Auditing

What are the types of auditing?

There are many different types of audits, however not all will be appropriate to your business or industry. Types of audits include:

• Payroll audit, used to identify inconsistencies and errors in payroll.
• Training audit, to analyze the effectiveness of your learning and development strategy and assets.
• Operational audits focus on specific objectives and how efficient and effective they are.
• Health and safety audit, to ensure business is conducted in a safe environment for both employees and customers.
• Information system audit, which analyzes the IT infrastructure of an organization.
• Forensic audits, which is used when a business or employee within a business is suspected of illegal activity or fraud.
• Sustainability audit, to determine your organization’s impact on the environment.
• Compliance audit, which ensures whether or not a business complies with requirements issued by the government.
• Financial statement audit, which helps identify inconsistencies or errors involving money that comes in and out of the business.
• Performance audit, which analyzes how a business is performing and identifies ways in which performance can be improved.
• Employee benefit plan audit, which explores the effectiveness of your benefits.
• Single audit, which analyzes how organizations use federal funds.

While many of these audits require specialist training and must be undertaken by experienced external auditors, some audits can be performed internally, such as payroll, training, and operational audits. It’s audits such as these that your business should look to undertake regularly to identify potential issues and improve processes. Auditor training can provide your employees with the skills they need to perform these audits. 

Why auditing training is important for your business

Because there are several types of audits your business can do internally, you should ensure the employees who will be performing these audits receive training. This will ensure the audits are completed to a high standard, are as accurate as possible, and are completed within a reasonable timeframe.

Without training, employees won’t have the relevant skills and knowledge they need to ensure an audit is undertaken properly. Plenty of soft skills are transferable, but shouldn’t be relied on alone. Training will help employees tackle an audit with efficiency and confidence to help wield the best results with actionable insight.

How to audit a training program

Auditing your organization’s training program is one of the most effective audits your business can undertake internally. Doing so doesn’t require the same level of financial understanding as other audits do, but can have a huge impact when done meticulously.

A training program audit allows you to identify what your business does well - and not so well - with your training and development strategy. For example, you can use it to identify whether your business lacks certain technology, whether you’ve allocated the right budget to learning, whether what’s been learned is being properly implemented, and whether or not your program has suitable ROI in its current format.

To audit your training program you should consider the following steps:

• Collate your training courses and materials into one place, such as in a learning management system (LMS).
• Analyze data (if available) to see how employees are engaging with training. If no data is available, ask employees for honest feedback.
• Analyze how training has impacted employees and the work they produce. Compare this to results prior to the training being completed.
• Analyze the impact on revenue and other factors to gauge return on investment.
• Ensure your training aligns with your business’s objectives and values. Training should benefit the overall business as well as the employees receiving the training.

What is the best way for employees to learn auditing?

Employees can learn skills relevant to auditing in a number of ways, which vary in cost, flexibility, and relevancy depending on the needs of your business.

In-person training can be a great way to learn to audit, however, it can be both time-consuming and expensive. This can be difficult to justify for a skill that isn’t regularly used by your employees.

Printed and produced material, like books and video content, can be useful resources. However, with the rules and regulations surrounding auditing changing frequently, these materials can become outdated.

The most flexible way to take auditing training is via eLearning. Online auditing courses are a convenient way for employees to learn a variety of auditing types, for beginners and experienced auditors alike.

The benefits of learning to audit online

Online auditor training is a convenient and simple way to learn. Training can be accessed as and when employees have the time, and on any device, meaning it doesn’t interfere with day-to-day operations. In fact, eLearning is so flexible that it can even be done during the morning commute.

Because training materials have already been produced and can be accessed instantly, it’s also cost-effective and easily scalable, meaning it’s budget-friendly.

The best auditing eLearning courses

There’s a variety of courses available for upskilling and developing knowledge in auditing. Some of the best auditing courses include:

• Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA) - Part 1 of 5
• Introduction To Health & Safety Audits
• A Quick Delegation Audit Exercise
• Interpreting Financial Reports and Accounts
• Conducting an Audit
• Going Green: Sustainability Audit

Train your employees in auditing with Go1

At Go1 we have a range of courses available to access right now to train and develop your employees in audit-related skills. For more information on how Go1 can help support your organization’s training and development program, book a demo with a member of our team today.