Audit Department

An audit department is a unit within a company or organization that is responsible for evaluating operational procedures, risk management, control functions, and governance processes. The chief functions of an audit department are to: Determine compliance with policies and procedures Assess the quality of internal controls Evaluate the quality of risk management Evaluate compliance with rules and guidelines established by regulatory agencies (e.g., Securities and Exchange Commission) Assess compliance with accounting standards, whether issued by the Financial Accounting Standards Board or Government Accounting Standards Board or other Review the effectiveness and security of information technology systems Review the strength of the code of ethics and actions to handle violations Provide additional oversight to internal accounting practices that external auditors may not focus on Opine on the quality of work of external auditors Verify physical assets and inventory Investigate employee complaints and alleged fraudulent activities Reporting internally to the audit committee of the Board of Directors and to senior management, the audit department is supposed to be completely objective and receive no influence or interference from the areas of the company or organization it examines. The audit department delivers findings from its periodic reviews to management and the audit committee of the Board of Directors. An audit department is a unit within a company or organization that is responsible for evaluating operational procedures, risk management, control functions, and governance processes.