A new report delves into how public company auditors play a vital role for capital markets.
The Center for Audit Quality (CAQ) released its Guide to Public Company Auditing, answering questions including:
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The relationship between company management, the audit committee and the auditors
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Audit team composition
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Steps in the audit process
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Finding fraud
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Auditor independence
Public company auditing is intended to provide investors, capital market participants, and policymakers with “reasonable assurance” beyond management’s own contention that the financial statements can be relied upon for investments and other purposes. Helping management assess the effectiveness of a company’s internal controls over financial reporting is crucial to thwarting errors.