Our services include complete outsourcing and co-sourcing of the internal audit function, assistance in assembling an audit committee, preparation of audit committee charter, preparation of an internal audit charter, risk identification and management, development and implementation of a three year strategic and annual operational plans, implementation of controls, training and capacity building, special investigations, and environmental and information technology audits. Our internal audit methodology is aligned with the requirements of National Treasury’s guidelines and complies with the requirements of the International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing.

In addition we have certified fraud examiners, and therefore well positioned to give advice on risk management.

Strategic Audit Techniques Incorporated’s Internal Verification function is tailored to meet the specific needs of the organization. It essentially encompasses:

• Assessing whether the internal validation focus and planning process reflect its needs
• Assessing whether there are clear reporting lines and that the structure and status of Internal verification within the organization is appropriate
• Reviewing work methodologies to ensure they comply with relevant standards and current practices

Our review is carried out by way of questionnaires, interviews with the Audit Committee, Management and Internal Audit staff, Observation and Review of the internal audit work, and benchmarking with generic comparative criteria. The results are reviewed and the key observations and recommendations are then presented to the Audit Committee.

On specific request, our review may include benchmarking the function against organizations of similar size and/or type. This essentially entails comparing the performance of the Internal validation function with those of the selected organizations in terms of a range of attributes including quality of service, staff numbers, and cost.

ESTABLISHING AN INTERNAL FUNCTION & QUALITY ASSURANCE

The Issues

A start-up analysis to assess the costs and benefits to be derived by an organization from Internal Audit should address several factors, including the structure of the organization, the degree of autonomy of each operating unit, and your organization’s overall culture and management philosophy. An assessment also needs to be made of the control environment within your organization, and the level of awareness of control issues among both management and employees.

How Strategic Audit Techniques Incorporated can help

We will help plan for and resolve all these issues, drawing on our in-depth knowledge of ‘best practice’ in structuring and organizing effective Internal Audit functions.

We can source Internal Audit professionals who have worked with a wide variety of organizations throughout the private and public sectors by helping them assess the costs and benefits of Internal Audit functions. We have also assisted in the development of Quality Assurance functions, thereby leaving management free to concentrate on the key issues facing their businesses.

Key elements of our approach:

• Determining the Audit Committee’s and management’s requirements and expectations
• Establishing the function’s terms of reference or mission statement
• Agreeing reporting lines
• Deciding how the function should relate to other parts of the business
• Determining the scope of the Quality Assurance work
• Developing a risk profile for the organization
• Developing strategic and annual Quality Assurance plans
• Defining working practices, including the Quality Assurance methodology, risk analysis model, and audit software
• Determining the core skills required in recruiting the right staff for the function
• Establishing accountability and quality control standards