In today’s audit environment there is a lot of discussion around audit functions “adding value.” Audits are time consuming and costly, and they’re often a source of frustration for the audit client. Why? As auditors we often hear that the “auditor(s) just doesn’t understand my business.” The business can feel this way as a reaction to the proposed action and remediation plan. If an audit team doesn’t perform effective root cause analysis, then the recommended action often will not solve the root cause of the issue and problems will persist.

To truly add value, an audit must address the root causes of the issues and exceptions identified, not just the symptoms. This course will introduce the various tools and methodologies used for root cause analysis and show how to apply them to the audit process. Participants will learn interactively through a combination of lecture, case studies, and exercises.