Auditing Assignment

Group Assignment theme:

Identifying and Assessing the Risks of Material Misstatement through Understanding the Entity and Its Environment.

Topic - Company name is caltex.

The objective of this project is to provide you with an opportunity to assess the business risks and perform analytical procedures for a real world company.

Introduction and Project Requirements

1. Prepare a Business Risk Analysis Project Report [Minimum of 3000 words] for the client/company in a group of 4 or 5 members.

2. If you have difficulties forming such groups, please contact your lecturer as soon as possible.

3. Get approval of the company/client (Any company listed with ASX and not taken by other group) from your lecturer, on which your group want to progressively analyze.

4. The project focuses on the following categories of information related the understanding the entity and its environment:

• Nature of the entity
• Industry, Regulatory, and External Factors
• Objectives Strategies, and Business Risks
• Entity Performance Measures and Monitoring
• Management
• Governance

Detail project tasks:

Part 1 - Understanding Nature of the entity

Matters that you may consider when obtaining an understanding of the nature of the entity include:

• Business operations
• Investments and investment activities
• Financing and financing activities
• Financial reporting practices

Part 2 - Understanding the Industry

a) Industry size

b) Industry growth

c) Industry supply chain

d) Major players

e) Market shares of Industry players

f) Critical success factors

g) Major threats

Part 3 - Understanding the legal environment

Relevant regulatory factors include the regulatory environment. The regulatory environment encompasses, among other matters, the applicable financial reporting framework and the legal and political environment.  

Part 4 - Understanding external environmental factors

a) PEST analysis

b) SWOT analysis

c) Porter's five forces analysis

d) other external factors affecting the entity that you may consider include the general economic conditions, interest rates and availability of financing, and inflation or currency revaluation.

Part 5 - Understand objectives, strategies and Assessing Business Risks

a) Industry developments (a potential related business risk might be, for example, that the entity does not have the personnel or expertise to deal with the changes in the industry).

b) New products and services (a potential related business risk might be, for example, that there is increased product liability).

c) Expansion of the business (a potential related business risk might be, for example, that the demand has not been accurately estimated).

d) New accounting requirements (a potential related business risk might be, for example, incomplete or improper implementation, or increased costs).

e) Regulatory requirements (a potential related business risk might be, for example, that there is increased legal exposure).

f) Current and prospective financing requirements (a potential related business risk might be, for example, the loss of financing due to the entity's inability to meet requirements).

g) Use of IT (a potential related business risk might be, for example, that systems and processes are incompatible).

h) The effects of implementing a strategy, particularly any effects that will lead to new accounting requirements (a potential related business risk might be, for example, incomplete or improper implementation).

Part 6 - Performing Analytical Procedures to understand Entity's Performance

You are also required to perform analytical procedures (ratio analysis) on the selected company for 3 years and compare those ratios across time, and to industry data or a major competitor.

Part 7 - Understand management and Governance

a) Communication and enforcement of integrity and ethical values - These are essential elements that influence the effectiveness of the design, administration and monitoring of controls.

b) Commitment to competence - Matters such as management's consideration of the competence levels for particular jobs and how those levels translate into requisite skills and knowledge.

c) Participation by those charged with governance - Attributes of those charged with governance such as:

• Their independence from management.
• Their experience and stature.
• The extent of their involvement and the information they receive, and the scrutiny of activities.
• The appropriateness of their actions, including the degree to which difficult questions are raised and pursued with management, and their interaction with internal and external auditors.

d) Management's philosophy and operating style - Characteristics such as management's:

• Approach to taking and managing business risks.
• Attitudes and actions toward financial reporting.
• Attitudes toward information processing and accounting functions and personnel.

e) Organisational structure - The framework within which an entity's activities for achieving its objectives are planned, executed, controlled, and reviewed.

f) Assignment of authority and responsibility - Matters such as how authority and responsibility for operating activities are assigned and how reporting relationships and authorisation hierarchies are established.

g) Human resource policies and practices - Policies and practices that relate to, for example, recruitment, orientation, training, evaluation, counselling, promotion, compensation, and remedial actions.

Format of the Report

1. You at least should have the following details:

a. Assignment Cover page clearly stating your members name and student number s

b. A table of contents, executive summary

c. A brief introduction or overview of what the report is about.

d. Body of the report with sections to answer the above sections and with appropriate section headings

e. Conclusion

f. List of references.

2. Diagrams and tables clearly labelled and explained.

3. Ensure all materials are correctly referenced. Plagiarism will be severely penalised.