I am taking the title of today’s blog post from a comment by Richard Berry on a LinkedIn post by my friend, Richard Chambers. The post is about Richard’s latest video, Episode 3: Are follow-up audits a waste of time?
I believe Richard is asking the wrong question. He should be asking whether there is reasonable assurance that internal audit is getting any recommendations and action items right. Are they the right thing to do for the business, and has management not only agreed (which may be token) but actually embraced the change as being in their best interests?
I realize there is a need to be reassured that all our work has resulted in the change we believe in. But is the answer in a follow-up audit, or in listening to management and working with them instead of preaching to them?
As you would expect, Richard makes several excellent points in the video. In particular, he tells us that the draft update of the Standards provides alternatives to the traditional mandated follow-up: essentially a second audit of the same area that focuses on whether the recommendations (that were agreed to by management) had been completed by the scheduled date. It focuses on outcomes, completion of the action, rather than process.
When I first became a Chief Audit Executive, so many years ago, I would have a separate…
