Planning an Audit From Scratch: A Step-by-Step Guide

The updated IIA Standards demand stronger alignment with organisational risks, requiring teams to audit areas like go-to-market activities, innovation, and advanced technology. Yet many teams default to checklist-style approaches, testing just three or four controls before moving on — an approach that fails both the audit customer and internal audit itself.

This guide outlines planning best practices with perspectives from audit leaders, and includes:

• Key pre-planning considerations for audit projects.
• Planning meeting preparation and execution steps.
• Information about internal and external expertise resources.
• How to leverage COSO’s five components of internal control.
• Audit program review considerations.

Even better: this guide includes a comprehensive six-step planning checklist that covers the full audit planning process. Get your copy today!