Corporate Executive: SPECIALISED AUDIT SERVICES & AUDIT RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT AND QUALITY CONTROL at Auditor-General of South Africa

Job description
Requirement Overview

To provide strategic direction to the Specialised Audit Services Business Units (Performance Audit, Information Systems Audit and Investigations ), Audit Research and Development and Quality Control to ensure alignment with the strategic plan of the AGSA. To drive and guide these business units to ensure integration with the audit portfolios by providing useful insights on key issues that need to be incorporated into the BU strategic plans.

To report directly to the National Leader: Audit Services on all leadership and management matters regarding the Portfolio.

Roles & Responsibilities

STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION

SPECIALISED AUDIT SERVICES & TECHNICAL SUPPORT

• Ensure the work of Specialised Audit Services BU’s (Information Systems Audit, Investigation and Performance Audit) are integrated into the regularity audit processes so as to provide useful insights to the audit portfolios on key issues that need to be incorporated into the audit plans
• Enhance the ability to provide feedback on status of service delivery through predetermined objectives audit.
• Guide and advice SAS BU’s on the role these BU’s play in adding value by focussing on audit areas that matters thereby achieving the AGSA’s strategic goal.
• Position the SAS BU’s in such a manner that the regularity audit business units and auditees value the contribution that SAS is making to the audits and ensuring an integrated audit team.
• Ensure that a significant contribution is made in respect of the General Report
• Scanning of the national and international environment to ensure that the portfolio is aligned with industry standards.
• Represent the AGSA in the specialist areas of Performance Audit, Information Systems Audit and Investigations at International Conferences.
• Present at international and national conferences.
• Guide and drive integration within the Specialised Audit Services BU’s (SAS), Quality Control and ARD.

INFORMATION SYSTEMS AUDIT (ISA)

• Align ISA strategies with that of the AGSA to ensure that information systems audits receive renewed and heightened focus due to strategic positioning of IT environments in government.
• Ensure the work of the ISA business unit is integrated into the regularity audit process by actively seeking opportunities to influence regularity audit to incorporate the skills set of the ISA business unit especially on high risk audits .
• Provide guidance to the BE of ISA on the strategic role that the specialist areas within ISA would need to play in audits i.e. CAATS, ERP, and Network Security
• Guide the ISA BU to develop the project assurance
• methodology, AGSA data analytics strategic project,
• ISA learner-ship and development programmes for the AGSA.

PERFORMANCE AUDIT (PABU)

• Guide and advise the BE of PABU to develop and implement the strategies to ensure a valuable contribution to integrated audits as well as standalone audits.
• Ensure that PABU is positioned within the AGSA to promote specialist contribution to integrated audits and thereby providing value for money to the auditee.
• Through consultation with the executive leadership of the AGSA identify potential further specialist areas over and above the current areas of Health, Infrastructure and Education.

INVESTIGATIONS BUSINESS UNIT (IBU)

• Guide the BE of IBU on strategies to partner with regularity to conduct thorough investigations into high risk transactions identified during regularity audit.
• Provide direction in order for IBU to develop strategies to position the Investigations unit to provide fraud risk assessment and pursue high risk deficiencies.

QUALITY CONTROL (QC)

• Oversee that technical guidance to audit portfolios geared at improving overall quality outcomes.
• Guide interaction with the executive leadership of AGSA to ensure that consistent communication on the quality of the audits that are executed by internal and CWC auditors.
• Guide and advise the BE of QC to ensure adherence, through monitoring, to quality control standards and processes in all key audit and non-audit business products.

AUDIT RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT (ARD)

• Guide the BE of ARD to ensure that technical support, standards and guidance to the audit business units is provided.
• Through the environmental scanning advise and support the BE of ARD to develop and implement of new audit approaches, methods and procedures
• Provide support to the BU to ensure the compatibility and congruence of audit guidelines with AGSA accordingly.
• Guide and advise the BE to ensure that the integration of the functions of accounting, auditing, legislation, corporate governance and ethics are implemented into technical guidance.
• Support the BE of ARD by using the information from the environmental scanning to ensure that the impact of research outcomes is assessed on a continuous basis and advise the leadership and technical specialist within AGSA accordingly.

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

• Comprehensive budgets for the Business Units
• Cost and expenditure management and control
• Appropriate and reasonable savings
• Strategic financial plans for medium and long term

RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT

• Direct interaction and building of stakeholder relationships
• Stakeholder interests considered, addressed and optimised
• Internal and relevant external partnerships created and maintained
• Updated information and ongoing education of stakeholders
• Building of AGSA reputation and public image through exemplary and effective championship

ADVISORY ROLE TO THE NATIONAL LEADER

• Advise on policy coordination and implementation
• Advise on business process improvement and alignment to overall business strategy
• Advise on strategic issues affecting the AGSA

ORGANISATIONAL PROCESSES

• Facilitate change management and transformation in BU’s linked to CE Portfolio
• Establishment of effective governance structures and processes
• Ongoing research and development on specific BU related processes
• Adequate ongoing environmental scanning and analysis to stay relevant and effective
• Managing of AGSA brand and image in Non-Regularity Audit Portfolio area
• Cross-influencing all BU’s to champion Projects and initiatives initiated in own CE Portfolio
• Represent the organisation on relevant Boards as required.

PEOPLE MANAGEMENT AND EMPOWERMENT

• Strategy to acquire and enhance competence in corporate area
• Implementation of performance management systems and processes
• Coaching and mentoring of BE’s and senior staff reporting.

Qualifications

Skills, Experience & Education

• Relevant prescribed Audit qualification; ( CA(SA); RGA;ACCA)
• Post Graduate qualification in Business. Administration/Management or Commercial field
• Masters Degree in Business Administration is an advantage

Experience

• At least 5 years experience in Financial/Auditing environment
• At least 5 years Executive Management experience
• Experience in the strategic coordination of the core activities in an organisation