Question 1

What Is a Compliance Audit?

Accepted Answer

Compliance auditing evaluates whether a company is following external regulations, but it can also be used internally. For example, a compliance audit might be performed to determine whether a subsidiary company follows the wider corporation’s procedures and policies.

While internal audits ensure that a company follows its own procedures, compliance audits ensure that it meets outside regulatory standards. The main difference between the two types of auditing processes is in who sees the results. Information obtained during an internal audit is usually not shared with external organizations, but compliance audit results are meant to be shared with outside regulators or board members.

Question 2

Who Needs Compliance Audits?

Accepted Answer

Most organizations that need to meet some type of regulatory standard (FFIEC, NYDFS, GLBA, etc.) go through a compliance audit. Certain industries, such as banking and finance, have more stringent compliance requirements than others. As such, compliance audits may be industry specific. Often, compliance audits are dictated by an organization’s outside regulators and customers. Typically, compliance audits are the responsibility of the compliance, internal audit, or legal teams. The board of directors and senior management oversee many of the compliance audit activities. However, who is responsible for compliance audits differs at each organization.

Question 3

What Is the Purpose of Compliance Audits?

Accepted Answer

Compliance auditing can help a company identify weaknesses in regulatory compliance processes and create paths for improvement. There are different types of compliance assessments, including local law, rules, and regulatory requirements; external assessments; and internal policy and procedures assessments. Aside from signifying compliance with professional standards, compliance audits are important because they identify areas of noncompliance. Penalties for noncompliance can include extensive fines and reputational harm. Organizations can avoid damaging penalties by completing compliance audits on a regular basis.

Question 4

How Can I Manage Compliance Audits with AuditBoard?

Accepted Answer

Elevate and deliver value throughout the compliance audit process — including planning, fieldwork, testing, reporting, and enhanced stakeholder engagement — in one simple platform. OpsAudit centralizes and streamlines all aspects of the audit and related risk analysis, allowing audit teams to accelerate executive reporting, focus on strategic initiatives, and further collaborate with stakeholders. Get real-time visibility into the status of your audit plan, issue reporting, and remediation status.

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