Q&A with Clarissa 2/27/2024

Clarissa Lucas

27 Feb 2024 • 2 min read

I'm often asked a number of questions about Auditing with Agility, and themes definitely tend to emerge with those questions. Here's one I get frequently:

Question: Can you comply with the IIA's Auditing Standards while auditing with agility?

Answer: Yes!

Chapter 9 of Beyond Agile Auditing has a section devoted to answering this question. As the IIA Standards are currently undergoing revision, let's explore this at a higher level so you have a general direction to follow as you proceed with agility. One question in particular asked about reduced documentation requirements and the impact on QAR results. From my personal experiences, I haven't encountered any QAR issues when valuing actionable insights over extensive documentation (one of the practices associated with value-driven auditing).

Operating with agility is not a license to forgo documentation or to fail to meet documentation requirements. Rather it is an opportunity for auditors to evaluate what documentation is truly needed. For example, the standards as of 10/11/2023 require our documentation to be sufficient, reliable, relevant, and useful. They aren't asking for perfection. So when incorporating agility, challenge yourself to document what you absolutely need to and nothing more. It's helpful to ask questions like "what can we NOT document, while still meeting our needs (including adherence with the standards)?"

This is just one example of how to comply with the IIA's standards when auditing with agility. I'd recommend working closely with someone who is familiar with the standards with which you need to adhere, and asking them how you can still adhere while experimenting with agility.

In light of the new Standards released by the IIA, which become effective in 2025, stay tuned for my thoughts on them and how they relate to agility in internal auditing.

Additional content:

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What are people saying about Beyond Agile Auditing? Here's a review by Rich Harris on LinkedIn. Thank you, Rich, for your review of the book!

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John Deere's Journey to Agility: In episode 5 of the CTRL Phreaks podcast, the team from John Deere discusses their digital transformation journey and the impact it had on internal audit. They highlight the importance of agility in internal audit and how it helped prioritize work and enhance relationships with stakeholders. The team also shares the challenges they faced during the transformation and the strategies they used to overcome them. Check out the episode here or wherever you prefer to listen to podcasts.

Don't forget to get your copy of Beyond Agile Auditing: Three Core Components to Revolutionize Your Internal Audit Practices today. It's available in paperback, eBook, and audiobook versions. Order here.

Views or opinions expressed here are solely my own and do not express the views or opinions of my employer