Conducting the Operational Audit on a "Value-for-Money" Basis

Introduction

This course instructs participants in how to develop and carry out a plan for conducting risk and measurement based performance/VFM audits. Proper planning and fieldwork are critical to achieving successful audit outcomes. Accordingly, this course assists participants by providing insight on how to identify key performance/VFM issues, develop measurement-based audit objectives, align the objectives to appropriate methodologies, and analyze the evidence to support audit findings. Finally, the course provides best practice suggestions on writing performance/VFM reports and developing recommendations.

Objectives

Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:

• Distinguish performance/VFM audits from financial audits;
• Identify the types of performance/VFM audits based on performance expectations or risks within
• government programs;
• Understand the role of auditing in public sector governance;
• Understand and consider the steps in planning a performance/VFM audit;
• Understand how programs are selected for audit and how performance/VFM audit objectives are
• developed based on identified risks/vulnerabilities;
• Describe different data collection and analysis methodologies, and their applicability to specific objectives;
• Review performance auditing approaches for economy, efficiency and effectiveness;
• Review audit program development and components of audit fieldwork;
• Identify elements of audit findings including cause, condition, criteria and effect;
• Review evidence in terms or quality, quantity, and types;
• Review audit reports and report writing; and
• Review best practice suggestions for developing audit recommendations.

Training Methodology

This is an interactive course. There will be open question and answer sessions, regular group exercises and activities, videos, case studies, and presentations on best practices. Participants will have the opportunity to share with the facilitator and other participants on what works well and not so well for them, as well as work on issues from their own organizations. The online course is conducted online using MS-Teams/ClickMeeting.

Who Should Attend?

• Heads of audit, audit managers and senior auditors
• Project managers and project programme managers
• Auditors responsible for undertaking project audit assignments
• Other professionals who need to understand the risks impacting complex projects
• Managers and directors of business functions – to aid their knowledge of a risk based audit approach to projects

Course Outline

Concept and Purpose of Performance/VFM Audits

• Overview of performance auditing process
• Characteristics of performance audits
• Role of auditing in public sector governance
• Differences from financial audits
• Selected standards for performance/VFM audits
• Sources of audit guidelines
• Interdisciplinary knowledge requirements for government auditing
• Exercise – Challenges to performance auditing

 Audit Plans

• Performance auditing planning process
• Audit selection
• Audit ability
• Estimating audit budgets
• Selection and prioritization under constraints
• Case study – Fleet Services Branch

 Planning for Specific Audit Projects

• Audit standards
• Mapping programs
• Overview of Input-Process-Output-Outcome approach
• Definition of program
• Program design and components
• Government service delivery model
• Steps in mapping a program
• Exercise: Mapping a program within Fleet Services Branch

 Establishing Audit Objectives and Scope

• Defining/refining the audit objective
• Develop audit scope
• Government performance expectations model
• Performance measurement
• Performance measures
• Well-developed audit objectives
• Exercise – Developing audit objectives for Fleet Services Branch

 Audit Methodology Using a Measurement-Based Approach

• How to conduct a measurement-based performance audit
• Program definition and performance expectations
• Government expectations model
• Analyzing program performance through performance measures
• Sources of performance criteria
• Exercise: Performance criteria within Fleet Services Branch

 Developing Audit Methodology

• Steps required to develop audit methodology
• Qualitative methods of gathering evidence
• Quantitative methods of gathering evidence
• Methodology considerations
• Exercise: Match objectives to methodologies

 Selected Performance Audit Approaches

• Auditing input economy
• Auditing process efficiency
• Auditing outcome effectiveness

Audit Program and Fieldwork

• Developing the audit program
• Exercise: Capital equipment replacement program of Fleet Services Branch
• Conducting the fieldwork
• Exercise: Audit fieldwork for the Fleet Services Branch Audit

 Audit Findings and Evidence

• Elements of audit findings
• Audit guidelines
• Audit criteria
• Types of findings
• Fieldwork standards
• Types of evidence
• Hierarchy of evidence
• Exercise: Distinguish elements of a finding from case studies; identify different types of evidence

 Audit Reporting and Best Practices

• Reports and report writing
• Presenting audit findings
• Describing key relationships
• Exercises: Various exercises to encourage selected best practice writing/editing practices
• Report outline development
• Developing conclusions
• Developing recommendations
• Exercise: Write a high impact recommendation
• Follow-up and Follow-through