Steal These Tips!Audit Techniques for

AccountantsAmanda L. Perkins, CPA

Senior AuditorUniversity of Arizona

Senior Auditor in Internal Audit at the University of Arizona

Previously with the Arizona Office of the Auditor General

Recent Frauds◦ Fire District◦ High School◦ Children’s Hospital

What could have been done?

Audit Techniques◦ Evaluating

Procedures◦ Using Data◦ Seeking Outside

Sources

Agenda

Understand 3 audit techniques and how they could be applied to non-audit duties.

Identify controls that may have prevented or detected 3 real frauds.

Goals of the session

Springfield, IllinoisRecent fraud hub?

Chatham Fire Protection District

Southeast High School

St. John’s Children’s Hospital

Audit Techniques

Explain to an outsider◦ Use real words◦ Training new employees

What happens before and after my piece of this process?

If I were going to steal……

Evaluating Procedures

Is there someone we couldn’t do without? Am I getting source documents or only data

prepared by someone else based on source documents?

Might identify a more efficient way to do something or a stronger control that could be implemented

Evaluating Procedures

What data is available in what you already do?

How accessible is your data? Maybe you get a report on paper that could

come as a text or Excel file instead.

Using Data

The simple “Sort” tool in Excel Microsoft Access Improving your Excel and Access skills:

◦ Employer offerings◦ YouTube and online forums

Using Data

What do I expect of this data and what is unexpected?

Common vendors Coding errors in repeat payments Overtime variances Unusual system access profiles

Using Data

Is there data I wish I had? May identify another way to improve your

procedures.

Using Data

Oh, the magic of the Internet Vendors

◦ Arizona Corporation Commission◦ 990 filings from non-profits◦ Company websites◦ Maps of addresses

Peer websites◦ Is our policy similar to another organizations?◦ Compliance with state or federal regulations◦ Human resources procedures

Outside Sources

Could you have prevented or detected the fraud?

Chatham Fire Protection District

Source documents vs. employee-prepared reports

Using Data◦ Common vendors◦ Object codes or other unexpected transactions

Evaluating procedures- may have relied too much on one person

Chatham Fire District

Southeast High School

Source documents Evaluating procedures

◦ Relying too much on one person◦ Student clubs not aware of good controls on their

side Peer websites

◦ Were the existing background checks enough?

Southeast High School

St. John’s Children’s Hospital

No court records yet But we can guess what might have

happened

St. John’s Children’s Hospital

Questions?

Amanda Perkins alperkin@email.arizona.edu

Thank you!