Introduction
The programme “Auditing Financial Statements in Accordance with Standards” develops professional practice in Finance. It connects the subject with workplace challenges by examining existing evidence and practices and choosing methods appropriate to the organization and its available resources.
The learning progresses from risk-based auditing and evidence gathering to investment appraisal and scenario development, with practical work on financial statement and report analysis, cash, liquidity, and working capital management, financial planning and budget development. Participants prepare outputs to support workplace application and review the quality and results of implementation.
Learning objectives
- Design an audit engagement connecting risks, objectives, tests, and evidence in an application related to “Auditing Financial Statements in Accordance with Standards”.
- Interpret performance, financial position, and cash flows using documented analysis with clear limitations.
- Prepare a cash forecast and options for addressing liquidity and working capital gaps.
- Build an integrated budget, test its scenarios, and monitor variances.
- Compare investment opportunities according to expected returns, risks, liquidity, and assumptions.
Learning areas
1. Risk-Based Auditing and Evidence Gathering
- Define the engagement subject, objectives, scope, and assessment criteria, and develop an initial understanding of the process and its main risks.
- Assess control design and suitability for the objectives, and select tests and samples proportionate to risk levels and available data.
- Collect sufficient, appropriate evidence, document sources and verification procedures, and maintain independence, objectivity, and information confidentiality.
- Write a finding connecting the criterion, condition, cause, and effect, and discuss the response and agreed action with the relevant party.
- Prepare a clear report and action follow-up plan, applying current professional requirements relevant to the audit type and work environment. The application examines a case related to “Auditing Financial Statements in Accordance with Standards”.
2. Financial Statement and Report Analysis
- Read the relationships between the statements of financial position, performance, and cash flows and the notes, identifying the effects of accounting policies and estimates.
- Perform horizontal and vertical analysis and compare profitability, liquidity, efficiency, and leverage indicators, considering the nature and size of the business.
- Examine earnings quality, cash flows, and nonrecurring items, and identify differences between accounting results and actual liquidity.
- Test the sensitivity of results to changes in sales, costs, collections, and financing, stating the assumptions and constraints in each scenario.
- Write a financial report linking indicators to management's question and available alternatives, presenting risks and additional data needed for the decision.
3. Cash, Liquidity, and Working Capital Management
- Analyze the cash cycle from purchasing to collection, identifying the effects of inventory, receivables, and payment terms on financing needs.
- Forecast receipts and payments by maturity, and document data sources and the likelihood of delays in expected cash flows.
- Classify receivables and debt aging, track collections and settlements, and connect follow-up actions to approved authorities and policies.
- Compare options for addressing deficits or deploying surpluses according to cost, liquidity, risk, and contractual constraints requiring review.
- Test a cash stress scenario, set alert thresholds and escalation actions, and update forecasts based on actual results.
4. Financial Planning and Budget Development
- Translate objectives into quantitative assumptions for sales or services and resources, identifying the owner and data source of each estimate.
- Build revenue, expenditure, and capital budgets and link them to cash flows, checking consistency across supporting plans.
- Compare fixed budgets, flexible budgets, and rolling forecasts, and select an approach suited to business volatility and decision frequency.
- Test base, conservative, and optimistic scenarios, and analyze the effects of the variables with the greatest influence on results and liquidity.
- Prepare a variance report distinguishing changes in volume, price, and efficiency, and propose actions, responsibilities, and follow-up dates.
5. Investment Appraisal and Scenario Development
- Define the investment objective, time horizon, constraints, and risk tolerance, separating organizational objectives from individual preferences.
- Collect cash flow, cost, demand, and financing data, document sources, and distinguish actual historical data from forecasts.
- Compare appraisal methods suited to the case, examining discount rate, growth, and terminal value assumptions and the comparability of alternatives.
- Conduct sensitivity and scenario analysis for risk, liquidity, and concentration, stating that estimated results do not guarantee future returns.
- Prepare a decision memo presenting the benefits and risks of alternatives and the gaps requiring further due diligence before an investment decision.
Practical outputs
- An audit engagement program, working papers, and an actionable finding.
- A comparative financial analysis report and a memo of findings and assumptions.
- A cash flow forecast and a plan to improve collections and the cash conversion cycle.
- An operating and cash budget, assumptions register, and variance report.
- An investment appraisal model, sensitivity analysis, and memo comparing alternatives.
Who should attend
- Practitioners, specialists and supervisors whose work relates to the programme subject.
- Managers and teams working in finance, according to their practical responsibilities.
- Professionals responsible for applying the outputs of “Auditing Financial Statements in Accordance with Standards” within their organizations.
Prerequisites
- Working familiarity with the programme field and the ability to discuss a professional case or challenge.
- Confirm the suitability of your experience and any specialist prerequisites with the Union before participation.
Conclusion
The programme “Auditing Financial Statements in Accordance with Standards” brings together concepts, case review and a practical application. Participants prepare steps that can be adapted to their responsibilities and organizational resources, with an indicator to follow application and review results after returning to work.
Participation arrangements and any special requests are specified in the confirmation issued by the Union.