How to break through the dilemma of internal audit

Bear unit: Audit Department of Guangzhou Zhonghaida Satellite Navigation Technology Co., Ltd. With the development of internal audit profession and the occurrence of various economic events, the discussion of internal audit in theoretical circles and the need of government departments and industries for enterprise supervision, the importance of internal audit is becoming more and more obvious, and people pay more and more attention to internal audit. However, in reality, people have different understandings of internal audit, and even think that it is a dispensable department, which makes the survival and development of internal audit very chaotic and painful, and it is difficult to carry out audit work. It has affected the professional development of internal audit and the perfection of internal control of companies in China. I have been engaged in internal audit for many years, and I am also engaged in the work of internal audit supervisor in different enterprises. I am deeply puzzled and difficult about internal audit. One of the dilemmas is that bosses don't pay attention to auditing, and some business owners don't understand what internal auditing is for, just to meet the needs of listing and the requirements of external regulatory authorities. It is considered that the internal audit work is dispensable in the company, making the internal audit department the decoration of the company. If it weren't for meeting external needs, I couldn't wait to remove the audit department immediately. Don't allocate resources to the audit department: nobody matters, no budget is needed, and the work plan is rejected. Such enterprises often focus on business, which is above everything else, and do not pay attention to management and logistics services. Although the audit department belongs to the boss or the leader of the audit committee, due to the lack of attention, the audit department has become a handyman department and a temporary worker, unable to concentrate on the work of occupation and post responsibilities, but doing what the leader needs you to do. In particular, the offending and difficult events are handed over to auditors, and auditors are required to do some formal audit materials to meet external needs. How to break through this dilemma, suggestions: 1) Starting from the requirements of the regulatory authorities, emphasize the seriousness of the lack of substantive internal audit, and emphasize to the company that the regulatory authorities are very concerned about the establishment and work of the internal audit department, which is an important part of internal control and a necessary inspection item for listed companies. Work must be carried out independently and substantively, otherwise it is only a formal response. If it is investigated by the regulatory authorities, it will be very serious. Once disclosed, the value and image of the company will be damaged. 2) Tell the importance of internal audit in theory. Internal audit is not only the requirement of external supervision department, but also the need of internal management. Although external management agencies and listing standards require the establishment of an internal audit department, not every enterprise understands the background and reasons why external regulators require the establishment of an internal audit department, so many enterprises just set up an internal audit department to deal with it. This requires the audit department to explain the importance of internal audit from the perspective of external regulators and investors. A fully functional internal audit department is the performance of enterprise compliance. Norms are also the value of enterprises. The adequacy of internal audit operation is a good and reliable performance of corporate governance, and it is also one of the standards considered by investors. Whether investing or financing, the first consideration is the safety of funds. If the company's internal control is not standardized, perfect, not implemented or even falsified, who will believe that the funds invested in you can be recovered? Let alone the return on investment. Then the result can be imagined. Internally, the internal audit department should publicize the role of internal audit in risk management and internal control. From the daily problems, unreasonable phenomena and control failure, we can prompt the existing risks and potential losses. 3) Learn lessons and win the attention of audit work. The boss doesn't attach importance to auditing, but he hasn't realized the importance of auditing yet. Auditors can change the boss's understanding and win the boss's attention through actions and work. This requires auditors to come up with real facts, not theories. Auditors should start from the blind interests of discovering fraud, finding out the amount of violations, reducing costs and recovering losses. In enterprises that do not pay attention to internal audit, they often do not pay attention to standardized management, and there are defects in management, which is more or less the above phenomenon. These are the efforts of the boss and the heartache of the boss. The more painful the boss is, the more profound the lesson is. Based on this, auditors suggested that the company standardize management and improve the audit status. 4) The auditors declined on the grounds of personal occupation, which made the company pay attention to the auditors recruited by internal audit. If the company requires auditors to mainly engage in non-audit work, the auditors can refuse on the grounds that they are not employees and ask the company to correct them on the grounds that the company violates the labor contract; Especially in listed companies, if the company requires auditors to meet the needs of external supervision only in form, auditors will refuse on the grounds that being found out by external supervision institutions will affect their career development and personal reputation. Dilemma 2: The second boss has an opinion on the audit work, and the auditors are in a dilemma. The "second boss" here generally refers to a person who has a high position in the enterprise and is closely related to the boss and the enterprise. Nowadays, many private enterprises are more family-oriented, and it is common for relatives and friends to work in enterprises; Enterprises have more than one shareholder and more bosses. The boss attaches great importance to internal audit and is very supportive of the audit work and results. In the enterprise, the relatives of the boss or the second boss and other boss friends don't support or even contradict the audit work, don't recognize the audit opinions, and don't improve according to the audit suggestions. Moreover, these people are closely related to the boss. In the company, more than 10 thousand people, one person. If you offend these people, there will inevitably be little shoes and revenge in the future. Suggestions to break through the predicament: 1) The boss should not only give verbal support, but also give written support. In private enterprises, the boss is the most authoritative and final decision-maker. Auditors should use the authority of the boss, and whoever uses the authority of the boss will have authority. It is very important to get the written support of the boss, just like the imperial edict, which is especially important in family enterprises and enterprises with multiple bosses: the audit charter is signed and approved by the boss, which clearly stipulates the responsibilities of auditors and can strengthen the company's correct and consistent understanding of internal audit; The audit plan is signed and approved by the boss to prevent the audited department from thinking that being audited is the will of the audit department; The audit notice is signed and approved by the boss, which makes the audited department have to cooperate and attach importance to the audit; The audit report is signed and approved by the boss, forcing the audit department to seriously consider the audit results and opinions. 2) The boss is not only implicit support, but also explicit support. Many bosses secretly tell auditors to support their work, but do not publicly support the audit work. Maybe it's just superficial support, maybe the boss still doubts the auditor's working ability and quality, or publicly supports the auditor's work out of face and family inconvenience, and makes the auditor act as the so-called "bad guy". Then as an auditor, you should be good at using and making meetings attended by bosses. At the meeting, strive for the boss's support for controversial issues, and the boss will also analyze and elaborate the support. Therefore, getting the boss's support at the public meeting is recognized support and strong support. Auditors should not be afraid to invite the boss to attend important audit report meetings, get the boss's support, exclude other suggestions, and strengthen the effect of audit results. 3) Communicate the "will" of the boss and understand the feelings of the auditee. Sometimes we insist on the working principle, but the other party does not support and cooperate, which affects the audit work and audit effect. We don't interfere with conveying the boss's intention or creating the boss's intention. With the boss's meaning and authority, make full use of your own strength to let the audited unit cooperate and support the audit work. This requires auditors to have high communication and management skills. For example, the boss attaches great importance to this work and asks the audit department to improve its work efficiency. The boss said this year that we should standardize all the work of the company, and asked us to know the work situation from you in a comprehensive and detailed way, and expressed our understanding of the audited party's views on the audit and the audited party's situation, so that the audited party can easily accept your attitude. Instead of saying: the boss asked me to audit you, the boss said that your work here is not standardized, the leaders are not satisfied with your work here, and someone reported you. In this way, the audited department will have feelings of avoidance, disgust, conflict and distrust, and will also find fault with auditors, making it difficult to carry out audit work. Goodwill, respect and leadership's attention are the keys to the soul of the audited party. 4) "Crying" can move people and gain understanding. You may see beggars in the street, and sad crying can arouse everyone's sympathy. People who are not vegetarians can be ruthless and touch people's sympathy. Of course, it doesn't mean that auditors should cry to win the sympathy of the audited entity, but explain the difficulties of our auditors to each other, so that the audited entity can understand and reduce the negative attitude of the audited entity to the audit. We can tell the difficulties and difficulties of auditors: the leaders are very strict with our work, and our leaders have time rules for the project. If we don't fully understand, the leader will review our work. Deduct performance if you can't finish the task. If there is a problem with the quality of audit work, the boss will pursue us, follow the procedures, and so on, asking the audited unit to cooperate and let the audited unit understand, at least not openly oppose and resist. 5) Weighing the interests, the auditee does not cooperate with the audit for the auditee's sake. The auditor should consider the interests of the auditee from the auditee's point of view, let him get out of the perceptual uncooperative behavior, make rational cooperative behavior, regardless of emotions and injuries, explain the disadvantages of uncooperative to the auditee from all aspects, and let him cooperate. I once experienced an example personally, when I started working soon after graduating from school. At that time, I was an auditor and successfully persuaded the audited unit to cooperate with the audit. Now that I think about it, I really have this talent, hehe! Li Yin, the manager of a branch company, failed to achieve the sales target and was dismissed according to the company policy. At that time, the company sent the chief financial officer, the sales director and the manager who was about to take over to audit the branch with me, and asked Li to handle the handover work. The sales director asked Li to cooperate with his authority. The chief financial officer is a woman who was hired after retirement. No one answered. I guess she's afraid of offending people. I didn't expect Li to be in such a good mood. He felt that he had made efforts to open the market. After several months, the class will be dismissed if the sales are not up to standard. He thinks that the sales director has a problem with himself and thinks that the sales director is taking revenge on himself. What makes people even more angry is to see that all the managers have taken over. Not cooperating with the audit, not handing over, and even all the employees of the branch jointly went to the headquarters to ask for the preservation of luggage, and the audit handover came to a standstill. I don't think this stalemate is the way, so I chatted with Li as a friend and colleague, and analyzed that it was not good for him to cooperate with his work, so I asked him to seriously consider it. I advise you from the following aspects: a, you are also an old employee, and it is not easy to break the market hard. The company can see it, but the boss can't see it. Old employees should obey the arrangement of the company; B, your parents and wife both work in the company, and you will have a bad influence on them; C, the company has a company policy, which stipulates that if you don't achieve your goal, you have to be a servant. This is not who is in charge, saying that servants are servants, and others will get off the bus if they don't reach their goals; D, you have contributed to the company, and the boss knows it. Even if you do, the company may make other arrangements. If you go on like this, you will hinder your future. The next day, Li took us to the customer to check the accounts receivable one by one and hand over the bills smoothly. I didn't expect the boss of the company to call the sales director and say that you are too stormy, so you should be warm and drizzling. Since then, the sales director has had a different view of me, but he once turned a blind eye to me and dismissed me. After all, he is the director and I am an employee. 6) Only a high pattern can win high support. This requires not only high professional ability, management ability and communication ability, but also strong professionalism, management theory and pattern. Every time I do an audit in the company, I will emphasize at the important meeting of the company at the first time: no matter who, including the boss, if there are shortcomings and imperfections, I will stick to professional ethics and principles and point them out. Even if the boss fires me now. The middle and high-level people present were surprised: how dare you say such a thing at the meeting? Isn't this a challenge to the boss and a loss of his prestige? I didn't expect the boss to be a smart man and expressed support for the audit at the meeting. Imagine, if you don't agree with yourself, can you think of others supporting the audit? Otherwise, why should he audit the accounts? After each audit report, the boss will first admit that he is responsible for poor management. Seeing that the boss has admitted his mistake, other audited units naturally dare not refute it. 7) From easy to difficult, step by step, some second bosses are positive about the audit on the surface, but they are unwilling at heart. According to the present situation of the enterprise, after weighing, the boss doesn't want to make a big fight on the audit at this stage, for fear of affecting the company's stability and business development. Then when making the annual audit work plan, auditors can first consider the unimportant parts that the second boss is in charge of. The unimportant part here refers to the part outside the main interests, responsibilities and influence of the second boss. Even if the problem is found, it will not have a great impact on it. In the audit of specific projects, we can first audit the procedures and point out the shortcomings. Wait until the time is ripe to conduct an in-depth substantive audit. 8) Pay attention to the needs and get them involved. When making the annual audit work plan, auditors should seek the opinions of the second boss, pay attention to the needs of the second boss and pay attention to the concerns of the second boss. Only the participation of the second boss and its audit needs will naturally support the audit work. In the audit of specific projects, we should communicate with the second boss before and during the implementation of the audit and listen to their audit needs and concerns. Dilemma 3: Middle-level leaders don't cooperate and work efficiency is discounted. For enterprises with high positioning of audit department, we can refer to the suggestions of 2 to break through the audit dilemma. Auditors with relatively low positioning and level in the audit department are easily "hurt" by the middle-level leaders of the audited units. Because the audited department is at the same level or even higher than the audit department, it does not buy the account of the audit department, and always shirks and handles the audit for various reasons, especially for low-level auditors. Rely on the old and sell the old, feel that low-level auditors are not worthy to communicate with themselves, and think that low-level auditors can't live. Even seized the auditor's "handle" to complain about the auditor. Suggestions for breaking through the predicament: 1) Take the second best and start with middle-level subordinates. If the auditor is lower than the person in charge of the audited department, then the person in charge of the audited department is required to designate a subordinate as the audit contact according to the requirements of the audit notice, and communicate with the contact person to obtain information. When obtaining information, auditors should take the initiative to fill in the borrowing procedures to prevent the audited entity from framing the auditors for losing information. It is best to communicate with the person in charge of the audited department in writing or by email to show respect and prudence, and also to leave evidence of the audit work. Prevent the auditee from shirking the responsibility of not cooperating with the audit on the grounds of ignorance. 2) Request superior support to push the auditee. Some audited units always delay and resist the audit work on the grounds of lack of time. At this time, it is necessary to request the support of the person in charge of the audit department or the leader in charge of the audit, so that the superior can communicate the audit matters with the audited unit. 3) Agree to respect each other in advance. Due to the low level of audit department or auditor, sometimes the audited unit has a big shelf. At this time, when auditing, auditors should reach an agreement with each other in advance, respect each other's working hours, be modest, and praise and respect each other's advantages in communication. Let them change their attitude and cooperate with your work with respect and satisfaction. 4) Major discoveries, turning passivity into initiative When auditors make major discoveries in the audit, they should inform their superiors and even the boss in time to get instructions from the boss. The boss attaches great importance to major discoveries and generally supports in-depth audits. With the great discovery and the support of the boss, we can reverse the passive writing of audit and change from passive to active. Dilemma 4: Employees make trouble without reason, and auditors can't bear it. In the audit work, sometimes you will meet employees or workers with low quality. Some of them rely on the company background, some have a bad temper, some have broken pots and broken falls, and some have drunk too much and got angry. They will strongly resist the audit work, abuse the auditors and even beat them. This makes auditors feel wronged and angry. Suggestions for breaking through the predicament: 1) Keep calm and leave the parties temporarily. At this point, the parties are in an irrational state. Auditors should keep calm, don't argue with them, let alone scold each other, let alone hit people. Keeping calm is a platform for communication, and it is also the embodiment of the quality and professionalism that auditors should have. Quarrel can only escalate the conflict, and auditors should temporarily leave the scene of the parties for safety reasons. Therefore, a very important psychological trait of auditors is forbearance. China's Chinese characters are vivid, "one knife can get through the heart". Here, we really want to admire China's culture for thousands of years and the way of life summed up by the ancients-forbearance. 2) Report to the superior and see the handling situation. In this case, it is beyond the auditor's control. Auditors can report the attitude and behavior of the audited entity to their superiors, and the company will deal with the audited entity. If the company does not handle it, the attitude of the auditee may be even more arrogant. It is suggested to suspend the audit work at this time. The evaluation decision does not affect the audit work and personnel safety before the follow-up audit work.