audit

 

The completion of an audit is important for any organisation and in particular a not for profit, charity or community based organisation that obtains public funds from the government or donations from the general public.

Audits can be relatively expensive especially as often the time and cost to obtain these funds can be considerable.

If you can save costs then that benefits the organisation.

Therefore, if you are a treasurer then there are some steps you can follow that will reduce the cost of the audit.

These include:

  • Set the time for the audit well in advance.  Make sure you and relevant staff are available and able to assist the auditor as needed.
  • Be clear about the expectations of the audit process.  Obtain an audit schedule from the auditor that describes what information they will require.
  • Prepare an audit file or folder that is based on the audit schedule.  For example, often in addition to the basic financial reports the auditor may want to see original invoices, reconciliations, transaction listings or any other documents.  As such, if practical make copies of these documents for the audit file.
  • Make sure that reconciliations have been completed and that closing balances and amounts in the trial balance and finance reports match.  There is nothing more time consuming and therefore costly than trying to work out why a reconciliation is not correct especially when the auditor is being held up.
  • In addition to the basic account reconciliations, ensure they have been completed for the more complex transactions such as for the payroll and Group Certificates, GST and PAYG tax accounts.
  • Auditors will often want to see the minutes from meetings and especially any finance subcommittee meeting minutes.  As such, make sure the minute book is up to date and that all the appropriate Board documents have been signed off.
  • For any grants make sure they have been properly accounted for and the grants have been used in accordance with funding agreements. 

The main benefit of doing this is that it will save time while the audit is being undertaken, minimises distractions of the staff and as a result will reduce the costs.

The more prepared you are the more time and money you will save.

The next post looks at how to increase the value of the Audit.