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Program Agenda:
Day One
The International Business Environment
The key to effective evaluation of controls lies in the understanding of the environment in which the organization conducts business. This section discusses the role internal audit plays in today's world-focused business environment. We are all charged with doing more with less. You will gain a new perspective on the nature and structure of the organization, The Organizational Planning Framework??, the Product / Decision / Information Cycle??, and how the internal audit process fits into the new business model.
Sarbanes-Oxley Compliance
"SOX" is the new universal term in today's business environment. This legislation imposed sweeping reforms on the organization's requirements to attain and maintain an adequate and effective system of internal controls governing financial reporting. In this section, you will gain a total understanding of the requirements for compliance with all of the key sections of this law, including Sections 302, 401, 402, 403, and 404.
The Road Map to Effective Internal Auditing
The audit is a systematic evaluation of the organization's business processes. This section provides you with Nine-Step Framework??, developed by The ARC Consulting Group, Inc., a structured framework, as required by current legislation, to assessing and evaluating internal controls. This Framework is in place in many of today's Fortune?? 100 companies, and gives you a roadmap to performing internal control reviews of any environment.
Day Two
Focusing the Investment in Internal Audit
Conducting Internal Audits for the sake of auditiong adds no value to the organization. This section gives you a sound structure within which the objectives of the internal audit are designed. Using proven techniques, you will learn how to develop risk-based objectives for the internal audit function, and the internal audit project.
Internal Audit and The Internal Controls
Internal controls are one of the most misunderstood concepts in business. This section provides a clear -cut understanding of what controls are, how they operate within the business process, and how they are a profit-oriented tool. You will discuss the control structure, the Self-Correcting Internal Control Model??, what controls do, and where they live.
Documenting and Evaluating Internal Control Systems
This section shows you how to effectively and efficiently document the key aspects of the business process being evaluated, and a structured process within which to evaluate its adequacy and effectiveness. Through the use of a set of pro-forma workpapers, you will learn how to inter-relate the activity performed, the risk that activity presents, the strategic purpose of the activity and the relative strength of the control in place to mitigate the risk.
Day Three
Audit Evidence and Audit Sampling
Audit evidence is the medium used to support the conclusions and recommendations offered in the audit report. In this section, you will learn how to develop compliance and substantive tests, understand the various evidence collection techniques, develop audit workpapers, and how to develop and evaluate attribute samples.
Planning and Conducting Effective Audit Interviews
Communication is the backbone of any endeavor. The ability to talk with people and convey ideas, plans, benefits, and expectations is essential in the audit world. This section will give you the skills you need to communicate on an effective level, and establish a dialogue with the process owners. You will learn how to plan meetings, establish a sharing environment, and gain critical information.
The Audit Report as a Business Plan
The effectiveness of the audit project is measured in the benefits offered to the process owner. The audit report is a business plan. A proposal to management for the enhancement of profits. This section will give you the tools, structure, and concepts essential to present your ideas in a way that gets attention!
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