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December 2009 |  BY MICHAEL RAMOS, CPA |  Article

The aim of the risk assessment auditing standards was to improve the quality and effectiveness of audits by substantially changing audit practice. Statements on Auditing Standards nos. 104� provide increased rigor to the audit process in a number of key areas including the assessments of inherent and control risks and the linking of these risk assessments to further audit procedures.

September 2009 |  BY Thomas A. Ratcliffe, CPA, and Charles E. Landes, CPA |  Article

This white paper written by Thomas A. Ratcliffe and Charles E. Landes and prepared by the AICPA Audit and Attestation Standards and Professional Publications teams seeks to clear up confusion among practitioners relating to the concept of internal control over financial reporting. It describes the concepts of internal control (specifically internal control over financial reporting) and discusses the types of services related to internal control that may be performed by practitioners in public practice.

September 2009 |  Article

The Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) on Tuesday published a document to help boards of directors strengthen their oversight of enterprise risks. The fourpage paper, Effective Enterprise Risk Oversight The Role of the Board of Directors, calls attention to COSO’s Enterprise Risk Management—Integrated Framework (2004) and its definition of ERM.

February 2009 |  Article

The Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) released guidance designed to help organizations better monitor the effectiveness of their internal control systems and to take swift corrective action if needed. The guidance, developed by COSO in a project led by a Grant Thornton LLP team, recognizes that while many organizations effectively monitor their internal control, some fail to take full advantage of the information gathered.

August 2008 |  Article

The Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) released an exposure draft, Guidance on Monitoring Internal Control Systems . Developed by COSO through a process led by a Grant Thornton LLP team, the guidance is designed to help organizations monitor the quality of their internal control systems.

April 2008 |  BY Mark S. Beasley, Bruce C. Branson, Bonnie V. Hancock |  Article

Recent events such as the massive trading losses at Societe Generale, the subprime lending crisis and product recalls associated with Mattel's international toy manufacturing operations continue to shock financial markets and negatively impact shareholder value. These events have also fostered rising expectations for boards of directors to exert greater oversight of their organizations' risk management processes, leading in turn to the growth of enterprise risk management (ERM) as a strategic planning tool.

November 2007 |  Article

The AICPA’s Professional Ethics Executive Committee (PEEC) issued an exposure draft, Interpretation 10117, Networks and Network Firms, under Rule 101, Independence, of the AICPA Code of Professional Conduct. Along with new or revised definitions for network, network firm and firm, the ED proposes that when CPA firms form associations with other firms and entities to provide professional services, they may share characteristics that classify them as networks and must therefore be independent of certain attest clients of the other network firms.

August 2007 |  Article

Chief audit executives reported relatively high competency levels in the technical areas important to internal audit but said there’s still room for improvement. The top responsibilities needing improvement were “Need to Improve” Rank General Technical Knowledge Competency 1 COSO Enterprise Risk Management Framework 3.2 2 Enterprise Risk Management 3.6 3 International Financial Reporting Standards 2.3 4 Fraud Risk Management 3.3 5 Six Sigma 2.5 Note Competency assessed on

March 2007 |  BY Larry E. Rittenberg, Frank Martens, Charles E. Landes |  Article

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In its most recent guidance for compliance with SarbanesOxley section 404 requirements for smaller entities, the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) has provided principles and examples of effective internal control. Titled Internal Control Over Financial Reporting—Guidance for Smaller Public Companies, the guidance emphasizes the business function and costeffectiveness of internal control.

July 2006 |  BY John A. Fogarty, Lynford Graham, Darrel R. Schubert |  Article

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The new audit risk standards require the auditor to understand and respond to risks of material misstatement, whether due to errors or fraud. In reaching that understanding, auditors should identify risks to the entity’s business and the controls in place to mitigate them.