How to Assess Risks and Evaluate Controls

Every organization, for-profit or not-for-profit, has a primary objective and a risk that it won't be met. Management must assess those risks and put controls in place, and internal audit must judge whether the controls are adequate and effective.

This 90-minute risk assessment and internal controls training explains how auditors meet that responsibility under Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) standards. It starts with a risk-based annual audit plan that identifies and ranks risk areas, then moves to a more detailed review of each area's risks and controls.

A case study follows the process from beginning to end, and exercises help reinforce what you learn.

• Define key risk and control terms and explain how risks and controls relate
• Identify broad risk categories, types of controls and their limitations
• Distinguish management's and internal audit's responsibilities
• Develop a risk-based annual audit plan
• Plan an audit through preliminary survey, objectives and scope
• Conduct fieldwork and communicate results in line with IIA standards

Risk and control basics

• Risk and control definitions
• The relationship between risks and controls
• The control loop
• Broad risk categories
• Types of controls
• Control limitations
• Management's responsibility for risks and controls
• Internal audit's role in risks and controls

The audit process

• Developing a risk-based annual audit plan
• Conducting a preliminary survey
• Setting audit objectives
• Setting audit scope
• Conducting fieldwork
• Communicating results
• Related IIA standards

Practice

• Exercises to strengthen knowledge
• Case study

Assessing risks and evaluating controls is a core part of every auditor's job. This class gives you the basics, including the separate responsibilities of management and internal audit, and practical resources to support your evaluations.

It suits chief audit executives, audit directors, managers and staff, government and compliance auditors, internal control specialists, public accountants, and accounting, business and quality control analysts.

• Chief Audit Executives
• Audit Directors
• Audit Supervisors
• Audit Managers
• Staff Auditors
• Government Auditors
• Compliance Auditors
• Internal Control Specialists
• Public Accountants
• Accounting Analysts
• Business Analysts
• Quality Control Specialists

Jonnie Keith has been in auditing for over 50 years. He retired in 2012 as the Assistant General Manager (AGM) of Internal Audit with the Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority (MARTA) in Atlanta, Ga. He served in that capacity for over 10 years and was responsible for administering the overall audit activities. In this position, he was also responsible for the review and approval of all internal audit correspondence including audit reports, executive summaries, internal and external correspondence, etc.

Prior to that, he worked at MARTA as the Operational Audit Manager and Senior Contract Compliance Auditor. He also worked at Norfolk Southern Railway (formerly Southern Railway) as a senior operational auditor and started his career at the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta as a bank examiner.

Jonnie Keith received a BA degree in Economics from Clark Atlanta University (formerly Clark College). His certifications include:

• Certified Internal Auditor (CIA)
• Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE)
• Certified Government Auditing Professional (CGAP)
• Certified Internal Control Auditor (CICA)

He has been a volunteer seminar instructor for the National Office of the Institute of Internal Auditors for several years.