Ronald Reagan and the Belgian law dealing with subsidy conditions Ronald Reagan used this old Russian proverb (“Doveryai, no proveryai”) when referring to his relationship with the Russians in the context of the nuclear disarmament in the 1980’s. In essence, the proverb refers to the understanding that any agreement needs to be accompanied by some … Continue reading Trust, but verify
Tag: audit academy
Failing to plan = planning to fail
TL;DR Organisations have no brains. And even humans, with brains, can barely imagine unexpected risks. Making sure we are adequately prepared for potential risks requires a thorough exercise of risk assessment. Each project or program requires such an effort. However, we often neglect that. Not so obvious When I mention the very simple idea that … Continue reading Failing to plan = planning to fail
Why I use a static and a dynamic phase in a risk management approach?
This article is a rewrite of an article I originally wrote about six years ago on a now discontinued blog aptly titled “complexity risk management”. I am reviewing a paper on risk management and felt it relevant to update this post as an additional comment to one of my review points. Whenever I speak about … Continue reading Why I use a static and a dynamic phase in a risk management approach?
Speaking about internal controls
Good governance, risk management and internal controls are essential to any organisation or group of organisations that deems itself mature. It's been a pleasure to speak about their relevance at the FGS Finance top 400 meeting on May 12th. 400 top managers of the FGS had come together for a day long discussion on the … Continue reading Speaking about internal controls
Joint risk assessment and single audit, sitting in a tree …
Loss of added value Internal audit and external audit both present their findings during the same audit committee meeting. It turns out that both structures independently audited the same entity which is part of the wider organisation. A lot of their findings align. They actually turn out to be comparable to some of the issues … Continue reading Joint risk assessment and single audit, sitting in a tree …
The “why” of storytelling
Maria Popova hits one out of the ballpark again with this "animated essay" on the importance of storytelling. Two essential quotes from a great article. In the first one, she describes in a very clear and concise manner the difference and the interrelation between information, knowledge and wisdom: At its base is a piece of … Continue reading The “why” of storytelling
Delightful internal control processes in public sector organisations
Inspired by "Delight is in the details" by Shawn Blanc The nascent public sector problem Here's the problem: a lot of public sector organisations have been forced to shed a lot of what has long been considered their bloated structures. This often takes the form of personnel reductions. Some of these are retirees that do … Continue reading Delightful internal control processes in public sector organisations
Concluding on working papers
So what? I sometimes review a working paper and think by myself: "So what?" Not in a derogatory, dismissive manner, rather in a silent sigh about an unfulfilled expectation. A well written working paper without a good conclusion is like a good short story without a proper ending. It leaves me wanting more but not … Continue reading Concluding on working papers
Clearly written working papers
A quick stroll down memory lane Let me take you on a quick stroll down my memory lane. I was a young auditor, fresh out of university, working on my second or third audit. I was a high potential, as I had already achieved mastery of those skills essential to a young staff assistant: I … Continue reading Clearly written working papers
The relation between audit reports and working papers
Audit reports tend to be overly long I've mentioned before I don't like overly long audit reports. The length usually does not add relevant information for the audit committee and only aims to prove to the audience how much time and effort the internal auditor put in that specific audit. While commendable this is not … Continue reading The relation between audit reports and working papers
Exploring The Black Box 