| | Why Your Department Was Selected
Internal Audit is an independent advisor to Ohio University’s (OHIO) administration and Board of Trustees. We provide professional reviews and recommendations to assist in the effective and efficient achievement of financial and operating objectives across the university.
Our annual audit plan is approved by the Board of Trustees. It begins with a risk assessment to determine where the greatest risks exist. Input is included from the Board of Trustees, university administration, and the Internal Audit staff.
Some of the factors we consider are public and outside influence; personnel and management; technology; the internal control environment; inherent risk; regulatory requirements and materiality. What the Auditor Will Look For OHIO must comply with a variety of rules, statutes, and regulations such as federal and state laws, grant requirements, etc. We will review compliance with those pertinent to your department and with OHIO policies and procedures. These are located on the Web at www.ohiou.edu/policy/index.html.
How You Can Benefit
Internal audit reviews can help you determine whether there are appropriate internal controls over your administrative processes and systems. We can also show you ways to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of your operations. |
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The Audit Process This is a collaborative process between management and Internal Audit. Your involvement is crucial for the success of the audit. You will be informed of the auditor's findings throughout the course of the audit. While we recognize that the audit will involve some of your time, one of our objectives is to avoid disruptions as much as possible. We will be reviewing departmental records, processes and compliance. The auditor is authorized to have unrestricted access to all property, personnel and records relevant to the review. This authority is granted by our Internal Audit charter which is approved by the Board of Trustees. All audits are different but the process generally consists of the following:
Announcement Letter The Internal Audit Director will inform you of the audit through a formal communication.
Entrance Conference The next step is the initial conference where we meet with the area’s manager and any staff members he or she wishes to include. During this meeting, we will discuss the scope and the logistics of conducting the audit. It is important for you to take this opportunity to identify concerns or issues that you would like us to consider.
Preliminary ReviewHere key personnel are interviewed and departmental polices and other information is reviewed to determine your system of internal controls.
FieldworkDuring fieldwork we test that the controls identified in our preliminary work are operating as expected. We generally do this through tracing transactions through your operating processes.
Exit ConferenceAt the conclusion of the audit, we prepare a draft of the audit report which you review before the final report is issued. This report is discussed with your management team during the conference to make certain the recommendations are practical and there are no misunderstandings of facts. We will also discuss the action you plan to take as a result of our recommendations. Final Audit ReportWe will incorporate your responses to each of our recommendations in our final report. We request that you state whether you agree with each of the recommendations and include a timeline for corrective action in your response. Final reports are distributed to the relevant departmental managers and to other administrators as appropriate. In addition, audit reports are made available to the President, Provost, Board of Trustees and the external auditors. Customer SurveyOnce the audit is complete, we will send you customer service surveys which ask you to help us improve our audit process. Please take the time to complete the survey and return it to our office. Follow-up AuditWe will schedule a follow-up audit during the subsequent fiscal year to determine corrective action taken as a result of our prior audit. We look forward to working with you.
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| | Susan Jago revised this file (http://www.ohio.edu/audit/process.cfm) on September 28, 2006. | | | |
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