Internal Audit

Purpose

To provide independent, objective assurance and consulting services designed to add value and improve College operations. Internal Audit helps the College accomplish its objectives by:

• Examining and evaluating, in an independent and objective manner, the College’s internal control system, management of risks, and governance processes, providing recommendations for improvement, thus providing assurance and assistance to administrators and staff in the achievement of the College’s mission, vision, objectives, outcomes and goals.
• Bringing a systematic, disciplined approach to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of risk management, control, and governance processes.
• Providing independent and objective assessments and appraisals of activities working to promote a proactive internal controls and risk management environment.

Charter of Internal Audit Department

Internal Audit Policies and Procedures

Why me?

The Internal Audit Office does not target individuals or departments for audit. We establish an annual audit plan that is based on a number of risk factors, the primary ones being:

Dollar value and liquidity of assets (the larger a department’s monetary activities, the more likely the department will be audited).

The potential impact on the College if something goes wrong (will it affect just a department or the College on a wider scale). Organizational change and economic transition within a department (startup or change generally creates added risks).

Regulatory compliance and public scrutiny (are there special regulations for a department and does violation of those regulations carry substantial penalties).

Prior audit history (the longer it has been since the last audit, the higher the likelihood an audit will be scheduled).

Some departments or processes, by the risk they present, will always get more audit attention, while others because of regulatory or legislative action will be audited periodically. If the College experiences problems in a given department or process, it may prompt additional audits until it becomes apparent that serious exposure no longer exists.

Did we do something wrong?

No, audits are rarely scheduled because someone did something wrong, unless it involves possible misconduct or fraud. The initiation of an audit because of a single event is an exception and resources are not usually redirected to deal with isolated events. Only if a single event turns into a series of problems will an activity rise to the top of the audit schedule. What “doing something wrong” may trigger is an administrative request for a consulting engagement to determine whether a process is functioning as intended. We view these assignments as proactive, intended to assist efforts to improve existing processes. An engagement of this nature may be as simple as a phone call or brief meeting, or as complex as the assignment of staff to a formal project spanning several months.