Research Highlights

Auditing Pandemic Preparedness in the Public Sector

The threat of a new pandemic is ever-present and governments around the world should remain vigilant and well-prepared to respond to the next outbreak. Public sector auditors can play an important role in ensuring that governments remain vigilant by regularly auditing pandemic preparedness.

This article presents an overview of the work that performance auditors have done on this topic in the past and highlights some key considerations for future audits. Specifically, it provides some answers to the following key questions:

• What is pandemic preparedness?
• Why audit pandemic preparedness?
• Have performance auditors reported on pandemic preparedness before?
• Is there guidance available for auditing pandemic preparedness?
• Are there special considerations when auditing pandemic preparedness?

Follow-the-Money Audit Mandates: Closing an Accountability Gap

One of the interesting developments in public sector auditing in the last decades has been the emergence of “follow-the-money” audit mandates to close a gap in the chain of accountability for public funds that are finding their way in a multitude of pockets. Follow-the-money audits have gradually gained traction, as more and more jurisdictions around the world are adopting the mandate in one form or another to perform such audits.

This article provides an overview of what follow-the-money audit mandates entail, why they have become necessary, and how they have been implemented by different audit institutions.

Auditing Organizational Culture in the Public Sector

Until a few years ago, most auditors did not consider auditing organizational culture to be a part of their mandate. But, following a succession of recent corporate scandals, the audit community has come to consider the audit of organizational culture to be a new imperative and has started to develop tools and practices to help performance auditors examine this new focus area.

This article presents an overview of the emerging practice of auditing organizational culture and its relevance for today’s public sector auditors. It answers three main questions:

• What is organizational culture?
• Why is auditing organizational culture important?
• How can organizational culture be audited?

Artificial Intelligence and Auditing: Overview of Potential Impact on Public Sector Auditors

Artificial intelligence (AI) is an intriguing emerging technology. Rapidly adopted by the IT industry, it has found myriad applications in our economy and now appears to be ubiquitous. Its capacity to automate processes and extend the reach of the human mind is already causing profound changes in a number of fields, including auditing.

This article explores how AI is revolutionizing the audit profession by expanding the range, efficiency, and extent of audit evidence collection and analysis. It describes the main applications of AI to auditing and discusses the opportunities and challenges that AI presents for public sector auditors.

Citizen Engagement in the Performance Audit Process

The audit community, in Canada and abroad, has paid much attention in recent years to the opportunities created by increasing the engagement of citizens and civil society organizations in performance audit activities. Over the same period, many audit institutions have adopted new practices to increase the extent and diversity of their communications with citizens.

This article offers a brief overview of recent initiatives in this area and discusses potential benefits, costs, and risks of engaging citizens in the performance audit process.