Change of audit firms and whether it enhances independence

• Main Author: Govender, Keshika
• Format: Others
• Language: en
• Published: 2020
• Subjects: Auditing > South Africa; Auditors; Emergency management
• Online Access: Govender, Keshika, (2018). Change of audit firms and whether it enhances independence, University of the Witwatersrand, https://hdl.handle.net/10539/29821; https://hdl.handle.net/10539/29821

A research report submitted In partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Commerce in Accounting, School of Accountancy University of Witwatersrand, 2018 === This paper explores the change in auditors and whether it enhances auditor independence and credibility of financial statements. In recent years due to financial crises and accounting scandals, the rotation of a company’s auditors, after long standing relationships, have come into the limelight. The independence of auditors has come into question and the credibility of financial statements. Interviews were conducted to gain an understanding of how an audit client, referred to in this report as the Company, changed its auditors. The interviews gained an understanding of how the Company: • Made the decision to change and appoint new auditors • Determined whether this change enhanced independence and • Created processes in order to manage the changeover. The Company carrying out the change was analysed in order to understand the processes which were put in place to manage the change. Understanding the criteria and skills required from the new auditor was also investigated. The study finds that the process of appointing and transitioning to new auditors is a comprehensive and rigorous task. This process requires proper and careful planning, risk identification and process and project management. Throughout the process, the Company met with business its operations and provided feedback to members of the boards to ensure gaps were filled and targets and milestones were met. The onboarding of the new auditors required engagement with both the auditors and different functions and businesses of the Company. The success of this project required intense planning and incredible momentum, which the study shows, over the period of time in which the change took place. It required integration with all businesses of the Company and the group finance function. === PH2020