Audit Quality Inspector

Audit Quality Review (AQR) is made up of suitably qualified and skilled staff with previous audit experience, including sector and IT specialists. It undertakes inspections monitoring the quality of Public Interest Entity (PIE) audits, specifically those for UK listed entities. AQR can perform full scope inspections of major Local Audits, National Audit Office, third-country audits, and certain Crown Dependency audit firms. Staff also participate in the monitoring activity performed by the Audit Market Supervision (AMS) team, particularly in the areas of inspection of firms’ systems of quality management (under ISQM1).

As a member of the AQR team, successful candidates will participate in reviews of audits conducted by the Big 4 and other large audit firms, demonstrating their technical experience and personal skills in dealing with senior partners and staff at those firms. You may also need to work in the Scalebox team, which provides targeted support to audit firms with smaller Public Interest Entity (PIE) audit portfolios, as well as those looking to enter the PIE audit market. The team works alongside the FRC’s formal supervision activities, acting as a partner and facilitator to help firms understand regulatory expectations and improve audit quality.

Your responsibilities could include:

• Reviewing firms’ audit files or systems of quality management and providing practical, constructive feedback.
• Leading or contributing to roundtable discussions with firms.

The role provides insight into how the major firms operate and how they are responding to current issues in the profession and changes in regulatory requirements. Successful candidates will also have the satisfaction of being able to influence the practices and procedures of the major audit firms to enhance quality.

The successful candidate will:

• Conduct audit file inspections, focusing on larger UK listed entities. File inspections include analysis of audit workpapers, information gathering through informal and formal questioning of the audit team, discussion with the audit firm of potential issues identified, and conclude with final written reporting.
• Participate in other inspection activity such as follow-up reviews and thematics – both at a whole firm and specific firm level.
• Work with our AFS team to engage with smaller firms and influence quality audit at those firms with fewer than 10 PIEs.
• Review firms’ systems of quality management by reviewing firms’ risk assessments, responses, and monitoring activities across the ISQM components, both independently and with the assistance of other inspection team members.

The Person:

An accountancy qualification coupled with membership of ICAEW, ACCA, ICAS or ICAI (or equivalent) are required, as well as significant experience at least at Audit Senior Manager or above level in the external audit profession, or experience of risk management, internal audit or other regulatory field.

The ideal candidate will have:

• Significant post-qualification experience in the audits of listed and other public interest entities.
• Ideally some experience of smaller PIE registered firms, being able to draw upon those experiences in working with AFS on improving quality at the smaller PIE registered audit firms.
• Ideally some experience in testing or systems of quality management in a professional services firm or experience within an audit firm’s central quality team or audit regulation.
• Strong technical auditing and accounting skills.
• A demonstrable interest in an audit firm’s audit quality initiatives.
• Broad business knowledge and interests to facilitate working across multiple sectors.
• Ability to understand and assess significant volumes of information quickly and identify aspects of potential audit quality concern.
• Ability to build constructive and professional relationships with senior audit team and audit firm personnel.
• Ability to challenge the judgements made and quality of work performed by audit teams authoritatively, and to present and discuss issues arising on their merits in a calm and professional manner.
• Strong written and oral communication skills including report drafting, presenting AQR findings accurately, fairly and convincingly.
• Enthusiasm to work collaboratively with AQR and other FRC colleagues.
• Effective project and time management skills.
• General understanding of the audit regulatory environment in the UK.
• Ability, with coaching, to challenge the quality of firmwide policies and procedures at the audit firms.