Internship Report

On
Audit procedures of a Chartered
Accountant
FirmA Study on Shekhar Chandra & Co.
Submitted in partial
fulfilment of
Master of business
administration (Finance)
Year 2015-2017

SUBMITTED TO
SUBMITTED BY

Prof. P.MADAN
KUKRETI

SONALI

(HEAD & DEAN)

(BF) 3rd sem

MBA

FMS (GKV)
LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL

31 August, 2016
Pankaj madan
Head & dean
Faculty of Management Studies
Gurukul Kangari University
Subject: Submission of Internship Report
Dear Sir,
With due respect and great pleasure I am submitting my internship report
on Audit
Procedures followed by Shekhar chandra & Co, Chartered
Accountants. One and half month internship program was a great
experience to me as it provided me with wide exposure to the professional
environment. The title of my report is Audit Procedures of a
accountant Firm A Study on shrkhar Chandra & co. . My main
focus of the study is
to find out the external audit procedure which is followed by . The report is

prepared under your supervision and respectfully acknowledges your

guidance and help. I
will be glad to clarify any queries regarding this report.
I believe the knowledge and experience that I have gathered during my
internship period
will immensely help me in professional life.
I, therefore, hope your kind humane and consideration.
Sincerely yours.
Sonali kukreti
MBA (BF)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This is a matter of great pleasure as well as great privilege and

pride for me to present this report. This project become
possible only due to full cooperation and sincerity provided by
the company and institute as well. I am indebted and thankful
to the management of SHEKHAR CHANDRA & CO. for
providing me an opportunity to work in this esteemed and
flourished organization

Research Report is a combine effort including this one also, so i

would like to thanks to all who have helped me in completion of
this report purposeful

Further I would like to thanks my faculty, my guide for their

valuable support and advise which helped me a lot in
completing this project purposeful.

PANKAJ RANA

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
This report is titled Audit Procedures of a Chartered Accountant
Firm A Study on
Shekhar Chandra & co. is an outcome of MBA internship program.
This report contains the details of the audit practice followed by firm.I
have divided this report into seven sections. First section contains the
background of thestudy. Section two will depict a clean picture of a firm. In
4

section three I have organized and discussed all my knowledge that I have
gathered about auditing during my studies at the Department of
management , Gurukul kangari university. Section four will provide the
details of the overall audit procedures of Shekhar Chandra & Co.. In
section five, I have made a comparison between the Audit Procedures
followed by FIRM and Emile Woolfs Chronological Sequences of Audit
Procedures. Section six contains the problems that I have identified to
carry out audit engagement in FIRM and some recommendations to
minimize such problems. In section seven, I have drawn an overall
conclusion.

TABLE OF CONTENTS
Title Page No
Table of Contents
5

Title page

Letter of Transmittal
2 Acknowledgement
3
Executive Summary
4

SECTION - 1: STUDY BACKGROUND

1-04

1.1 Introduction

09

1.2 Origin of the Report

10

1.3 Objectives of the Study

10

1.4 Scope of Study

10

1.5 Methodology of Collection of Information

11

1.6 Limitations of the Study

11

SECTION - 2: ORGANIZATIONS PROFILE

2.1 Profile of the Firm

14

2.2 Background

14

2.7 Achievements of Firm

15

2.9 Logistic Support

15

2.10 Area of Services

15

2.11 Analysis of Total Practice Turnover

16

SECTION -3 : LITERATURE REVIEW

3.1 Definition Of Auditing

18

3.2 Distinction Between Auditing And Accounting

20

3.3 Types Of Audit

21

3.4 FIRM Generally Accepted Auditing Standards

25

3.5 Professional Conduct

27

3.5.1 AICPA Principles Of Professional Conduct

27

3.6 Audit Risks

29

3.7 Audit Evidence

30

SECTION -4 : AUDIT PROCEDURES FOLLOWED BY FIRM

4.1 Engagement Procedures

32

4.2 Audit Procedures Followed By FIRM

34

4.2.1 Identify Firms Overall Goals

36

4.2.2 Gather & Evaluate Initial Information

39

4.2.3 Assess General Risks

42

4.2.4 Account-Specific Risk Analysis

44

4.2.4.1 At The Account Balance And Class Of Transaction

45

4.2.4.2 Audit Risks

46

4.2.4.3 Consideration of Fraud and Error

47

4.2.4.4 Inquiries of Management

48

4.2.4.5 Assessment of Inherent Risk and Control Risk

48

4.2.4.6 Assessment of Detection Risk

48
4.2.4.7 Documentation

48

4.2.4.8 Management Representations

49

4.2.4.9 Communication

49

4.2.5 Development Of Effective And Effi cient Audit Plan/ Work Program

49

4.2.6 Conduct Audit Testing

50

4.2.6.1 Test Of Controls

51

4.2.6.2 Substantive Tests

52

4.2.7 Evaluate And Communicate Audit Results

55

4.2.7.1 External Report/ Auditors Report:

55

4.2.7.2 Internal Report/ Management Letter

55

SECTION-5 COMPARISION OF SHEKHAR FIRM PROCEDURE

WITH CHRONOLOGICAL SEQUENCES
5.1 Comparison Between Baker Tilly International Audit Procedure (That Is
Followed By ACNABIN) And Chronological Sequences Of An Audit
Engagement Described By Emile Woolf:

64
9

5.2 Similarities

65

5.3 Differences

68

SECTION -6 : FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATION

SECTION 7 : CONCLUSION
APPENDICES
Appendix 1

76

Appendix 2

77

Appendix 3

79

Appendix 4

81

Appendix 5

82

BIBLIOGRAPHY

83

SECTION - 1
STUDY BACKGROUND
10

INTRODUCTION:
In todays world academic education is not adequate to enable a student
to compete with
confidence and reach his/her goal without having experience with the
outside world. In
order to have an idea and gain experiences, we, the students of Faculty of
Business

11

&Economics, Daffodil International University have to undertake two

month internship
program at any organization.
As a part of my MBA Program, the two month internship program gave me
the
opportunity to have a practical knowledge on auditing procedure. The
assignment was
how a chartered accountancy firm performs an audit and also to gain a
knowledge and
practical experience on how audit work is performed in corporations,
companies and nonprofit making organizations.
To face much more complex and challenging business world in the
challenging business
areas, practical knowledge is essential to expand our theoretical base. To
gather this
practical knowledge, we were forwarded different organization after
completing MBA
Program. As I have an intention to become a chartered accountant, I was
forwarded to
Shekhar & Chandra Co, a prominent chartered accountancy firm in
Rishikesh.
This study gave me an opportunity to observe and perform real world
knowledge about
the audit procedure, which is followed by the chartered accountancy firm.
In the
12

internship period I could relate the theoretical knowledge of auditing to

practical
exposure
.

1.2 Origin of the Report:

The internship program is mandatory requirement for the student who are
graduating
from the MBA program under the faculty of Business & Economics of
Gurukul Kangari University.
In the internship program I was engaged in a host firm named Shekhar
Chandra & CO. for one and half month period. I have learned how an
audit is conducted. I also learned about the audit procedures of Shekhar
Chandra firm and how the engagement is done in case of an annual audit.
As a result I have decided to write a report about the audit procedures of
Shekhar Chandra &
CO. from practical knowledge that I have observed.

1.1 OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY:

To have an overall idea about the audit procedures of Shekhar Chandra &
CO.

13

To gain practical knowledge and experience on how Shekhar Chandra &

CO
performs an audit and how audit work is performed in corporations,
companies
and non-profit making organizations.
To identify about how to accumulate and process evidences to make an
audit
report.

1.2 SCOPE OF STUDY:

I have been assigned in shekha Chandra firm that gave me tremendous
scope to familiarize with the audit procedure of the organization. Major
parts of scope are point out below:
a) Background of the host organization and also their position.
b) Audit procedure, which is followed by the organization for performing
any audit.
c) Nature and importance of it has depicted in this study.
d) Audit methodology of the firm, which is followed by the organization for
performing any audit.
e) Audit administration of the firm, which is followed by the organization
for
performing any audit.

14

1.3 METHODOLOGY OF COLLECTION OF

INFORMATION

In order to prepare the assigned project paper I have collected necessary

information from
two types of source as follows:
1) Primary sources information.
2) Secondary sources information.

Primary sources information

1. I have collected primary information by working with different audit
team.
2. Discussing with engagement partner, audit manager, audit staff and
articled
Student
.Secondary

sources information

1. I have also collected secondary information like annual audit report,

Management audit report, accounting system & audit working papers.
2. The information was obtained from various corresponding files of the
firm.

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY:

15

The study is conducted with an objective to make a thorough study of

external audit
procedure. I have availed many facilities and faced some obstacles during
my study.
These obstacles may be termed as limitation of the study. These
limitations are as
follows:
a) Scheduled time span was not sufficient to cover all information..
b) To some extend the exact audit procedure is not followed due to time
and other
constrains.
c) As the internship was the first practical experience, it was not possible
for me
to know all and everything of audit procedure.

16

SECTION 2
ORGANIZATIONS
PROFILE

17

Firms Profile
2.1 PROFILE OF THE FIRM
Name of the Audit Firm : Shekhar Chandra & CO.
Chartered Accountants
Date of Establishment : 15th February, 1992
Address of the firm,
Adarsh Market, Tilak Road
Rishikesh 249201, Uttarakhand
Phone: 91-135-2433513
Fax #: 91-135-2435513
E-Mail: sccrishikesh@gmail.com
Web site: www.cashekhar.com

2.2 BACKGROUND:

Founded in 1992, SHEKHAR CHANDRA & CO. started with two partners. The name are
Chandra shekhar Sharma and abhinav chaurashiya

18

At present the partnership comprises four founder partners and six new partners.

Registration of Firm:
SHEKHAR CHANDRA & CO. Chartered Accountants Firm is registered under the
Institute of
Chartered Accountants of India in the year 1992..
The firm has one offi ce in the city with four different Divisions to manage its day to day
activities. The divisions are:
Auditing,
Income Tax, and
Consultancy Services.
2.7 ACHIEVEMENT OF FIRMS:

It is one of the oldest firm of the Rishikesh

2.9 LOGISTIC SUPPORT:
List of important industries in which the firm has experience
1. Banks,
2. Micro-Finance Institution (MFI),
3. Non-Government Organization (NGO),
4. Donor funded projects

At present SHEKHAR CHANDRA & CO. have 120+ audit clients. As one of the top firms in
Rishikesh. It also done auditing work of more cities ans states .
SHEKHAR CHANDRA & CO. have audit clients of all type, e.g. public, private, governmental,
profit/nonprofit organizations.
2.10 SERVICES OFFERED COVER THE FOLLOWING AREAS:
19

 Management consultation/development
Statutory audit
Accountancy
Taxation
Accountancy and management training
System development
Data processing with computer
Privatization consultancy (Include pre-privatization review, restructuring,
valuation in particular and privatization assistance in general)
Other accounting ancillary services including investigation, internal and
management audit.
Micro- finance consulting.
Organizational consulting services
Share/ business/ asset valuation.

2.11 ANALYSIS OF TOTAL PRACTICE TURNOVER:

Audit 40%
Accounts preparation (including data processing and book-keeping) 5%
Tax 20%
Financial Advisory Services 20%
Management Advisory Services 15%
Total 100%

20

SECTION -3
LITERATURE REVIEW
21

3.1 DEFINITION OF AUDITING:

Arens and Loebbecke, 1998 defines Auditing as:
Auditing is the process by which a competent, independent person
accumulates and
evaluates evidence about quantifiable information related to a specific
economic entity
for the purpose of determining and reporting on the degree of
correspondence between
the quantifiable information and established criteria.
This definition includes several key words and phrases. To understand the
definition,
different terms are discussed below:

Competent, Independent Person:

22

The auditor must be qualified to understand the criteria used and competent to know the

types and amount of evidence to accumulate to reach the proper conclusion after the

evidence has been examined.

The auditor must also have an independent mental attitude. It does little good to have a

competent person who is biased performing the evidence accumulation when unbiased

information and objective thinking are needed for the judgments and decisions to be

made. Independence cannot be absolute by any means, but it must be a goal that is

worked toward; and it can be achieved to a certain degree.

Accumulating and Evaluating Evidence:

Evidence is defined as any information used by the auditor to determine
whether the
quantifiable information being audited is stated in accordance with the
established
criteria.
Evidence takes many different forms, including oral testimony of the
auditee (client),
written communication with outsiders, and observation by the auditor. It is
important to

23

obtain sufficient quality and volume of evidence to satisfy the audit

objectives. The
process of determining the amount of evidence necessary and evaluating
whether the
quantifiable information corresponds to the established criteria is a critical
task for every
auditor.

Quantifiable Information and Established Criteria:

To do an audit, there must be information in a verifiable form and some
standards
(criteria) by which the auditor can evaluate the information.
Quantifiable information can and does take many forms. It is possible to
audit such thing
as a companys financial statements, the amount of time it takes an
employee to complete
an assigned task, the total cost of a government construction contract,
and an individuals
tax return.
The criteria for evaluating quantitative information can also vary
considerably. For
example, in auditing a vendors invoice for the acquisition of raw
materials, it is possible
to determine whether materials of the quantity and stated description
were actually
24

received, whether the proper raw material was acquired considering the
production needs
of the company, or whether the price charged for the goods was
reasonable. The criteria
used depend upon the objectives of the audit.

Economic Entity:
Whenever an audit is conducted, the scope of the auditors responsibility
must be made
clear. The primary method involves defining the economic entity and the
time period.
In most instances the economic entity is also a legal entity, such as a
corporation, unit of
government, partnership, or proprietorship. In some cases, however, the
entity is defined
as a division, a department, or even an individual.
The time period for conducting an audit is typically one year, but there is
also audits for a
month, a quarter, several years, and in some cases the lifetime of an
entity.

Reporting:
The final stage in the audit process is the audit report the
communication of the findings

25

to users. Reports differ in nature, but in all cases they must inform readers
of the degree
of correspondence between quantifiable information and established
criteria.

3.2 DISTINCTION BETWEEN AUDITING AND

ACCOUNTING:
Many financial statements users and members of the general public
confuse auditing with
accounting. The confusion results because most auditing is concerned
with accounting
information, and many auditors have considerable expertise in accounting
matters.
Although auditing and accounting are related, they are distinct from each
other.
Accoun
ting

Recording of
transactions
and
preparation of
financial

GAAP (the link)

Evaluation of
financial
statements
Auditing
26

Accounting and Auditing Contrast

(Larry F. Konarth, Auditing: A Risk Analysis Approach)

Accounting involves collecting, summarizing, reporting, and interpreting

financial data.
Accounting is the process of recording, classifying, and summarizing
economic events in
a logical manner for the purpose of providing financial information for
decision making.
The function of accounting, to an entity and a society as a whole, is to
provide certain
types of quantitative information that management and others can use to
make decisions.
To provide relevant information, accountants must have a thorough understanding of the

principles and rules that provides the basis for preparing the accounting information. In

addition, accountants must develop a system to make sure that the entitys economic

events are properly recorded on a timely basis and at a reasonable cost.

Auditing, by contrast, utilizes the theory of evidence in much the same way as does the

legal profession to verify the overall reasonableness (fairness) of the financial

statements presented. In auditing accounting data, the concern is with determining

27

whether recorded information properly reflects the economic events that occurred during

the accounting period. Since the accounting rules are the criteria for evaluating whether

the accounting information is properly recorded, any auditor involved with these data

must also thoroughly understand the rules. In the context of the audit of financial

statements, these are generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).

3.3 TYPES OF AUDIT:

There are various types of audit. Such as:
a. Operational Audit
b. Compliance Audit
c. Audit of Financial Statements
d. Internal Audit
e. Interim Audit
f. Performance Audit
g. Governmental Audit

a) Operational Audit:
Operational Audit refers to the study of business operations for the
purpose of making
recommendations about the economic and efficient use of resources,
effective

28

achievement of business objectives and compliance with company

policies.
At the completion of an operational audit, recommendations to
management for
improving operations are normally expected. The goal of operational audit
is to help
managers to discharge their management responsibilities and improve
profitability.

b) Compliance Audit:
Management often wants to know whether its organizational policies are
being complied
with or whether external mandates are being met.
The purpose of a compliance audit is to determine whether the auditee is
following
specific procedures or rules set down by some higher authority.
Results of compliance audits are generally reported to someone within the
organizational
unit being audited rather than to a broad spectrum of users. Management,
as opposed to
outside users, is the primary group concern with the extent of compliance
with certain
prescribed procedures and regulations. Hence a significant portion of work
of this type is
done by auditors employed by the organizational units themselves.
29

Compliance audit involves:

1. Examining transactions and detailed records, and
2. Identifying weaknesses.

a)

Audit of Financial Statements:

Financial statements audits are conducted to determine whether financial

statements are
presented fairly in accordance with generally accepted accounting
principles (GAAP).
However, public sector financial audits also determine whether financial
statements are
presented in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.
An audit of financial statements is conducted to determine whether the
overall financial
statements the quantifiable information being verified are stated in
accordance with
specific criteria. The financial statements most commonly included are the
statement of
financial position, income statement and statement of cash flow, including
accompanying
footnotes.
The assumption underlying an audit of financial statements is that they
will be used by
different groups for different purposes. Therefore, it is more efficient to
have one auditor
30

perform an audit and draw conclusion that can be relied upon by all users
than to have
each user perform his or her own audit.

b) Internal Audit:
Internal audit is an independent appraisal function established within an
organization to
examine and evaluate its activities as a service to the organization. The
objective of
internal auditing is to assist members of the organization in the effective
discharge of
their responsibilities. To this end, internal audit furnishes them with
analyses, appraisals,
recommendations, counsel, and information concerning the activities
reviewed.
Internal audit is practiced by auditors employed by an organization, such
as a bank,
hospital, city government, or industrial company. The Institute of Internal
Auditors is the
international organization that governs the standards, continuing
education, and generals
rules of conduct for internal auditors as a profession.

c)Interim Audit:

31

Interim audit refers to the procedures applied prior to the clients year
end, primarily for
the purpose of lowering the assessed risk level. The interim audit phase
consists of resting
the clients internal accounting controls and performing substantive tests
of transactions.
Interim audit procedures performed several weeks or months before the
balance sheet
date.
In recent years, certain changes in the information processing
environment have begun to
alter the traditional approach to the interim audit. Instead of testing the
internal control
procedures during a single interim time period, auditors are applying
these tests, along
with tests of selected transactions, at frequent intervals throughout the
year. This
sometimes referred to as Continuous Audit. This type of audit is especially
applicable to
those clients with sophisticated computer based accounting applications.

d)

Performance Audit:

Performance audits address the economy, efficiency, and program results

of a reporting

32

unit. Economy and efficiency audits are performed to determine whether

managements
objectives are being achieved and to identify opportunities and develop
recommendations
for improvements. Program audit includes determining (1) the extent to
which the desired
results or benefits established by the legislature or other organizing body
are being
achieved, (2) the effectiveness of organizations, programs, activities, or
functions, and (3)
whether the entity has complied with laws and regulations applicable to
the program.

e)

Governmental Audit:

Governmental audit may be defined as testing and reporting on

conformity with laws and
regulations relating to recipients of federal financial assistance.
Governmental audit refers
to the independent auditors responsibility for determining compliance
with laws and
regulations when engaged in audits of state and local governmental units,
as well as other
not-for-profit entities, that are the recipients of federal finance assistance.

33

Governmental auditors are employed by various state, local, and federal

agencies. The
work performed by these auditors ranges from a internal audits of a
specific agency to
audits of other governmental units to audits of reports furnished to the
government by
outside organizations.

3.4 AICPA GENERALLY ACCEPTED AUDITING

STANDARDS:
Auditing standards are general guidelines to aid auditors in fulfilling their
professional
responsibilities in the audit of historical financial statements. They include
consideration
of professional qualities such as competence and independence, reporting
requirements,
and evidence.
The broadest guidelines available are the ten Generally Accepted Auditing
Standards
(GAAS). These standards were developed by the AICPA in 1947, they have,
with
minimal changes, remained the same. These standards are not sufficiently
specific to
34

provide any meaningful guide to practitioners, but they do represent a

framework upon
which the AICPA can provide interpretations.
The ten Generally Accepted Auditing Standards are as follows:

General Standards
1. The audit is to be performed by a person or persons having adequate
technical
training and proficiency as an auditor.
2. In all matters relating to the assignment, independence in mental
attitude is to be
maintained by the auditor or auditors.
3. Due professional care is to be exercised in the performance of the audit
and the
preparation of the report.

Field Work Standards

1. The work is to be adequately planned, and assistants, if any, are to be
properly
supervised.
2. A sufficient Understanding of the internal control structure is to be
obtained to
plan the audit and to determine the nature, timing, and extent of tests to
be
performed.

35

3. Sufficient competent evidential matter is to be obtained through

inspection,
observations, inquiries, and confirmations to afford a reasonable basis for
an
opinion regarding the financial statements under audit.

Reporting Standards
1. The report shall state whether the financial statements are presented in
accordance
with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).
2. The report shall identify those circumstances in which such principles
have not
been consistently observed in the current period in relation to the
preceding
period.
3. Informative disclosures in the financial statements are to be regarded
as
reasonably adequate unless otherwise stated in the report.
4. The report shall either contain an expression of opinion regarding the
financial
statements, taken as a whole, or an assertion to the effect that an opinion
cannot be
expressed. When an overall opinion cannot be expressed, the reasons
therefore
should be stated. In all cases where an auditors name is associated with financial

36

statements, the report should contain a clear-cut indication of the character of the

auditors work, if any, and the degree of responsibility the auditor is taking.

3.5 PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT:

The AICPA Code of Professional Conduct (the Code) consists of four
components. The
principles provide the ethical concepts on which the Rules of Conduct are
based as well
as the standards for meeting the public trust. The principles provide the
broadest
framework for professional conduct and should be the highest guide for
professional
action. Auditors should always look first to the principles for professional
guidance. The
rules are only guides to help accomplish the broad principles of the
profession.

AICPA Code of Professional Conduct

Concepts
Concepts

Ideal standards of ethical conduct stated in

philosophical terms.
They are not enforceable.

Rules of
Conduct

Minimum standards of ethical conduct stated as

Specific rules
They are enforced

Interpretations

Interpretations of rules of conduct by the AICPA

Division of Professional Ethics. They

are not
37

enforceable, but a practitioner must justify departure.

Ethical Rulings

Published explanations and answers to questions about

the rules of conduct submitted to the AICPA by
practitioners and others interested in ethical
requirements. They are not enforceable, but a
practitioner must justify departure

.
3.5.1 AICPA Principles of Professional Conduct:
The principles provide the ethical concepts on which the Rules of Conduct
are based as
well as the standards for meeting the public trust. The principles provide
the broadest
framework for professional conduct and should be the highest guide for
professional
action. Auditors should always look first to the principles for professional
guidance. The
principles are as follows:

Responsibilities:
In carrying out their responsibilities as professionals, members should
exercise sensitive
professional and moral judgments in all their activities.

Public Interest:
Members should accept the obligation to act in a way that will serve the
public interest,
honor the public trust, and demonstrate commitment to professionalism.

Integrity:
38

To maintain and broaden public confidence, members should perform all

professional
responsibilities with the highest sense of integrity.

Objectivity and independence:

A member should maintain objectivity and be free of conflicts in
discharging professional
responsibilities. A member in public practice should be independent in fact
and
appearance when providing auditing and other attestation services.

Due care:
A member should observe the professions technical and ethical
standards, strive
continually to improve competence and the quality of services, and
discharge professional
responsibility to the best of the members ability.

Scope and nature of services:

A member in public practice should observe the principles of the Code of
Professional
Conduct in determining the scope and nature of services to be provided.

3.6 AUDIT RISKS:

The auditor should obtain an understanding of the accounting and internal
control systems
sufficient to plan the audit and develop an effective audit approach. The
auditor should
39

use professional judgment to assess audit risk and to design audit

procedures to ensure it
is reduced to an acceptably low level.

Audit risk is defined as the risk that the auditor may unknowingly fail
to appropriately
modify his/her opinion on financial statements that are materially
misstated. So audit
risk is the risk that the auditor gives an inappropriate audit opinion when
the financial
statements are materially misstated. Audit risk has three components:

Inherent

risk is the susceptibility of an account balance or class of

transactions
misstatement that could be material, individually or when aggregated
with
misstatements in other balances or classes, assuming that there were no
related
internal controls.

Control

risk is the risk that a misstatement that could occur in an

account
balance or class of transactions and that could be material individually or
when

40

aggregated with misstatements in other balances or classes, will not be

prevented
or detected and corrected on a timely basis by the accounting and internal
control
systems.

Detection

risk is the risk that an auditors substantive procedures

will not
detect a misstatement that exists in an account balance or class of
transactions that
could be material, individually or when aggregated with misstatements in
other
balances or classes.

3.7 Audit Evidence:

Audit evidence consists of those facts and inferences that influence the
auditors mind
with respect to financial presentation.
The collective purpose of all audit procedures is to gather sufficient
competent evidence
to form an opinion on the fairness of the financial statements taken as a
whole.

Characteristics of Audit Evidence:

41

It is important that the auditor appreciate the different characteristics of

audit evidence
and the reliance that can be placed on each type. Audit evidence can be
characterized as:
1. Generated and held by the client.
2. Received from outside parties and held by the client.
3. Received directly by the auditor by independent means or from
independent
or quasi-independent parties.

SECTION - 4
42

AUDIT PROCEDURE FOLLOWED

BY CA FIRM
(SHEKHAR CHANDRA & CO.)

4.1 ENGAGEMENT PROCEDURES

Before discussing the Audit Procedures followed by firm, I try to focus on
the
engagement procedures through which firm is engaged/ recruited by the
client to
perform the audit. Firm faces three kinds of situations in engagement
process:
Engagement with new client.
Engagement with existing client.

43

Directly appointed by the client.

Before starting the audit work, some letters are exchanged between the
firm and
clients.

In case of new client:

4 (four) letters are exchanged between ACNABIN and client including
acceptance letter
of appointment at the time of involving with the new client. Following
stages are
followed by both firm and client:

STAGE 1: Client requires for technical and financial

proposal from the
firm
Client generally gives circular with the newspaper or directly wants proposal
for audit
from the audit firm. In case of direct offer they request to the audit firm to
submit a
quotation for the cost of conducting audit of the client. They also mention the
specific
date to confirm the decision taken by the audit firm and completion date for
audits. The
client firm mentions here the key areas of the audit in the form of
attachment. It assures
that if CA audits clients firm, they will supply the formal terms of
reference/audit
44

mandates to govern the conduct of audit.

STAGE 2: The technical and financial proposal is sent

by CA firm to the client
After reviewing the client letter or papers circular, audit firm drafts a
proposal letter to
the client. The proposal letter contains technical and financial proposal for
carrying out
the subject of audit. Firm estimates its personnel costs after considering
the
mandates to be utilized and using the minimum hourly rate of fees as
prescribed by The
Instituted of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI). The firm also mentions
that
as it is an estimate, the cost may vary with variation in number of
mandates estimated to
be utilized for the job.

STAGE 3: Acceptance by the client on the basis of

proposal of firm A
letter of contract
After receiving proposal letters from various audit firms, client then selects
the one which

45

is favorable to them, and it appoints the audit firm for audit purpose. From
the technical
and financial proposal of the CA firm the client company understands the
nature of the
audit (such as independent, external) to assess the organizations internal
control system
in administering the audited matter.
STAGE 4: A letter is sent by CA firm to the client confirming to
work with the
client Confirmation Letter

After receiving the acceptance letter from the client, CA firm provides
confirmation
letter describing the firms willingness to work with the client.

In case of last years client

Three letters are exchanged between the CA firm and client:
i. Willingness letter for reappointment: In this letter ACNABIN wants to
audit this year. It can request to increase audit fee or change some other
conditions.
ii. Client sends appointment letter.
iii. CA firm accept this appointment.

In case of directly appointed by the client

If the client is interested to work with CA firm, then it directly sends an
appointment
letter to the firm which includes all terms and conditions. If all terms and
conditions are
46

favorable to the CA firm then it accepts the appointment and sends a

letter to the client
as an auditor.

4.2 AUDIT PROCEDURES FOLLOWED BY CA FIRM

The primary goal of firm at the time of involving in any audit engagement is
to provide the opinion on Financial Statements in accordance with Indian
Standards on Auditing (ISA) as
well as International Standards on Auditing (ISA). Firm also seeks to provide
auditing and business consultancy services that are innovative, efficient and
most
importantly responsive to their clients business needs.
There are seven steps involved in the procedures that come one after
another. Steps are as
follows:

Identity Overall Goals

Gather & Evaluate Initial Information
Assess General Risks
Assess Account-Specific Risks
Develop Effective and Efficient Audit Plan/Work Program
Conduct Audit Testing
Evaluate and Communicate Audit Results

AUDIT PROCESS

IDENTITY OVERALL GOALS

Efficiency

Opinion on financial statements

Errors

Irregularities

Going Concern

Client Value

GATHER & EVALUATE INITIAL INFORMATION

Understand the business

Consider internal control structure

47

Identify client expectation

Consider materiality

ASSESS ACCOUNT-SPECIFIC RISKS

Identify accounts and transactions to be

addressed

Select mitigating controls upon which

reliance will be placed

Identify types of financial statement

misstatement

Develop procedures to test mitigating

controls

Identify risk indicators

addressed

Assess remaining risk to be

by substantive tests.

DEVELOP EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT AUDIT PLAN/WORK PROGRAM

Test of controls

Substantive test

CONDUCT AUDIT TESTING

Test of controls

Substantive test

4.2.1 IDENTIFY FIRMS OVERALL GOALS

The goal of ACNABIN in conducting an audit is to express an opinion as to
whether the
financial statements are prepared and presented fairly in accordance with
Generally

48

Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP). The Firms policies on Generally

Accepted
Accounting Principles are contained in Accounting Standards. The audit
team considers
these standards in formulating an opinion. In forming an opinion, the audit
team also
addresses responsibilities for:
Errors
Irregularities and other matters
Efficiency
Client value

Errors
Errors are unintentional misstatements or omissions of accounts of
disclosures in
financial statements and may involve:
a) mistakes in gathering or processing accounting data from which
financial
statements are prepared.
b) incorrect accounting estimates arising from oversight or
misinterpretation of facts
and;
c) mistakes in the application of accounting principles relating to amount,
classification, manner of presentation or disclosure.

49

The audit team is required to design the audit to provide reasonable

assurance of detection
of material errors. The In-charge of an audit team is responsible to ensure
that the
following matters are considered at the time of audit:

Existence

or occurrence. Assets or liabilities of the entity exist at a

given
date and recorded transactions have occurred during a given period.

Completeness. All transactions and accounts that should be

presented in the
financial statements are so included.

Accuracy. Transactions and account balances are accurately recorded.

Valuation. Assets are stated at realizable value, and liabilities are

stated at
expected settlement amounts.

Rights and obligation. Assets are the rights of the entity and

liabilities are the

obligations of the entity at a given date.

50

Presentations and disclosure Particular components of the

financial
statements are properly classified, described and disclosed.

Irregularities and other matters

Irregularities are intentional misstatements or omission of amounts or

disclosures in
financial statements, including fraudulent financial reporting and
misappropriation of
assets. So there is always a risk that material irregularities may occur and
not be detected.
This risk is increased by the possibility of managements override of
internal controls,
collusion, forgery, or unrecorded transactions. Thus, while the audit team
is required to
design the audit to provide reasonable assurance of detection of material
misstatements
regarding irregularities, the following matters must be considered by the
In-charge of the
audit team:
Detection of Material Irregularities
Detection of Material Misstatements resulting from illegal acts having a
direct
effect on the Financial Statements.
Alertness for the Unsupported Transactions.
51

Efficiency

The audit team should design audit procedures that accomplish the
overall goals
discussed above in the most efficient manner. Performing an efficient
audit involves:
Performing front-end risk assessment and planning with adequate
partner and
manager involvement.
Designing the combination of audit procedures based on the risk
assessment
that will efficiently reduce the risk of undetected material misstatements
to an
appropriately low level.
Assigning work to adequately trained and supervised persons with
appropriate
experience and skill levels.

Client Value
It has long been a tradition of our firm to provide enhanced value to
clients as an integral
part of our audits. This strategy has allowed us to differentiate our
approach from that of

52

other firms. Delivering added value as an integral part of an audit and

effectively
communicating the added value information to top management,
directors etc. is a key
factor in building and maintaining a sound client relationship.
Most clients and most of our personnel would agree that we achieve
differentiation from
other firms and communicate the value of ACNABIN audit by consistently
stressing the
following:
Sound working relationship
Understanding our clients business.

4.2.2 GATHER & EVALUATE INITIAL INFORMATION

After involving with the client, our first task is to collect and evaluate the
relevant and
necessary information related to the clients business for the purpose of:
Understanding the clients business
Considering the internal control structure
Identifying client expectation
Considering materiality.

Understand the clients business

53

Before involving in an audit, the auditor should understand the client

business properly.
Proper planning and designing of an audit is dependent on proper
understanding of
clients business. So after appointing by a client, we, the members of an
audit team use
various sources to gain an understanding of client business. Differences
sources which
provide us clients business information are as follows:
Annual report
Minutes
Internal Reports
Previous years audit Work Papers
Discussion with client.

Consider internal control structure

Every business has some kind of accounting system by which transactions
are processed,
and records of those transactions maintained. That 'system' should
incorporate control
features and is normally referred to as the system of 'Internal Control'.
The existence of a reliable system of internal control can be a great help
to the auditor,
because the objectives of the system should be:

54

a) ensuring that the records are complete, accurate and properly

authorized;
b) detecting errors and fraud.
After involving with a client, we try to understand the internal control
structure of the
client business as much as possible because understanding of clients
internal control
structure helps us to determine the extent of our audit tasks.
So our first task in relation to the client's system of internal control is to
ascertain record
and evaluate it. Then we can use this knowledge of the client's system to
plan his audit
tests.
We consider the activities of internal auditing and their effect, if any, on
external
audit procedures. So we try to:

Understand and Assess Internal Auditing

As external auditors, we should obtain a sufficient understanding of
internal audit
activities of the client that assists us in planning the audit and developing
an effective
audit approach. During the course of planning the audit, we should
perform a preliminary

55

assessment of the internal audit function when it appears that internal

auditing is relevant
to the external audit of the financial statements in specific audit areas.

Evaluate and Test the Work of Internal Auditing

To use specific work of internal auditing, we evaluate and test the work of
internal
auditing to confirm its adequacy for the external auditing purposes.
The evaluation of specific work of internal auditing involves consideration
of the
adequacy of the scope of work and related programs and whether the
preliminary
assessment of the internal auditing remains appropriate. This evaluation
may include
consideration of whether:

The work is performed by persons having adequate technical training

and
proficiency as internal auditors and the work of assistants is properly
supervised,
reviewed and documented;

Sufficient appropriate audit evidence is obtained to afford a reasonable

basis for
56

the conclusions reached;

Conclusions reached are appropriate in the circumstances and any
reports
prepared are consistent with the results of the work performed; and
Any exceptions or unusual matters disclosed by internal auditing are
properly
resolved.
The external auditor would record conclusions regarding the specific
internal auditing
work that has been evaluated and tested.
Appendix-1 contains a form that shekhar Chandra & co. used to evaluate
structure of the client.

Identify client expectation

As external auditor, firm should identify the clients expectation and

design and
perform the audit to meet the client expectation.

Consider materiality
Information is material if its omission or misstatement could influence the
economic
decisions of users taken on the basis of the financial statements.
Materiality depends on
the size of the item or error judged in the particular circumstances of its
omission or
misstatement.
57

In designing the audit plan, we establish an acceptable materiality level so

as to detect
quantitatively material misstatements. However, both the amount
(quantity) and nature
(quality) of misstatements need to be considered.

Materiality should be considered by the auditor when:

a. Determining the nature, timing and extent of audit procedures; and
b. Evaluating the effect of misstatements.

Quantifying Materiality
A common rule of thumb for materiality is 5 to 10 percent of pretax
income. Items less
than 5 percent are considered immaterial, whereas items that are more
than 10 percent are
material. For items between 5 and 10 percent, judgment is applied
The blank materiality calculation worksheet attached in Appendix -2 can
be used in
different audit work of Shekhar Chandra firm.

4.2.3 ASSESS GENERAL RISKS

During audit planning and risk assessment, we obtain initial audit
evidence in order to:
1. effectively assess the inherent risk of potential financial statement
misstatements,
2. identify indicators of possible going concern problems, and

58

3. identify account specific risk and design an overall audit approach to

provide
reasonable assurance of detecting material misstatements.
The assessment of risk is accomplished using a top-down approach. The
audit team
focuses initially on high level information. The nature and extent of
documentation will
vary significantly based on an entitys size, complexity, ownership
characteristics, and
level of risk.

Key Factors
Significant background information and business, economic and industry
conditions that
provide an indication of the level of risk for an engagement are mentioned
in items 1-15
listed below:
1. Understanding client business: Can be obtained from various sources,
e.g. annual
report, minutes, internal reports, previous year audit work papers,
discussion with
client;
2. Managements style, outlook;
3. Significant Current Events and Reporting Issues;
4. Results of Financial Performance Review;
5. Industry Conditions and Issues;
59

6. Management Control Environment;

7. Accounting System Policy, Procedure & Manual;
8. Materiality Consideration;
9. Limitations of the engagement, if any, e.g. documents lost, post dated
appointment,
no inventory, no cash count was done;
10. Processing Methods- The processing methods used by the entity for
significant
accounting applications;
11. EDP control: The audit team should obtain, analyze and conclude on
the
appropriate control of EDP hardware, software, data management, and
access;
input and output verification;
12. Audit Inherent Risks: Audit areas likely to cause problems or require
unusual
attention, e.g.
a) Financial Statements items likely to require adjustments;
b) Conditions likely to require modification of audit tests, such as related
party
transaction, going concern problem or possible fraud;
13. Reports: The kinds of reports to be issued, such as
a. Filings with regulatory agencies- NGO Bureau;
b. Special Reports- FD4, For USAIDS- OMB A-133, A-128;
c. Compliance with contractual provision: USAID terms and conditions;
60

14. Overall audit approach;

15. Coordination and timing;
The significant risks identified in the process should be summarized in the
General Risk
Analysis Memorandum that is given in Appendix-3.

4.2.4 ACCOUNT-SPECIFIC RISK ANALYSIS

Specific Risk Analysis (SRA) builds on information obtained during General
Risk
Assessment (GRA) and is completed after consideration of the evaluation
of the
internal control system. SRA is done to design the nature, and extent of
substantive tests on account level. SRA includes three functions1. Assess Account Specific Risks:
i. Identify accounts to be addressed
ii. Describe the potential risks/ frauds per GRA -Inherent Risk
iii. Describe the potential risks as per SRA assessment -Inherent Risk
iv. Determine whether the I/C for those accounts are adequateControl Risk (EICS)
v. Determine whether to perform test of control or not (EICS)
2. Assess the risk of potential fraud
3. Develop Audit Plan
i. Select substantive audit procedures- Detection Risk
ii. Develop work programs
iii. Perform engagement administration

61

4.2.4.1 At the Account Balance and Class of

Transaction
For the account balance and class of transaction level risk assessment the
following major account heads should be considered:
a. Cash
b. Bank
c. Inventory
d. Fixed Assets
e. Accounts Receivables
f. Accounts Payables
g. Revenue
h. Expense
i. Payroll
j. Net Assets, Retained Earnings, or Fund balances
k. Other Assets
l. Other Liabilities
m. Investment
n. Loan.
We generally assess the risks at account balance level in view of the
following items:
Financial statement accounts likely to the susceptible to misstatement
The complexity of underlying transactions and other events which might
require
using the work of an expert.

62

 The degree of judgment involved in determining account balances.

Susceptibility of assets to loss or misappropriation.
The completion of unusual and complex transactions, particularly at or
near period
end.

4.2.4.2 Audit Risks

In determining the nature, timing and extent of substantive procedures
required to reduce
audit risk to an acceptably how level, we, the auditor consider the
assessed levels of
inherent and control risks. In this regard we consider:
(a) The nature of substantive procedures,
(b) The timing of substantive procedures, and
(c) The extent of substantive procedure.

Illustration of the Interrelationship of the Components

of Audit Risk
The following table show how the acceptable level of detection risk may
vary based on
assessments of inherent and control risks

Auditors assessment of
control risk is
HIGH

Auditors assessment
of inherent risk

MEDIUM

LOW

HIGH

LOWEST

LOWER

MEDIUM

MEDIUM

LOWER

MEDIUM

HIGHER

HIGHER

HIGHEST

LOW

63 MEDIUM

The shaded areas in this table relate to detection risk.

4.2.4.3 Consideration of Fraud and Error

We have a professional responsibility for materially misstated financial
statements
resulting from errors and irregularities. As auditors, we must provide
reasonable
assurance that such materials errors and irregularities are detected.
In planning the audit, the in charge of an audit team discusses with other
members of the
audit team the susceptibility of the entity to material misstatements in the
financial
statements resulting from fraud or error.
The potential for financial statement fraud exists on every engagement. To
address the
risk of potential fraud we must:
* Assess the risk of potential fraud
* Design our audit procedures to respond to identified risks
* We must consider varying the nature, timing and extent of our work in
areas with the
most potential for manipulation
* We need to perform our audit with appropriate professional skepticisms
and due
64

processional care.
There are many different ways in which financial statements can be
intentionally
misstated. We generally consider the following four types:
* Generating and recognizing revenues where none exists
* Inappropriate acceleration of revenue recognition
* Transactions with related parties valued either below or in excess of
equivalent
transactions with unrelated parties.
* Understatement of and shifting of costs and expenses.

4.2.4.4 Inquiries of Management

When planning the audit, we make inquiries of management:
(a) To obtain an understanding of:
i. Managements assessment of the risk that the financial statements may
be
materially misstated as a result of fraud; and
ii. Management has put the accounting and internal control systems in
place to
address such risk;
(b) To obtain knowledge of managements understanding regarding the
accounting and
internal control system in place to prevent and detect error;
(c) To determine whether management is aware of any known fraud that
has affected the
entity or suspected fraud that the entity is investigating; and
65

(d) To determine whether management has discovered any material

errors.

4.2.4.5 Assessment of Inherent Risk and Control

Risk
When assessing inherent risk and control risk, we generally consider how
the financial
statements might be materially misstated as a result of fraud or error. In
considering the
risk of material misstatement resulting from fraud, the auditor should
consider whether
fraud risk factors indicate the possibility of either fraudulent financial
reporting or
misappropriation of assets.

4.2.4.6 Assessment of Detection Risk

Based on the assessment of inherent and control risks, we design
substantive procedures
to reduce the detection risk to an acceptably low level. In designing the
substantive
procedures, we address the fraud risk factors that have been identified as
being present.

4.2.4.7 Documentation
If during the performance of the audit, fraud risk factors are identified that
cause the
66

auditor to believe that additional audit procedures are necessary, the

auditor should
document the presence of such risk factors and the auditors response to
them.

4.2.4.8 Management Representations

The auditor should obtain written representations from management that:
a. It acknowledges its responsibility for the implementation and operations
of
accounting and internal control systems that are designed to prevent and
detect fraud
and error.
b. It has disclosed to the auditor the results of its assessment of the risk
that the financial
statements may be materially misstated as a result of fraud.

4.2.4.9 Communication
When the auditor identifies a misstatement resulting from fraud, or a
suspected fraud, or
error, then auditors responsibility is to communicate that to
management, those charged
with governance and, in some circumstances, to regulatory and
enforcement authorities.

4.2.5 DEVELOPMENT OF EFFECTIVE AND

EFFICIENT AUDIT PLAN/ WORK PROGRAM
67

Work program is a list of procedures that are needed to be performed to

conduct the audit.
The program may also contain the audit objectives for each area and
should have
sufficient detail to serve as a set of instructions to the assistants involved
in the audit, and
as a means to control the proper execution of the work.
In the firm, we use work programs for different types of account head.
Work programs
were developed for different types of business and for different types of
account heads.
Usually an audit program contains
Client procedures and background information.
Audit objectives.
Audit procedures.
Performance and results of work.
Conclusions.
Work programs help the auditors to ensure the quality of the audit tasks
as it provides
necessary guidelines about how to carry out their audit tasks and how to
analyze all the
account heads in a proper way. So when a new student is registered as
articled student in

68

Shekhar Chandra & Co. firm , it is the responsibility of

managers/supervisors to introduce him/her with different types of work
programs.
As the audit proceeds, the in-charge may change, modify or develop a
new work program
due to changes in the following:
o Client accounting procedures
o Client internal controls
o Unexpected results in the testing.
All procedures included in the work program must be completed and any
revisions in the
program, made during testing, must be adequately explained and
approved by the senior
or manager.
At the completion of the work program the auditor
o Uses a red pencil to show where the work is documented in the work
paper reference column.
o Uses a black pencil to write initials in the By column.
This process is called Signing off on the work program.

4.2.6 CONDUCT AUDIT TESTING

After completing work program, the audit team conducts two types of
tests which we
mentioned in our earlier discussion. Two tests are:
o Test of Controls
o Substantive Test
69

4.2.6.1 Test Of Controls:

Based on the GRA, SRA and evaluation of internal control system, we
decide whether to
perform test of control.
The audit team should test any internal controls upon which reliance is
placed to reduce
the likelihood of misstatements in the financial statements and the
reduced substantive
test has been decided.
For the effectiveness and efficiency of audit work, we conduct Test of
Control at least in
the following three major accounting areas, which in turn will cover most
of the account
level tests in any client.

Type of Test
level test covered

1) Cash Receipts Test

Account

Cash, Bank, Sales, Revenue, Receivables

Cash, Bank, Inventory, Purchase, Fixed
Assets, Payables, Expenses..

2) Cash Disbursement Test

3) Payroll Test

Payroll expenses, cash, bank.

Control Outlines
70

Items included in the three tests of control forms can be modified to

include additional
items, to delete some non- applicable items and also to customize the test
for each and
every different type of client specific procedures. Following groups of
Internal controls
may be considered while developing the forms for internal control tests.

Authorization controls are prevention-oriented. That is, they are

designed to
prevent misstatements from occurring as a result of unauthorized or
improperly
authorized transactions.

Transaction processing controls are also prevention-oriented.

They are designed
to prevent misstatements from occurring during the processing of
transactions and
generally consist of a hierarchy of related controls.

Substantiation and evaluation controls are detectionoriented (i.e., they are

designed to detect misstatements that have occurred during processing
and ensure
that they are corrected). They ordinarily address account balances or
groups of
transactions rather than individual transactions.

71

 Physical safeguard controls are prevention-oriented and consist

of segregation of
duties and other techniques to limit access to assets, records, forms, and
processing areas and procedures.

4.2.6.2 Substantive Tests

Substantive tests are procedures performed to detect misstatements in
financial statement
balances. We perform the following two types of Substantive Tests:
Analytical procedures
Detail Tests

Analytical Procedures
Analytical procedures means the analysis of significant ratios
and trends including the resulting investigation of fluctuations and
relationships that are inconsistent with other
relevant information or deviate from predicted amounts. Analytical
Procedures are the testing of financial information by evaluating actual vs.
expected relationships among financial and non-financial data, e.g.
utilities, rent, payroll.
Analytical procedures may be used as a substantive test of balances and
for a final review
of year end financial statements.
The auditor should apply analytical procedures at the planning and overall
review stages
of the audit. Analytical procedures may also be applied at other stages.
72

Analytical procedures include the consideration of comparisons of the

entitys financial
information with, for example:
Comparable information for prior periods.
Anticipated results of the entity, such as budgets or forecasts, or
expectations of he
auditor, such as an estimation of depreciation.
Similar industry information, such as a comparison of the entitys ratio of
sales to
accounts receivable with industry averages or with other entities of
comparable size in
the same industry. Analytical procedures also include consideration of
relationships:
Among elements of financial information that would be expected to
conform to a
predictable pattern based on the entitys experience, such as gross
margin percentages.
Between financial information and relevant non-financial information,
such as payroll
costs to number of employees.We generally apply analytical procedures at
or near the end of the audit when forming an overall conclusion as to
whether the financial statements as a whole are consistent with the
auditors knowledge of the business.
When analytical procedures identify significant fluctuations or
relationships that are
73

inconsistent with other relevant information or that deviate from predicted

amounts, we
then investigate and obtain adequate explanations and appropriate
corroborative evidence.

Detail Tests
Detailed tests may include the following:
a) Confirmation of third parties- Bank, A/P, A/R
b) Observation of asset - Inventory count, FA, Cash Count, Payroll cheque
distribution
c) Tests of reconciliation- bank reconciliation, inter-co reconciliation
d) Analysis of account
e) Vouching
f) Exception tests
g) Cut off tests
h) Inquire
i) Valuation tests
j) Reading of FS
k) Reading of minute of meeting of stockholder, directors and committee.

Confirmations
The audit team should determine whether the use of external
confirmations is necessary

74

to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence to support certain financial

statement
assertions. In making this determination, we consider materiality, the
assessed level of
inherent and control risk, and how the evidence from other planned audit
procedures will
reduce audit risk to an acceptably low level for the applicable financial
statement
assertions. In some situations, audit evidence from external sources is
more reliable than audit evidence generated internally, and that written
audit evidence is more reliable than audit
evidence in oral form. Accordingly, audit evidence in the form of written
responses to
confirmation requests received directly by the auditor from third parties
who are not
related to the entity being audited, when considered individually or
cumulatively with
audit evidence from other procedures, may assist in reducing audit risk for
the related
assertions to an acceptably low level.
Examples of accounts receivables, accounts payables and bank balance
confirmation form
that are used by firm to confirm the clients balance of various accounts
receivables, accounts payables and bank are given in Appendix-4.

75

4.2.7

EVALUATE AND COMMUNICATE AUDIT

RESULTS
At the last stage of audit, the audit team communicates the result of the
audit to the
management and the stakeholders of the company. The audit team issues
two types of
reports:

External Report which is commonly known as the Auditors

report

Internal Report which is known as Management Letter.

We therefore have three areas to deal with:
---the unqualified audit report;
---qualifications in audit reports;
---the management letter (also known as letter of weakness or letter of
comment).

4.2.7.1 External Report/ Auditors report:

Basic Elements
The auditors report includes the following basic elements, ordinarily in
the following
layout:
a. Title;
b. Addressee;
c. Opening or introductory paragraph
i. Identification of the financial statements audited;
76

ii. A statement of the responsibility of the entitys management and the

responsibility of the auditor;
d. Scope paragraph (describing the nature of an audit)
i. A reference to the ISA
ii. A description of the work the auditor performed;
e. Opinion paragraph containing
i. A reference to the financial reporting framework used to prepare the
financial statements: and
ii. An expression of opinion on the financial statements;
f. Date of the report;
g. Auditors address; and
h. Auditors signature.

Modified Reports
In addition to unqualified or qualified, we sometimes provide modified
audit report. An
auditors report is considered to be modified in the following situations:

i. Matters That Do Not Affect the Auditors Opinion

a) emphasis of matter

ii. Matters That Do Affect the Auditors Opinion

a) qualified opinion,
b) disclaimer of opinion, or
c) adverse opinion.

Matters That Do Not Affect the Auditors Opinion

77

In certain circumstances, an auditors report may be modified by adding

an emphasis of
matter paragraph to highlight:
i. a material matter regarding a going concern problem.
ii. a significant uncertainty (other than a going concern problem
The addition of such an emphasis of matter paragraph does not affect the
auditors
opinion. The paragraph would preferably be included after the opinion
paragraph and
would ordinarily refer to the fact that the auditors opinion is not qualified
in this respect.
The addition of a paragraph emphasizing a going concern problem or
significant
uncertainty is ordinarily adequate to meet the auditors reporting
responsibilities
regarding such matters. However, in extreme cases, such as situations
involving multiple
uncertainties that are significant to the financial statements, the auditor
may consider it
appropriate to express a disclaimer of opinion instead of adding an
emphasis of matter
paragraph.

Matters That Do Affect the Auditors Opinion

(Qualifications in audit reports)
The nature of the circumstances giving rise to a qualification of opinion will
78

into one of two categories:

a. where there is an uncertainty which prevents the auditor from forming an
opinion on a matter (uncertainty); or
b. where the auditor is able to form an opinion on a matter but this conflicts
the view given by the financial statements (disagreement).
The forms of qualification which should be used in different circumstances are
below:Nature of circumstances Material So Material, Fundamental
Uncertainty Disagreement Except for
opinion
Disclaimer of opinion
Adverse opinion
In a Except for opinion the auditor effectively disclaims an opinion on a
matter which is not considered fundamental or auditor expressed an adverse
on a particular mater which is not considered fundamental.
In a disclaimer of opinion the auditor states that he is unable to form an
whether the financial statements give a true and fair view.
In an adverse opinion the auditor states that in his opinion the financial
not give a true and fair view.
List of Examples
Forms of qualified audit report
Form
Circumstances, Examples
(i) Uncertainty material but not
fundamental;

79

1. Except for scope

No stock

count at a branch
2. Except for scope
Acceptance of management

assurances (small business)

3. Except for inherent uncertainty

Going

concern
4. Except for inherent uncertainty

Major

litigation
(ii) Fundamental
5. Disclaimer scope

Accounting

breakdown
6. Disclaimer scope

Inability to

substantiate cash

transactions
7. Disclaimer inherent uncertainty
long-term

Valuation of

Construction contracts
(iii) Disagreement material but not
fundamental;
8. Except disagreement as to facts

No provision

for doubtful debt.

80

9. Except non-compliance with legislation

Company

omitted information on
overseas
associated companies and
at date of
issue of financial
statements
has not obtained
Department to
Trade agreement.
(iv) Disagreement Fundamental;
10. Adverse departure from Indian

Long-term

contracts carried at cost

Accounting Standards (IAS)

with no

provision made for losses in

accordance

1.1 Adverse disagreement as to facts

Goodwill no

longer justified at
balance sheet amount.
(v) Disagreement Fundamental;
13. Adverse departure from IAS.

Long-term contracts

carried at cost
with no provision made for
losses in
81

accordance
14. Adverse disagreement as to facts

Goodwill no

longer justified at
balance sheet amount.

4.2.7.2 Internal Report/ Management letter

As a value added service to the client ACNABIN & Co. gives a Management
Letter to its
audit clients. The main purpose of the letter of management is to draw the
attention of
management to areas of weakness requiring rectification. It is also
possible for the auditor
to suggest areas where economies or improved efficiency are possible.
Such a letter is, of
course, no substitute for a qualification in the audit report. It will usually
deal with
matters not serious enough to justify an audit qualification.

Purposes of Management Letter:

i. The principal purpose of a report to management is to enable the
auditor to give
his comments on the accounting records, systems and controls that he
has
examined during the course of his audit. Significant areas of weakness in
systems

82

and controls that might lead to material errors should be highlighted and
brought
to management's attention.
ii. As a secondary purpose, a letter to management may also be used to
provide
management with other constructive advice. The auditor might, for
example, be
able to suggest areas where economies could be made or where resources
could be
used more efficiently.
iii. A letter to management is also a useful means of communicating
matters that have
come to the auditor's attention during the audit that might have an
impact on
future audits.

Contents:
Generally the following matters, arising out of the audit, will be included in
a letter to
management:
a) weaknesses in the structure of accounting systems and internal
controls;
b) deficiencies in the operation of accounting systems and internal
controls;
c) unsuitable accounting policies and practices;
d) Non-compliance with accounting standards or legislation.
83

Management response
The auditor should request a reply to all the points raised, indicating what
action
management intends to take as a result of the comments made in the
management letter. It
should be made clear in the report that the auditor expects at least an
acknowledgement of
the letter or, where he considers it appropriate, the directors' discussion of
the letter to be
recorded in the board minutes.

Basic Elements of the Management Letter

The management letter includes the following basic elements, ordinarily in
the following
layout:
a) Addressee;
b) Transmittal Letter
c) Title;
d) Background Information
e) Scope of Work, e.g.
i. Compliance;
ii. Authorization;
iii. Accuracy;
iv. Monitoring;
84

v. Safeguarding
f) Findings: Each finding consists of four different sections, as under:
vi. Fact (What it is)
vii. Effect (What harm was caused by not complying with the criteria)
viii. Recommendation (That corrects the cause and the condition as
applicable)
ix. Management Response
g. Date of the report;
h. Auditors address; and.

SECTION -5
COMPARISON OF
SHEKHAR CHANDRAS
AUDITPROCEDURE WITH
CHRONOGICAL
SEQUENCES
85

5.1 COMPARISON BETWEEN BAKER TILLY

INTERNATIONAL AUDIT PROCEDURE (THAT IS
FOLLOWED BY ACNABIN) AND CHRONOLOGICAL
SEQUENCES OF AN AUDIT ENGAGEMENT DESCRIBED BY
EMILE WOOLF:
The main purpose of all audit engagement is more or less same to
provide the audit
report to the interested parties on the result of the audit investigation. To
achieve this
objective, the auditor:
Collects necessary and relevant information regarding the clients
business to
understand the overall business.
Examines clients financial statements to determine whether they
are prepared
in accordance with GAAP and whether they give a true and fair view of the

86

clients business.
Provides audit report through which he expresses his opinion.
The audit procedures followed by the auditor to conduct an audit largely
dependent on the
size, nature, type, complexity and circumstances of the clients business.
Emile Woolf in his book Auditing Today describes an extensive audit
procedure which
covers more or less all the steps followed by the auditor. Although his
audit procedure
contains eight stages, but there are basically three main functions:
1. Gather information on background and operational systems of clients
business.
2. Consider and evaluate the internal control and overall security structure
of the
clients business to determine the strengths and weaknesses of
operational system
and what the consequences of weaknesses in major operational areas are.
3. Prepare own (or check clients) detailed year-end financial statements
(P & L
A/C, Balance Sheet), form an opinion on the basis of the examination of
financial
statements and express the opinion to the interested parties in the form of
audit
report.

87

Now I try to identify the similarities or differences, if any between Emile

Woolfs
Chronological Sequences of an Audit Procedure and Baker Tilly
International Audit
Procedure which is followed by Shekhar Chandra & Co.

5.2 Similarities
a) Firms Overall Goal:
Baker Tilly Internationals Audit Procedure focuses on some factors that
need to be
considered to achieve firms overall goal that is to express an opinion on
financial
statements. The auditor should concern with:
Errors
Irregularities
Going Concern
Efficiency
Client Value.
Emile Woolfs Chronological Sequence of Audit Procedure does not
explicitly focus on
such factors. But at the time of designing the nature, timing, and extent of
the substantive
tests, all these factors must be considered by the auditor.

88

b) Gather Information:
Auditor gathers and evaluates the background and operational system
information of the
clients business to obtain an overall knowledge and understanding of the
clients
business and operations. This is common for both the procedures.

c) Consider Internal Control System:

The control system which is established by the management of an
organization in order to
carry out the business of the organization in an orderly and efficient
manner is known as
the Internal Control Systems.
The existence of a reliable internal control system can be a great help to
the auditor. It
helps the auditor to:
i. Identify the strengths and weaknesses in major operational areas.
ii. Determine whether the transactions are properly authorized and
classified..
iii. Determine whether the records are complete and accurate.
iv. Detect error and frauds.
Both the audit procedures give importance on the proper understanding
and evaluation of
the internal control system by the external auditor.

d) Prepare and Execute Audit Program:

89

Audit Program is a list of procedures that are needed to be performed to

conduct the
audit. The program may also contain the audit objectives for each area.
The purposes of audit program are:
i. To establish an orderly and planned approach to an audit
ii. To record an overview of the clients accounting procedures and the
audit
procedures to be performed
iii. To control how the audit plan works during testing.

e) General Risk Assessment:

General Risk Assessment is primarily an Inherent Risk assessment that is
the
susceptibility of the financial statements to material error, assuming no
internal controls.
GRA is performed to assess risk at the financial statement level. The
auditor should
attempt to predict where errors are most and least likely in the financial
statements
segments. This information affects the total amount of evidence the
auditor is required to
accumulate. At the time of assessing general risk, the auditor should
consider several
major factors:
Nature of the clients business

90

 Integrity of management
Client motivation
Results of previous audits
Related parties
Dollar amount of account balances
Initial versus repeat engagement
Susceptibility of defalcation etc.
Both the procedures focus on the assessment of risk at the financial
statement level that is
the assessment of general risk.

f) Account Specific Risk

Account Specific Risk is analyzed to design the nature and extent of
substantive tests on
account level which is the process of obtaining evidence in support of
transactions and
balances. Analysis of Account Specific Risk builds on information obtained
during
General Risk Assessment (GRA) and is completed after consideration of
the evaluation of
the internal control system.
For the account balance and class of transaction level risk assessment the
following major
account heads should be considered:
a. Cash
91

b. Bank
c. Inventory
d. Fixed Assets
e. Accounts Receivables
f. Accounts Payables
g. Revenue
h. Expense
i. Payroll
j. Loan
k. Investment etc.

g) Form and Express an Opinion:

At the last stage of an audit engagement, the auditor forms an opinion on
whether the
financial statements were prepared in accordance with GAAP and other
prescribed
policies established by the top management of the organization and
expresses his opinion
to the interested parties through audit report.

5.3 Differences
a) Engagement Procedure:
Emile Woolfs Audit Procedure describes thoroughly how to involve with a
new client.

92

Auditor needs to achieve ethical clearance from the previous auditor

before involving in
any audit engagement.
Baker Tilly Internationals Audit Procedure does not provide any
instruction/ suggestion
on how to engage with a client (new or existing client). ACNABIN follows
some
engagement procedure to engage with a new or existing client but its
audit procedure does
not include anything about such engagement.

b) Management Letter:
In case of Chronological Sequence of Audit Procedure by Emile Woolf, the
auditor
provides only audit report to the interested parties who make their
economic decision on
the basis of such report.
In Baker Tilly Internationals Audit Procedure, auditor provides not only
audit report to
the interested parties but also management letter to the management of
the organization.
The principal purpose of a report to management is to enable the auditor
to give his

93

comments on the accounting records, systems and controls that he has

examined during
the course of his audit. Management letter helps the management to
focus on:
Significant areas of weakness in systems and controls that might lead to
material errors.
Areas where economies could be made or where resources could be
used more
efficiently.
Matters that have come to the auditor's attention during the audit that
might
have an impact on future audits.

94

SECTION -6
Finding &
recommendation

95

FINDING NO. 1
Involving in an audit engagement without having proper
knowledge of clients business.
Fact:
In most cases, when the firm gets a new client, partner/partners select
one of the
managers as the supervisor of the audit team. Then supervisor selects
some of the
students as the members of the audit team for such audit engagement
and the most senior
student is selected as the in charge of the team. Sometimes supervisor
does not give all
the members of the team an overall idea of the client, nature of its
business, its operation
etc. Only in charge is informed about the client and in charge also does
not discuss the
details of the clients business and its nature before going to the client.

Effect:
a. As the members do not know anything about the client, clients
business, they
have to give much time to understand clients business and then they can
start
their audit tasks. So the audit tasks take much time.

96

b. Because of members lacking in knowledge about the clients business,

they
sometimes fail to deal with the client and they have to depend on their in
charge
for doing any audit task.

FINDING NO. 2
Work programs are not followed properly.
Fact:
Work programs contain step by step instructions to carry out the audit
work. In
Shekhar Chandra , we have separate work programs for different sectors
of business. Work
programs are also developed for different account heads to make our
audit tasks easier.
But in most of the cases, work programs are not followed properly. In
some cases, we just
touch each account head but do not go to the deep of the head to save
our time.

Effect:
a. Because of avoiding work programs, we are not able to
obtain proper idea about
each account head.

97

b. We may sometimes miss some important issues to be

discussed.

FINDING NO. 3
Lack of supervision.
Fact:
According to the audit standards, all the audit tasks must be supervised
properly.
Appropriate supervision ensures the quality of the audit engagement. But
practically, this
does not happen in firm. In most of the cases, in charge distributes
different
account heads to different students and gives them some idea about such
heads. But later,
in charge does not supervise his juniors works properly.

Effect: Juniors may do something wrong or may collect some

unnecessary documents, may failto collect necessary/ required documents
and that cannot be checked and corrected
because of lack of supervision. As a result, when the partner/partners
check the working
paper files, junior students have to face some problems.

FINDING NO. 4
Limited time to complete an audit engagement.

98

Fact:
We have to carry out and complete our audit tasks within a limited time
period.
Sometimes, Client creates pressure to complete the audit and provide the
audit report
within very limited time as it he/she has to submit the audit report and
audited financial
statements to the Stock Exchange or Registrar of Joint Stock Companies
(in case of
private limited companies) within a fixed date. Sometimes, engagement
partner of such
engagement also creates pressure to complete audit work as early as
possible.

Effect:
Because of time limitation, we complete the audit engagement and
provide the audit
report very quickly. So, it is not possible to ensure the quality of the audit
work.
Sometimes some account heads may be untouched.
.

FINDING NO. 5
Difficulties in obtaining required audit evidences.
Fact:

99

Auditing standard suggests that sufficient and competent audit evidences

must be
collected and must be analyzed properly. Because of time limitation, it is
not possible to
test all the transactions. We identify some transactions having significant
amounts or we
feel significant, and test them and provide our opinion on the basis of
such transactions.
So, we try to collect all the evidences related to those transactions. But in
some cases,
management of clients are not interested or do not want to provide all the
necessary or
required documents because of their lack of knowledge about audit or
they want to hide
some illegal or wrong works done by them. Sometimes, we have to wait
2/3 days to get
our required documents. Sometimes, client lost the documents that are
helpful for our
tasks.

Effect:
If the client fails to provide the required and necessary documents, it is
difficult for us to
give or issue an appropriate audit opinion and provide the appropriate
audit report.

100

Recommendations
1.

Before going to the client, supervisor or in charge should give some brief

the clients business to all the members of the audit team.

2.

Work programs must be properly introduced to the juniors/ new students

followed as much as possible in each audit engagement.

In charge of an audit team must be ordered and properly instructed to

work of his juniors.

4.

An audit team should be given appropriate time (neither much nor less)

the entire audit work properly.

5.

Higher authority of the client must order or instruct the management to

Auditors the required documents

SECTION 7
101

CONCLUSION

CONCLUSION
Baker Tilly Internationals Audit Procedure describes the step by step
instructions of a
financial statement audit. This procedure is sufficient for CA FIRM . If all
these steps are
102

followed properly, it is possible to ensure a proper conduct of financial

statement audit.
But as I stated above, in some cases the auditors of Shekhar Chandra firm
violates some audit
standards and not carry out their audit tasks properly. As a result, the
quality of audit
work cannot be ensured all the time. But if all theses problems can be
removed,
Shekhar Chandra & Co. will be able to maintain its present status and
improve its position to
the client. So all the partners and the articled students of Shekhar
Chandra & Co. must be conscious about this matter.

103

Shekhar Chandra & Co.

Appendix1

Chartered Accountants
Client
Audit Year End
Internal Control Evaluation
1.Organization: Management
Comments/ Descriptions
has established and used
clearly specified delegation of
authority and responsibility

2. Segregation of duties: The

custodian function, recording
function and authorization
function has been done by
three different individuals
3. Physical: Safeguard of
assets with a policy, procedure
and its practice has been
ensured.
4. Authorization and
approval: Transaction
authorization & approval by a
specified authority.
5. Arithmetical and
accounting: Whether the
checking of arithmetical
accuracy, reconciliation,
correct recording has been
ensured.
6. Personnel: Qualification,
training, skill & competency of
personnel are adequate.
7. Supervision: Day to day
supervision, review, approval
of records, reconciliation,
transactions by responsible
officials.
8. Management: Budgetary
control and internal audit were
properly implemented and
practiced.

104

Overall conclusion:
Signature

Shekhar Chandra &co.

Date

Appendix-2

Chartered Accountants
Initials
Date
Done by ________ ____
Reviewed by________

Materiality Worksheet
Client Name.
Balance Sheet Date..

1. Unaudited total assets at balance sheet date

_____

2. Unaudited total revenues at balance sheet date

_____

3. Select the larger of line 1 or line 2

_____

4. Select a multiplier if audit risk is normal, or, if better than

_____
normal, select .01
5. Multiply line 3 by line 4

_____

6. Unaudited pretax income (or equivalent if not a for-profit

_____

entity)_
7. Select a multiplier if audit risk is normal, or, if better than
normal, select.1
8. Multiply line 6 by line 7

_____
_____

105

ACNABIN & Co.

Appendix-3

Chartered Accountants
Client..
Audit Year End
Client Profile & General Risk Assessment Memo

Planning/ GRA Item

Effectiveness

Understanding Client Business:

Managements Style, Outlook:
Significant Current Events and
Reporting Issues:
Results of Financial
Performance Review:
Significant or unusual variation,
changes from prior years or
from industry standards.
Industry Conditions and Issues:
Management Control
Environment:
Accounting System:-Policy
-Procedures
-Manual
Whether maintained, updated
and followed
Materiality Consideration:
Conclusion as per worksheet
Attached
Limitations of the Engagement,

106

Confirmed
through the
steps

Comments/
Remarks

_________
Signature
_______
Date

Planning/ GRA Item

Comments/Remarks

Effectiveness

Confirmed
through the
steps

Accounting Processing Method

EDP control : EDP hardware,
software, data management,
whether adequate
Audit Risks: Audit areas likely
to cause problems or require
unusual attention- going
concern, related party transaction
Reports: The kinds of Reporting
Environment
Conclusion: Overall Audit
approach:
1) Strong IC/ Test of IC System/
Limited Substantive Tests
2) Poor or non-existent IC /

----------------Signature

Minimal Test of IC System/

Extensive Substantive Tests

----------------Date

Coordination and Timing:

107

Client Letter Head

Appendix-4

Customer Name..............................
Address........................................
Sub: Accounts Receivable Confirmation
Dear Sir/ Madam,
In connection with the audit of our financial statements, please confirm
directly to our
Auditors Shekhar Chandra & Co., Chartered Accountants, Adarsh Market,
Tilak Road, Rishikesh the amount of your indebtedness to us which
according to our records as of (date) amounted to . -RS-----.If the amount shown is in agreement with your records. Please check A
below.If the amount is not in agreement with your records, please check
and complete B
below.
After checking the appropriate response, please sign and date your reply
and mail it
directly to our auditors in the enclosed envelope. DO NOT SEND ANY
PAYMENTS to
our auditors.
Very truly yours,
108

[Clients Authorized Signature]

A-------------- The balance above agrees with my records.
B--------------- my records show a balance of .-------------The difference may be due to the following
[Signed
-----------[Date]

Client Letter Head

Name of clients seller.
Address..
Sub: Accounts Payable Confirmation
Dear Sir/ Madam,
In connection with the audit of our financial statements, please confirm
directly to our
auditors ACNABIN & Co., Chartered Accountants, Adarsh Nagar,tilak road
Rishikesh 249201 the amount of our liability to you as of (date). Please
attach a statement of our account due. If no balance is due, please attach
a statement of our account showing payments made.
Please mail your reply directly to (name of auditors). A stamped,
addressed envelope is
enclosed for your convenience.
Very truly yours,
Clients Authorized Signature ---------------------------

109

Our records indicate that a balance of Tk. ----------------was from (name of

client) at
(date).
Date: --------------------- Signature: ------------------------Title: ---------------------------------

account work description finding/conclusion related to finding

reported to section title
paper
of
conclusion
Ref. Audit
Finding
Conclusion
Appendix-5
ACNABIN & Co.
Work

Cotroll compliance transaction material fudame-

audit

manage-

report

-ment

Chartered Accountants
System to law &

&

-ntal

Audit Findings & Conclusion

Summary
Regulation balance

letter
Client

validity by.....................
Prepared

Audit Year/period End.......................

by.....................

110

Reviewed

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Audit Manual, Shekhar Chandra & Co., Chartered Accountants
Arens A. A. and Loebbecke J.K. (1980, Auditing: An Integrated Approach,
First Edition, Prentice Hall International inc., New York.
Woolf E . Auditing Today, Latest Edition, Prentice Hall International Inc, New
York.
international Accounting Standards(BAS)
www.google.com

111