-year-olds, and how she would respond if the CFO of a company asked her to "hire more external auditors to your internal audit team." Listen in to find out what she had to say!

In this episode, I spoke with Tina D’Souza, Internal Audit Manager at RBC. Tina shared resume and career-building tips for internal auditors. It is all about being proactive and taking ownership of your career. As Tina mentioned, be relentless and find your allies . As an African proverb says: “If you want to go fast, go alone, if you want to go far, go together.”

In this episode, I spoke with Amanda “Jo” Erven about Total Quality Auditing. Jo discussed how one of internal audit’s goals should be to do fewer audits.  Identifying errors after the fact? Too late. She also had excellent points on how internal auditors can do work that really adds value and eliminates waste. Listen in to find out more! Her website: https://www.auditconsultingeducation.com/...

In this episode, I spoke with Emmanuel Johannes, Chairman of the Board of the African Federation of Institutes of Internal Auditors, and CEO of Kepler Associates. Emmanuel shared lessons learned when he was not in audit regarding practical findings and a 'moment of truth' in his career. Lastly, Emmanuel defined an effective finding in one word. Listen in to find out what it was! I hope you enjoy i...

In this episode, I spoke with Toby DeRoche, author of the book Only Audit What Matters. Toby shared how internal auditors can start BEING agile vs. only doing agile and also shared the most important step in the Agile Blueprint transformation. Can you guess what it was? Take a listen to find out. I hope you enjoy it.

Are auditors truly independent and objective? Yes? No? Depends? In this AUDIT DUEL, Dr. Rainer Lenz, current CAE of SAF Holland, and Doug Anderson, former CAE of the Dow Chemical Co., debate the issue. Dr. Rainer thinks that “we should de-emphasize the dimensions of independence and objectivity in our professional standards," and Doug believes that “if we lessen independence and objectivity, then...