Hillary & Hills Certified Public Accountants

Firm’s audit approach, methodology, timing and outputs

Our firm has, over the years, been able to develop a special audit approach that can be applied to any operational setting. We believe that many of our clients benefit from its effectiveness and simplicity.

The key feature of the audit approach is that it provides for an efficient and effective delivery of high-quality service to our clients and prospective clients.

Another relevant feature is that the audit approach has an account balance focus that enables us to quickly identify significant accounts and high-risk areas. This is done by encouraging consideration of business and environment aspects of the client in deciding “what could go wrong” and by focusing attention on the client’s judgement processes separately from the routine and non-routine data processes.

Our audit approach focuses on the following broad phases of an audit:

  • Perform general planning and identify areas of audit significance
    Identification of significant accounts and high-risk areas by considering the environmental aspects of the client. The audit strategies memorandum (ASM) summarises the decisions regarding the overall scope and conduct of the audit. Once familiar with the terms of the engagement, we become better equipped to develop specific audit programs to test compliance.
  • Understand and evaluate the significant sources of information Consideration of the established accounting processes to assess the risks of material misstatement. Our understanding of the significant sources of information is contained in the control analysis form (CAF) and relevant descriptive flow-chart and/or narratives. This risk assessment is the basis we use to determine how, and to what extent, we need to test transactions and balances substantively for the possible presence of errors.
  • Perform risk assessments
    We perform our risk assessments separately for each significant source of information that affects the significant account balances, thereby providing for a better focus to address the differing levels of risk associated with each source of information. Our risk assessments and planned audit procedures that are designed to be responsive to the risk assessments are summarised in the audit approach plan (AAP)
  • Develop and execute the audit approach
    The AAP reflects the general nature, timing and extent of the audit process to be performed and the rationale for selecting them. The audit program converts the audit approach described in the AAP into a comprehensive description of the work to be performed. Our objective is to develop the most efficient and effective balance of procedures. We direct our audit procedures towards the high-risk areas to fit the client circumstances and to avoid doing unnecessary work in low-risk areas. Also the audit approach recognises the importance of engagement economics and staff utilization by providing for flexibility in performing work and for auditor judgement in selecting the nature and extent of our audit procedures.
  • Draw over all audit conclusions
    We draw overall audit conclusions based on the results of our work and document them in the Summary Review Memorandum (SRM). An opinion is formed and a summary of internal control weaknesses identified during our audit is reported and discussed with management.
 

Training

Our firm has gained experience in carrying out training and facilitating seminars and workshops for various organizations.

Accountancy services

Services to our clients in this area include setting up integrated accounting systems, such systems encompass design and implementation.