Branimira Assenova Koleva
Analytical Procedures as a Means of Optimising Auditing
Summary:
Audit literature provides many definitions of the nature of an audit. In general, they all boil down to focusing on audit outcomes, namely, establishing that financial statements comply with accounting standards. An audit is an independent examination, and an auditor assumes responsibility for expressing a true and fair opinion on financial statements for the public benefit. Achieving high-quality audits requires collecting and evaluating objectively the evidence obtained for economic actions and events. However, an auditor has a limited amount of time to process large volumes of information, so in terms of quality and time, their work can be optimized through analytical procedures.
According to the International Standards on Auditing, an audit involves analytical procedures throughout the process. Analytical procedures evaluate financial information through analysis of plausible relationships among both financial and non-financial data. The aim is to obtain quality audit evidence in a more timely and cost-effective manner. Applying analytical procedures reduces audit work and improves its efficiency. They are essential for risk assessment in both planning and fraud and error detection. The proper application of analytical procedures is a prerequisite for carrying out a quality audit and taking an adequate audit decision regarding management’s assertions in the financial statements. It is, therefore, necessary to maintain the professional qualification of independent auditors, not only as hours and types of seminars of auditors’ own choice, but also to make them mandatory in terms of regulations, which need to be amended accordingly. I believe that attending seminars is not sufficient to enhance an auditor’s expert knowledge. It would be good to pass a test each year as some form of verification to confirm the knowledge acquired.
