Overview of Audit Process

Sunday, October 14, 2018 8:36 PM

1. Engagement Planning
(A) Decide whether to accept (or continue) the engagement
(i) Recall the Quality Control Standards regarding client acceptance/continuation
issues.
(B) Perform risk assessment procedures to address the RMM, whether due to error or
fraud.
(C) Evaluate requirements for staffing and supervision.
(D) Prepare the required written audit plan (aka audit program) that specifies the nature,
timing, and extent of auditing procedures for every audit area (which is usually
prepared after control risk has been assessed, so that detection risk can be
appropriately set in each audit area).

2. Internal Control Considerations

(A) Obtain an understanding of internal control for planning purposes as required,
emphasizing the assessment of the risk of material misstatement in individual audit
areas and document the understanding of internal control.

(B) If contemplating reliance on certain identified internal control strengths as a basis for
reducing substantive testing, the auditor must then perform appropriate tests o f
control to determine that those specific controls are operating effectively, that is,
working as intended.

3. Substantive Audit Procedures

(A) Evidence-Gathering Procedures Whose Purpose is to Detect Mat. Misst., if There Are
Any:
(i) Note that the word substantive is derived from substantiate, which means to
verify. These are evidence-gathering procedures designed to verify the financial
statement elements and to detect any material misstatements.
(B) Analytical Procedures
(i) Those evidence-gathering procedures that suggest reasonableness (or
unreasonableness) based upon a comparison to appropriate expectations or
benchmarks, such as prior year's financial statements, comparability to industry
data (including ratios) or other interrelationships involving financial and/or
nonfinancial data.
(C) Tests of Details—Those evidence-gathering procedures consisting of either of two
types:
 unreasonableness) based upon a comparison to appropriate expectations or
benchmarks, such as prior year's financial statements, comparability to industry
data (including ratios) or other interrelationships involving financial and/or
nonfinancial data.
(C) Tests of Details—Those evidence-gathering procedures consisting of either of two
types:
(i) Tests of ending balances—Where the final balance is assessed by testing the
composition of the year-end balance
i. (e.g., testing a sample of individual customers’ account balances that
make up the general ledger accounts receivable control account balance).
(ii) Tests of transactions—Where the final balance is assessed by examining those
debits and credits that caused the balance to change from last year's audited
balance to the current year's balance.

4. Reporting
(A) Conclusions are expressed in writing using standardized language to avoid
miscommunication.