February 5, 2014
New Guidance and Tools Available for Audit Committees
CPA Canada, Canadian Public Accountability Board (CPAB), and the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD) are pleased to announce the launch of new publications to help audit committees enhance their oversight of the external auditor.
Developed with input from a group of senior audit committee members in collaboration with the ICD, the joint publications are a result of the recommendations and conclusions of the Enhancing Audit Quality (EAQ) initiative completed by CPAB and CPA Canada in 2013.
The guidance includes an overview of recommended practices for activities that audit committees perform in overseeing the work of the external auditor. Two companion publications offer practical tools to assist audit committees with implementing EAQ recommendations that audit committees conduct an annual assessment of the external auditor and a periodic comprehensive review of an audit firm.
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These tools are currently available in English only. French publications will be available March 2014.
The EAQ report also identified that audit committees would benefit from having increased information about CPAB audit inspection findings. CPAB’s protocol on this topic is expected to be finalized later this spring. In the interim, members are encouraged to use these materials, and continuing education on this initiative will follow.
Please send your feedback on this initiative to comments@icd.ca.
Audit quality indicators (AQIs) have been gaining traction among audit committees and management as a way to measure various aspects of the external audit quantitatively. However, there has been limited information available to help these groups identify and evaluate appropriate AQIs.
Chartered Professional Accountants of Canada (CPA Canada), the Canadian Public Accountability Board (CPAB), the Institute of Corporate Directors (ICD) and a specially formed advisory committee jointly developed the non-authoritative guidance presented in this document to provide much-needed direction in this matter.
Take advantage of this useful step-by-step guide that will help audit committees and management identify relevant AQIs, and understand how they can be used to spark discussions about improving audit quality.