THE PARTICIPATIVE AUDIT
CONTACT INFORMATION
contact organisation: Service General D'Audit Budgetaire et Financier
contact city: Brussels
contact country: Belgium
contact telephone: +32 2 413 34 52/28 56
contact fax: +32 2 413 21 90
contact email: jean-michel.cassiers@cfwb.be
contact website: www.audit.cfwb.be
DESCRIPTION OF THE BEST PRACTISE CASE
sector: Central and Regional Government
Is the project a joint venture? No
What key words would you use to describe this project? Internal audit, participation, trans-versal approach, internal control, efficiency, quality, follow-up
What can the participants of 3QC learn from this best practice case? How to conduct an in-ternal audit in the public sector. If the audit is conducted by the organisation itself, there is no risk of alienating the people involved. Visit this workshop and hear about the participative approach of the French Community in Belgium that superseded the external audits.
THE AIMS OF THE PROJECT
What are the aims of the project?
- The participative approach, adapted to the specificity of the public sector, has the aim of being a lever to convey changes and to contribute to a modern and efficient administration.
- Improving the services that are supplied to the users of the French Community in Belgium.
Have these aims been quantified? No
Are the aims recorded? Yes
Where are the aims recorded? The objectives are recorded in four documents: The Audit Charter, the Audit Handbook, the Quality Plan and the so-called "Mission notification" of the General Manager of the internal Audit Department.
THE IMPLEMENTATION
What steps were taken to achieve the aim? 1. Developing internal skills: training to risk analysis and internal audit by professionals of the auditing sector, implementation of this methodology during a pilot experiment and, finally, formalization of an own methodology for the internal Audit Department, 2. Promoting new leadership and new management organi-zation of the internal Audit Department: supervising by hierarchy, empowerment, involve-ment of all agents through dialogue, open communication and regular department meet-ings, 3. Developing permanent communication with audited departments: preparatory meet-ings, contradictory processes, and conclusion meetings, 4. Implementing assessment ses-sions and follow-up of auditing missions.
Describe if and how the project was structurally embedded into the business operations:
The participative audit, as best practice, is implemented within the management and the everyday tasks of the internal Audit Department thanks to three elements: Involving all de-partment members in the participative approach, implementing the principles of the audit handbook in which everyday practice is described, with due respect to the principles defined by best practice and building up a Quality Plan including actions so as to be sure that meth-ods are conveniently implemented and aimed at their permanent improvement.
Specify (to benefit the learning effect) the primary obstacles during the implementation of the project. How were these overcome? 1. A negative feeling about Auditing in the depart-ments of the Ministry and ignorance of additional value brought by the internal Audit De-partment. This was overcome through adequate communication and participative approach including contradictory process and the involvement of audited departments. For this, re-source persons were identified and appointed to have a privileged communication with the Audit Department.
Were there positive or negative side effects? Positive side effects: Strengthening contacts with partners. External auditing bodies, such as Court of Audit of Belgium, Inspection of Fi-nance, can rely on the internal Audit Department to be successful in their own reformation process. Negative side effects: Necessity of constantly adapting management and human resources to the yearly increasing amount of missions.
THE RESULT
Has an evaluation by citizens (or companies) been conducted? Yes
If so, explain the results of the evaluations:1) Internal evaluation through the CAF (Common Assessment Framework) and validation by an external expert (foreseen within the selection framework to participate in the Belgian Conference of Best Practices in Belgium in 2003). 2) Evaluation of each mission by audited departments in terms of communication, mission programming, implemented methodology and added value by internal audit. 3) Process evaluation through external auditors. 4) Reporting to the Auditing Committee of the Ministry of the French Community Results
THE INNOVATION AND TRANSFERABILITY OF THE PROJECT
Is the project innovative? Explain: Yes. 1) + 2) It develops a strategy and a methodology ac-tively involving audited entities and adopting a transversal approach to their needs and it ensures the follow-up of the missions by the Audit Department which has more emphasis and a better understanding of the structure of the public service and so audits are much bet-ter accepted by the personnel. 3) The service developed by the Audit department benefited by the help and advice from professionals of the audit sector. This collaboration enabled the Audit service to draw its inspiration from proven and well-tried methods while developing its own methodology. 4) The collaboration with the control organs brings appropriate help ti the services as it satisfies these control organs.
Is the project transferable to others? Yes
If so, which elements? 1) Internal development: enhancing training, the search for the quali-ty of the supplied service, the organization of the department involving all agents, instituting good communication relationships (asked for by the leadership), defining a quality program and formalising methods. 2) External development: participative approach involving a col-laboration with all stakeholders (partners, suppliers, clients), involving audited departments, contradictory approach, mission assessment and follow-up.
Did other organisations adapt the whole project or elements of it? Yes. The internal Audit Department has given other regional and federal entities some methodological references and elements.
Are there special factors that contributed to the success of the project? The support of hier-archy, a strong leadership, initiative and motivation of agents.
Why must this best practice case be included in the conference? It could be easily trans-ferred. It helps improving efficiency and effectiveness of the public sector and contributes to its modernization by identifying, in collaboration with audited entities, the risk processes and by elaborating recommendations to implement, to improve internal control measures and to optimize processes. It contributes to the modernization of the public sector by developing or encouraging processes such as quality, administrative simplification and processes automa-tion.