Assurance

Audit Methodology

We perform audit work and assist in the preparation of your financial statements in which we can detect and identify areas for improvement in your accounting systems. As part of our services, we submit a recommendation letter to help you improve internal control procedures, operational effectiveness and efficiency, and financial reporting.

The Audit, A-five-step approach

Planning

In this phase we obtain an understanding of the entity’s operations, control environment, accounts and information systems.

Risk assessment

We use our understanding of the entity’s internal control system and operations to identify the inherent audit risks and strengths of its businesses and information systems. By performing this risk assessment, we can customize our audit approach to focus our efforts on key areas.

Testing and evaluation of controls

We will evaluate the entity’s operations and its internal control system. Based on the results of this evaluation, we determine the extent of our substantive testing.

Substantive testing

When appropriate, we use audit software to perform substantive testing. This enables us to retrieve information from data files, if needed, without affecting the integrity of the data.

Concluding and reporting

We conclude and report on both, financial statement and internal control letters, to meet requested reporting deadlines. Drafts of all of our reports are provided to management for their input and review shortly after the conclusion of our fieldwork.

Detailed planning and use of technology increases engagement efficiency, enabling us to provide timely delivery of services.

Each Grant Thornton member firm follows a consistent approach so clients are assured that the same high-quality standard will be provided, regardless of the jurisdiction. Horizon, Grant Thornton’s audit methodology, is designed to deliver a consistent standard of audit service to clients, no matter where they operate. Audit teams, therefore, avoid the need to reconcile documentation from a patchwork of different tools. Grant Thornton member firms apply Horizon using a proprietary software tool called Voyager.

International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS)

Many countries have adopted International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) due to requirements of the International Accounting Standards Board or by recommendation of a specific jurisdiction. We may assist you with the following:

• assisting management with the evaluation and selection of IFRS accounting policies;
• evaluating the necessary adjustments to align the entity’s financial reporting with the proper basis of accounting;
• assisting in the preparation of the financial statements and applicable disclosures and communications; and
• providing IFRS training to your accounting personnel.

We have developed a significant understanding of how to mitigate risks and adhere do regulatory requirements.

A Compliance audit consists of obtaining sufficient and appropriate audit evidence to form an opinion and report at the level specified by a Governmental or other Regulatory Agency, as to whether an entity complied in all material respects with the applicable compliance requirements. It also consists of identifying the audit and reporting requirements specified in the audit requirements that are supplementary to General Accepted Auditing Standards, if any, and perform procedures to address those requirements.

Compilation & Review services results in a report on the financial statements that provides a reduced level of assurance as compared to an audit.

For compilations, we assist management in presenting financial information in the form of financial statements without providing any assurance, that there are no material modifications that should be made to the financial statements, to ensure conformity with the applicable financial reporting framework.

We also perform review procedures in which we obtain limited assurance that there are no material modifications that should be made to the financial statements, in order for the statements be in conformity with the applicable financial reporting framework. In a review engagement, we accumulate review evidence to obtain a limited level of assurance.

Agreed upon procedures engagements do not satisfy any assurance requirements. However, they do permit us to assist you in the assessment of your accounting records and procedures.

An agreed-upon-procedures engagement is one in which we are engaged by a client to perform specific procedures and report findings to conform to your needs. Consequently, we do not perform an audit or provide an opinion relating to the subject matter or assertion about the subject matter.