The COVID-19 pandemic changed the ways we do business in almost every aspect of life. It brought about for the first time in history the culture of ‘Remoteness’; all the world started heavily practicing remote education, e-health and remote diagnosis, online meetings, remote audits, etc. This sudden change had implications on many aspects; institutions found that it is less costly and more revenue-generating to let their employees work from home; some institutions even decided to close their offices and totally switch to online business; also, e-commerce witnessed a big boom which led several stores to close their physical shops and grow their online presence instead. As a result, a new social and economic culture was very quickly culminated.

The pandemic had strong implications on the national level as well, with countries around the world realizing the importance of a very robust broadband connection and digital infrastructure. Most importantly, data protection dilemmas came strongly to the scene, urging countries to assess their data protection laws and regulations and firmly secure them so that all the data created and stored online would be secure and the online personal rights would not be infringed in any way.

The rise of remote auditing:

The audit industry witnessed the same impact, with the remoteness culture sweeping through, and the business started embracing online tools and mechanisms. This has led to the rise of ‘Remote Auditing.’. The techniques used in remote auditing are, generally, the online versions of the traditional methods, so the remote auditor performs the regular auditing functions, carrying out interviews, reviewing documentation and records, or observing processes and activities with the company’s team. The methods of the remote audit include sharing files through Google Drive, email, or by providing documents through sharing the desktop screen or via video conference using Zoom, Skype, etc., which is also used for interviews together with the phone.

There are generally two main approaches of practicing remote auditing; Fully remote audit-where the auditor is off-site, auditing from a remote office, or Partial remote audit- where the auditor is with the company at one of their locations, remotely auditing another site of the company.

Remote auditing provides lots of benefits and comes hand-in-hand with several challenges as well. Remote auditing saves time and money since most data is now accessible via cloud technology, so on-site auditing is becoming more costly, especially in comparison to the online alternative. It helps in avoiding travelling to complex premises, especially when interviews and even observations can be conducted through popular platforms like Skype or Zoom. This consequently, relieves the logistics burden related to travel arrangements and booking accommodation, leading to more efficiency and a reduced environmental footprint. Remote auditing gives more access to an expanded pool of available auditors, as well as a wide variety of data analytics tool, leading to higher performance.

Some other challenges to remote auditing relate to the fact that remote audits are not approved by some accreditation bodies and certifications.  Some of them still consider e-audits not to be valid and only approve traditional audits carried out on-site, even though specifications for e-auditing are included in ISO 19011:2018. The reason for this is that some accreditation and certification bodies have yet to determine the extent to which audit time can be conducted remotely while ensuring the collection of reliable audit evidence and trust in the audit results. They have expressed clear concerns about performing an entire audit without an on-site visit and harbor specific doubts regarding the reduction of on-site hours in favor of virtual work. This is in addition to connectivity issues that may hinder the remote auditing process, as well as the need to invest in technical training for the auditing team.

To find out more about the practice of remote auditing, the global accreditation organizations IAF and ILAC, along with the standards development organization ISO, carried out a survey in August 2021 on remote auditing techniques. The survey sought feedback from a diverse range of individuals, including both those who were subject to remote audits, assessments and evaluations and those delivering them. In total, 4350 complete responses were received. When asked to what extent organizations can benefit from remote techniques, 33% felt to a great extent, 57% to some extent, 8% not much and just 1% none. This strong positive view of remote techniques in the future was built on the experience’s respondents have had of remote: 71% were satisfied with their remote experience, 26% somewhat satisfied and just 4% dissatisfied.

The majority (53%) of respondents felt to some extent that preparation was more difficult and time-consuming with remote techniques. It was also clear that robust internet connectivity and IT security are necessary to deliver both confidence and positive results with remote techniques.

Best practices for effective remote auditing:

• Tackle the challenges facing remote auditing to create a resilient digital setting.
• Ensure effective data protection over the cloud.
• Secure a reliable broadband connection.
• Obtain the necessary software and relevant training.
• Leverage analytics and digital risk assessments to provide corrective actions and sustainability.
• Establish clear objectives and goals.
• Ensure adequate preparations, such as checking technology readiness and pre- communication with both teams.
• Use adequate audit management software for smooth and effective audit and analytical processes.

Remote audits have come to stay; their advantages are unquestionable over traditional audits.

With emerging technologies taking over, it is very likely that more companies and institutions will use remote audits. One potential application in the metaverse, for example, is remote auditing, which could potentially allow auditors to more effectively review and analyze information and records. Remote auditing, however, poses several challenges, as well. It is, therefore, important to prepare the environment for effective remote auditing so that we do not need to bargain for the accuracy of the audit process.

Ahmed Mamdouh & Co. Kreston Egypt is the ultimate support for your remote auditing: Whether you’re starting your remote auditing for the first time or looking to embrace selected remote auditing features besides your on-site normal auditing process, contact our expert team at Ahmed Mamdouh & Co. Kreston Egypt, who will be able to give guidance and advice about best options that will enable you to meet your goals.

References:

https://advisera.com/articles/what-are-benefits-and-barriers-when-performing-remote-audits/
https://www.bsigroup.com/en-CA/Our-services/Certification/remote-audit/
https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/ARJ-06-2023-0158/full/html
https://www.certaintysoftware.com/on-site-vs-remote-audits/
https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/audit/articles/three-insights-for-remote-auditing.html