While at work today, I was reminded of how much I never liked auditing. I dabbled in it in my time with the job in Hunt Valley, but I am a technical guy who just does not care terribly much for auditing. I tend to dislike it more since most of the time accountants are the individuals performing audits, normally from some script. It is entertaining talking technical items with folks who are, effectively reading from a script. (That is not to say that there are genuine smart auditors who want to learn the underlying technology they are investigating.)
Even for an IT geek such as myself, the fact that auditors speak their own language is so frustrating. I had a rather long email in which I had to explain discrepancies in a “baseline” of our access control lists. I probably spent about 90 minutes today getting everything straightened out for this response.
I understand the need for audits and compliance, and now that I work for a firm that falls under SOX compliance, it is the burden I bear in my group. As my manager put it, I am the SOX Compliance “Army of One” for our group when it comes to audit responses.
Best of all, there’s a phone call tomorrow!
{ 3 } Comments
I can understand your dislike of auditors. But you know what by having ‘to explain discrepancies in a “baseline” of our access control lists.’ you or maybe someone who follows you will know why that is the case rather than just ‘Well that’s the way it is’.
Paul: The problem with auditing is the obfuscating language of the profession. There are two things I don’t disagree with: 1.) identifying your weaknesses and/or shortcomings and 2.) documenting “why things are the way they are.”
My major sticking point is merely the language. And perhaps an overwhelming reliance on spreadsheets.
I completely understand, I don’t like audits either and I work in accounting, it always seems like its people who just don’t get basic concepts of normal day to day bookkeeping and its quite frustrating to explain in the language of auditors.
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