SAP Audit Management

What is Audit Management?

Audit management is an important process for companies looking to stay ahead of external and internal audits, stay compliant, and save time when it comes to auditing. Audit management seeks to correctly implement board-approved audit directives.

What is Audit Management?

Audit management is an important process for companies looking to stay ahead of external and internal audits, stay compliant, and save time when it comes to auditing. Audit management seeks to correctly implement board-approved audit directives.

What is SAP Audit Management?

SAP Audit Management can help ensure company processes around SAP and the data it contains are followed. Struggling to meet audit standards and stay compliant can have major consequences for companies — from external fines to the breakdown of internal processes. Staying on top of audit management requires work and documentation. If done manually, it can be an arduous process with a high potential for error. That’s where companies turn to automation and audit assistant through technology.

Audit management software may include some or all of the following features:

• Risk evaluation
• Audit metrics reporting and dashboarding
• Digitization of audit documents
• Audit report automation
• Issues tracking and monitoring

Vendors such as Protiviti and RSM provide audit management solutions that seek to automate much of the audit management process. Additionally, tax-focused vendors such as Vertex have tools that automate compliance, which will ultimately making audits easier through better reporting and fewer issues.

Key Considerations for SAPinsiders:

• In our recent GRC research, we found rapid changes within compliance and data privacy regulations to be a top driver. However, only about a quarter of companies surveyed said they were looking to grow internal audit as a skillset. This suggests that many companies have what they need for internal audits — if your company does not, you may be falling behind.
• In that same research, we found audit management to be one of the most used GRC solutions, in place at over half of organizations. Improving GRC automation was a top strategy, while facilitating audit planning and performance was also a top strategy. Leading companies are prioritizing audit planning and performance and looking to automate.
• Audit your audit planning process. Regulations around data privacy have made major changes in recent years, and regulatory requirements are likely to continue to change more frequently than we’ve seen before. Planning for audits and conducting regular internal audits is important, and you may need to find a way to be more agile to stay compliant. Of course, getting GRC processes streamlined and consistent in the first place will also help audit planning.