In today's fast-paced world, creating an effective audit procedure is critical for companies to remain competitive and adhere to evolving regulations.
To ensure a successful process and transition into compliance, Thomson Reuters specified a step-by-step guide for businesses and finance leaders:
- Establish an audit engagement protocol — To ensure the audit unfolds efficiently and precisely, organisations must work on a clear-cut plan with objectives, duties for every stakeholder, scope of the review, and timelines. Through this, companies can be certain their audits are completed accurately and quickly.
- Integrate cloud-based systems — Utilising cloud technology can provide real-time insights during audits and help organisations identify any discrepancies or areas needing improvement in a timely manner. These digital solutions can also supply greater adaptability in allocating resources that enables firms to adjust to changes in regulations or client requirements swiftly.
- Leverage technologies — Organisations must take advantage of innovative tools such as blockchain and artificial intelligence to unearth irregularities faster than human reviewers could detect them (and possibly before they become expensive compliance problems). By embracing these technologies now, businesses can stay ahead of their industry by staying up-to-date with changing rules while ensuring successful audits every time.
- Engage internal personnel — Developing an atmosphere of compliance across all stakeholders is integral for a successful audit engagement process. Businesses must frequently interact with internal employees throughout the review in order for everyone to remain informed about any amendments in regulations or new developments related to the project at hand; furthermore, setting up communication networks between all parties involved will assist in keeping everyone on track during each stage of the undertaking.
- Construct reporting metrics — Organisations need to develop relevant reporting metrics that highlight issues identified during audits as well as give feedback on their performance relative to key performance indicators discussed at the beginning of the project. These reports must be tailoured specifically for each company’s goals and needs so that maximum efficiency is achieved when evaluating agent performance or customer satisfaction ratings related to behaviors being monitored during calls or emails interactions with customers.
- Follow-up and adjust —Once the initial audit has been completed, businesses should take the time to follow and adjust procedures that may need to be changed due to the results. This is critical to ensure that the results of the audit are not only achieved but also engaging with internal personnel. Additionally, KPIs should be monitored on an ongoing basis to ensure that goals remain reasonable with compliance.
