Advanced Audit & Assurance Level 7
Learning outcomes:
- Discuss the nature, purpose and scope of audit and assurance practice
- Discuss, interpret and evaluate the auditor’s position in relation to their professional and ethical framework and their ability to work within this
- Demonstrate a critical awareness of current issues and developments relating to the provision of audit-related and assurance services.
Assignment requirement:
Brief:
Your task is to deliver a presentation in which you make a bid for the audit of a new client company as part of the audit tender process. You will need to create an audit firm for whom you will act as a representative. The bid will be to offer your services for the external audit of a target company of your choosing.
You should select a target company of your choice for which publicly available information is available. The target audience of your presentation will be the audit committee of this firm (represented by the assessing panel).
Further requirements:
- a) Brand and present your audit firm in an appropriately professional manner.
- b) Set out your proposed audit strategy and audit plan.
- The audit strategy should demonstrate a clear understanding of the scope, timing and direction of the engagement.
- The audit plan should cover the areas you consider to be key audit matters, i.e.
- an assessment of materiality
- your assessment of the key financial statement risks within the company, and
- proposed audit procedures in response to these key risk areas
- c) Select ONE example of an ‘audit related or assurance service’ that your firm also provides. Give an overview of how the client might benefit from that proposed service and carefully appraise the extent to which your firm is permitted to provide this additional service, making reference to the auditor’s ethical framework.
Assignment guidelines:
- Please record your video via Panopto and transfer it to the submission folder within Panopto prior to the deadline.
- Your Recording must include a ‘video feed’ of yourself talking into the camera whilst delivering the presentation.
- This is an individual assignment; work produced must be your own
- Your presentation should last 20 minutes (+/- 2 mins).
- Weighting:
- 50% for content; and
- 50% for presentation skills
Grading criteria:
Your presentation will be assessed according to the following criteria:
| Grade | Content Based – 50%:
Knowledge and use of relevant concepts |
Presentation Based – 50%:
Presentation and attention to detail |
| 70% + | In depth; relevant; intelligently used | Skilfully presented; good attention to detail; highly professional |
| 60 – 69% | Very Good; relevant; concepts used very well | Skilfully presented; good attention to detail; professional |
| 50 – 59% | Good / Satisfactory; some errors in how concepts were used | Satisfactorily presented and communicated; some mistakes arising from a lack of attention to detail |
| 40-49%
Marginal Fail |
Unsatisfactory; Misunderstood many of the concepts used | Communication and presentation is of a low standard throughout, as is the attention to detail |
| Fail (<40%) | Poor; Significant failure to understand and/or use relevant concepts | As above, but with some serious concerns about the way this work has been communicated and presented. |
Further guidance on ‘presentation’ based criteria:
- Visual aids: Clear, attractive, relevant – Presentation slides used discerningly and should be:
- Clear
- Appropriate amount of content per slide
- Attractive
- Relevant
- Appropriate in length for use in 20 min presentation
- Audience relationship: Eye contact with everyone in the audience, unobtrusive use of notes, concern for listener, rapport, non-verbal communication (posture, gesture, facial expression)
- Voice and expression: Fluent, audible, conviction, pace, appropriateness of language, enthusiasm
- Timing: Too long/short, division of time
- Interest value: Ability to maintain interest
