How will you keep records of audits?

Good question. Thank you.

Any organisation should have records management policy, and that should include:

• Define the information that needs to be kept in order to be able to account for audit work and decisions;
• Set out the aims and objectives for the management of internal audit information
• Establish responsibilities for the maintenance of information
• Provide a filing structure that will allow information to be efficiently retrieved by those with a right to do so for as long as the records need to be kept
• Provide guidelines about securing information
• Define retention periods, archival and disposal procedures for the various types of information kept
• State how requests for information will be dealt with, ensuring that disclosure is properly controlled
• Outline appropriate legislation and regulations relevant to the environment in which the internal audit service operates

Papers of all financial transaction shall be kept in file with all supporting documents.

Payment Process documentation

1.   The signed document for availability of fund for project activity

2.   Request for fund an execution of approved project activity

3.   Expenditure process: Purchase order, long term contract copy, agreement with other parties for fund disbursement, operational  activities

4.   The supplier’s invoice

5.   Work Completion Certificate and approval  for payment

6.   Fund disbursement through Electronic transfer or cheque

7.   Bank payment confirmation through Bank statement

 Filing:

All the above documents shall be kept in proper file and shall remain in custody of an official for checking by the Audit.

Retention:

All such files shall be retained for at least7 years

Physical verification:

The audit committee may like to see the physical things or output against any budget activity on random sampling basis

You need to create records, in our organization audit findings are issued Corrective/Preventive Action request. We use CAPA for the documentation and record keeping of audit findings.

1st a Master file hard copy original records

2nd.  By soft copy as backup

We have Internal and External audit which the records were kept close watch for review and check proceses whether the findings are closed or repeated through CAPA register. The same reports has been circulated to all concerns, notice board & record file. Records of completed corrective action were reviewed through management chain and filed for use during next audit. The final reports can be viewed by offcials through company's network drive.

Keep records in any comfortable and safe way (as computer file on the hard disk, in paper form)

Make it simple keep in your computer for easy access for anybody inside your Industry.

We create records pertaining to each audit (such as NCR - Non Conformity Reports, Corrective and Preventive Action Reports, Final Audit Report, Etc). Once the audit is completed and the NCR's (if any) are closed. We save these documents in the Network Drive to be accessible (Only Read access) to all parties concerned.

We have a Specific Directory in the company Network drive for storing all these documents related to the audit.

Also, we have a written procedure in the company that states "all records need to be stored for a period of atleast 3 years".