Auditing Corporate Governance Course
Corporate Finance, Banking and Auditing

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Auditing Corporate Governance Course
Course Overview:
The goal of the course Auditing Corporate Governance is to enable the participants to appraise and conduct audit of corporate governance practices of organizations. They will also be taught how to measure effectiveness of risk management, business continuity management and sustainability governance.
The course discusses interesting and important parts of corporate governance, such as the interests of the stakeholders, the participation of audit committees, and the examination of some governance designs in itself. Besides those, the course also teaches topics such as how to set the acceptable level of risk, how to carry out a risk management audit, and how to do the governance of joint venture companies.
Practically oriented tools and case studies will enable participants to appraise the risks and performance of the board, audit committees and CSR activities.
This training is targeted at senior auditors and audit managers, as well as assurance providers wishing to acquire an in-depth understanding of governance maturity and the application of effective audit approaches.
Course Objectives:
After completing this training course on Auditing Corporate Governance, you will be able to:
- Audit the risk management process
- Meet stakeholder expectations regarding Corporate Governance (CG)
- Assess the effectiveness of business continuity planning
- Assist the Audit Committee in their Corporate Governance (CG) role
- Assess sustainability and environmental governance
- Audit joint ventures and partnerships
Who Should Attend?
This training course is suitable for a wide range of professionals but will greatly benefit:
- Lead Auditors
- Senior Auditors
- Audit Managers and those about to be appointed to that role
- Assurance providers that need a greater understanding of Corporate Governance
- Managers needing a broader understanding of how to review Governance maturity
Course Outlines:
The Corporate Governance Requirements
The Key Aspects of Corporate Governance
- What is Corporate Governance?
- 6 Core Principles of Governance
- The Governance Warning Signs
- New Corporate Governance Insights Paper will be Shared
- Auditing Corporate Governance – new guidance
- Meeting Stakeholder Requirements
- How the organization is managed on behalf of the stakeholders?
- The Key Parties within Governance
- Audit Committee
- The Board
- Regulators
- Customers
- Suppliers
- A New Governance and Accountability Tool will be Shared
- Developing a Terms of Reference for the Assignment
- A New Audit Program will be Shared
- New Guide on IA Standard 2120
- Corporate Governance Statements
Governance Assessment Techniques
- COSO Advisory Paper – improving organizational performance and Governance
- Governance and Strategy
- Governance Models
- Codes of Governance Requirements
- Financial Reporting Implications
- International vs. National Governance Criteria
- The 3 Lines of Defense
- Who should cover what?
The Business Environment
- The Standards, Processes, and Structures
- The Tone at the Top Regarding the Importance of Internal Control
- Expected Standards of Conduct
- Management Reinforcement of Expectations across the Organization
- The Integrity and Ethical Values of the Organization
- The Governance Oversight Responsibilities
- The Assignment of Authority and Responsibility
- The Process for Attracting, Developing, and Retaining Staff
- Establishment of Performance Measures, Incentives, and Rewards
Analyzing and Assessing the Effectiveness of Governance Controls
- Business Process Analysis Techniques
- Process Objectives and Risk
- The Need to Understand the Business Objectives
- Developing a Program to Reflect these Objectives
- Defining and Measuring Strategic Objectives
- Determining Process Components
- The Link between Objectives and Risk
- The Link between Risks and Controls
- Process and Business System Controls
- The Link between Inputs and Outputs
- Trigger Events
Preparing for the Governance Audit
Scoping a Governance Audit
- Governance Structure
- Reporting Lines
- Strategy and Risk Appetite
- Leadership and Culture
- 3 Lines of Defense Process
- Communication with Regulators
- Escalation
- Delegated Authorities
- Whistleblowing
- Accountabilities
- Data Integrity
- Commitment to Governance
- Policies
The Need for Governance Audit of the Board
- The Key Role of the Board in Governance
- The Need to Assess the Risks at this Level
- Determining the Key Risks and Causes
- The Audit Approach in this Sensitive Area
- How to gather the evidence?
The 15 Key Governance Board Risks being Reviewed
- The actions of the Board are taken without due consideration of the impact on the organization and the stakeholders
- Independent members of the Board are unable to give a robust challenge to the executive / senior management
- The Board does not have sufficient, complete, or timely information on which to base its decisions
- The Board is not monitoring or taking action on the most significant risks to the organization
- Evidence of the decisions made by the Board, including the challenge process, is not transparent
- Actions agreed by the Board are not implemented on a timely basis
- Committees set up by the Board may not fulfill their obligations or there are too many committees such that the oversight is fragmented
- The Board is not effective in covering the risks relating to remote sites or does not have responsibility/oversight for all parts of the organization
- Policies, procedures, and projects are not aligned to the organization’s objectives
- The culture of the organization is not sufficiently defined or does not support the organization in achieving its objectives
- Risks are accepted or taken which are outside of the organization’s risk appetite
- The organization’s risk appetite may conflict with the objectives and values of the organization
- In the event of a significant incident here is an adverse effect on the wider economy or society
- The governance requirements of any regulatory or legislative requirements are not met leading to increased regulatory sanction, censure, or closure of a business
- Communications from the Board are not effective such that parts of the organization may not be operating in line with board expectations and may not support the organization in achieving its objectives
Auditing the Overall Risk Management Process
- Establishing the Position Regarding RM in the Business
- Establish Corporate Targets and Monitor Overall Progress
- Risk Management using ISO 31000 Paper from IIA
- Keeping the Board Apprised of the Most Significant Risks
- Assessment of RM Capabilities
- Strategic Risk Assessment
- Review of Risk Evaluations in each Function
- Ensuring Actions to Treat Exposures Implemented
- Ensuring All Functions Evaluate their Risks Consistently
- Evaluating the Results and Challenging where Necessary
- Identification of Exposures
- Reviewing Risk Registers
- Imperatives for Change – RBA Planning
- Basing Audit Program on Most Significant Risks
- Comparing Perceived vs. Actual Controls
- A Risk Management Evaluation Tool will be provided
Evaluating Risk Appetite
- Evaluating the Risk Appetite Statement
- Defining Risk Limits
- Risk Profiling
- Ensuring the Risk Appetite is defined for each type of risk
- Ensuring Target Risk for Each Event
Reviewing the Key Aspects of Governance
Auditing the Audit Committee Process
- The Audit Committee Role
- Structure and Independence
- Does the Committee Approve (but not direct) internal audit strategy, plan, and performance?
- Do the Committee review summary IA reports and the main issues arising and seek assurance that action has been taken?
- How does the Committee consider the reports of external audits and other external agencies?
- How are the effectiveness of relationships between IA and EA and other bodies reviewed?
- How are the effectiveness of the risk management environment and anti-fraud arrangements assessed?
- The Audit Committee / IA Relationship
- New Paper on How the Audit Committee should Assess IA
- Case Study and Audit Program will be provided
- How does the Committee satisfy itself that assurance statements and the annual statement of accounts properly reflect the risk?
- An Audit Committee Checklist will be shared
- Audit Committee Report Example
Auditing Reputation
- The Rise of Reputation as a Key Risk
- The Increasing Importance of a Positive Image – the need to be admired
- Where does reputation come from?
- How do you measure it?
- The Magnifying Effect on Reputation of Business Failures
- Global Brands
- How to judge reputation?
- The Explosion of Regulation and External Assurance
- Identifying Reputational Risks
- A Checklist for Reviewing Reputational Risk will be provided to all delegates
Corporate Social Responsibility
- The Increasing Importance of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
- New IIA Standard 2110 Re-auditing of Ethics
- What constitutes CSR?
- The Wider Aspects of CSR and the Implications for IA
- Doing Responsible Things Responsibly
- A Paper on Auditing Ethics will be provided
- Redefining IA Role with CSR in Mind
- An Audit Framework
- How to audit CSR? – Key Steps
- Is communication with main stakeholders taken seriously?