Auditing is a time-consuming task for businesses to complete but it’s a necessity to ensure your business is running at maximum effort and has the ability to reach its full potential.
Financial audits give business owners much needed clarity on their current financial position and give them the opportunity to analyse their business strategies and potentially explore growth plans.
They are important, given it is law to complete audits and preparation for financial audits is key.
What can financial audits do for my business?
Financial audits showcase your business finances, outlining expenditure, revenue, salaries, costs and more. They give you the perfect picture of how your business is performing, what can be done better and an overall financial standpoint.
While it is a legal obligation and you need to meet your regulator’s compliance legislation, financial audits allow you to plan, introduce new processes and explore opportunities to increase revenue.
Having that clear picture of your businesses’ finances enables you to build a platform for growth and success. You may be thinking about hiring new staff, offering new services or opening a new office or site.
An audit will highlight all aspects of your finances and from this, you can if there is financial scope or further planning is needed.
It a time-consuming exercise which is why it is essential the right people with auditing expertise and precision are conducting your financial audits to ensure you receive all information and data.
How can you prepare for a financial audit?
To make the process easier and more efficient for your internal or external auditing team, there are precautionary steps you take for an effective financial audit.
You should gather all financial information, organise your documents and prepare financial reports accordingly so your team of auditors can start the process quickly.
Having this information available at the beginning of the process means the analysis process can start imminently and your auditors have the tools to create an effective audit.
It would also help if you understood the auditing requirements needed to meet your compliance obligations. Having knowledge like this means you can organise your team internally or hire the right auditor if you need external services.
Perhaps the most important thing you can do to prepare for a financial audit is communicate openly and honestly with your auditor. Having an open dialogue ensures you auditor understands your business.
They can also highlight if the initial information you told correlates with their findings. That open dialogue is so important as without that, you auditor cannot complete their audit effectively.
Preparation is key and having plans in place ahead of an audit should make the process smoother, easier for your auditor and less time consuming.
What is the best way to prepare?
You should take the steps above to prepare for a financial audit, but it does no harm speaking to auditing and accounting experts who can suggest the best ways to prepare and give you the tools to ensure your audit is effective.
They can offered tailored advice and support to tackle audits confidently and effectively. It could be the first step in elevating your business to new heights.
Need support with audits? Get in touch with our team today