AUDIT ANALYTICS AUDIT

AUDIT ANALYTICS AND CONTINUOUS AUDIT:LOOKING TOWARD THE FUTURE
be reflected in the weights given to each discriminant variable. The
branches with higher risk weights would likely be audited immediately
while others would be lower in terms of audit priority.
KPIs and/or the variables that comprise them can be changed, and a
communications program can be established to warn and educate
employees about these modifications. In addition, evolving risk profiles
can be linked with the appropriate sets of audit activities and efforts.
Although this may somewhat reduce the efficiency of process
monitoring, it could substantially improve overall process performance
in terms of effectiveness.
CONCLUSIONS
The tradeoffs that created the current audit model have changed with the
advent of business information technology. The costs of information
processing and benefits of error detection and value confirmation have
also evolved. The SAB example allows for the verification of values,
value ranges, and ratios for the entire data population. Benefits include
much stronger confidence relative to the accuracy of values as well as
improvements in overall business operations.
The SAB implementation is an extremely useful CA system that provides
a glimpse of things to come both in corporate business processing
systems as well as the assurance function of the 21st century. Substantial
flexibility can be designed into this methodology, and a new set of
systems, analytics, auditor structures, functions, and competencies will
result.
REFERENCES
Aquino, C.E., E. Miyaki, N. Sigolo, and M. A. Vasarhelyi. "A Balancing Act."
Internal Auditor (April 2013): 51–55.
Alles, M., G. Brennan, A. Kogan, and M. A. Vasarhelyi. "Continuous Monitoring
of Business Process Controls: A Pilot Implementation of a Continuous
Auditing System at Siemens." International Journal of Accounting Information
Systems 7(2) (2006): 137–161.
Canadian Institute of Charted Accountants/American Institute of CPAs.
Continuous Auditing. Research Report. Toronto, Canada: The Canadian Institute
of Chartered Accountants, (1999).
Committee of Sponsoring Organizations Internal Control—Integrated Framework.
(2013). Retrieved November, 2014 from www.coso.org/ic.htm.
Elliott, R. K. (1994). "The Future of Audits." Journal of Accountancy, 178(3), 74–82.
——. "Twenty-First Century Assurance." Auditing, 21(1) (2002): 139–146.
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