Audit & Assurance / Internal Audit & Controls
Internal Audit & Control Review
Risk-based internal audit and control reviews that tell management what is actually happening inside their own processes.
Overview
What this means in practice
As businesses grow, processes outgrow the informal controls that once worked. The internal audit and control review practice examines how procurement, payroll, revenue, inventory and compliance cycles actually operate (not how they are described) and reports gaps with practical, prioritised fixes. The work is sized for SMEs and family-owned businesses: useful findings and workable recommendations, not framework theatre.
Who this is for
- ✓SMEs whose growth has outpaced their original processes and controls
- ✓Family-owned businesses professionalising operations across generations
- ✓Management teams that want independent eyes on cash, inventory and approvals
- ✓Companies preparing for statutory audit, funding or expansion
What we help with
Risk-based internal audit plans focused on the cycles that matter most
Process walkthroughs for procurement, payroll, revenue, inventory and expenses
Control gap assessment with severity-ranked, practical recommendations
Standard operating procedure and authority matrix recommendations
Follow-up reviews to confirm that agreed fixes were actually implemented
Documents typically required
- ✓Organisation chart and authority or approval matrix
- ✓Existing process notes or SOPs, where they exist
- ✓Ledgers and transaction data for the cycles under review
- ✓Bank, inventory and vendor records for sample testing
- ✓Previous audit observations, internal or statutory
Common Questions
Questions clients bring to this practice
Do you know where cash, inventory or approvals leak in your business?
Are your processes documented anywhere other than in employees' heads?
Would your controls hold if a key person left tomorrow?
Our Process
A structured CA-led process from records to resolution.
Agree the scope and risk priorities with management
Walk through processes with the people who run them and test real transactions
Report gaps with severity, business impact and a practical fix for each
Return after an agreed interval to verify implementation
FAQs
Common questions, answered plainly
How is internal audit different from statutory audit?
Statutory audit gives an opinion on the financial statements for external stakeholders. Internal audit works for management, it examines processes and controls, finds leakages and weaknesses, and recommends fixes. One is about the numbers; the other is about how the numbers get made.
How often should an SME do an internal audit?
A focused review once or twice a year covers most SMEs well. High-volume cycles such as cash handling, inventory or branch operations may justify quarterly coverage.
Will the review disrupt our operations?
No. Fieldwork is scheduled around your operating rhythm, and most evidence comes from records and short walkthroughs with process owners rather than long interruptions.
What does the report look like?
A concise document: what we tested, what we found, the business impact of each gap, and a prioritised fix. We present it to management directly and agree on owners and timelines for closure.
Can you design controls for a business that has none?
Yes. For younger or fast-growing businesses we often start by designing a basic control set (approvals, reconciliations, segregation of duties) rather than auditing controls that do not yet exist.