Elements of a system of quality management - part 2

In this lesson

1. 0:00 Audit team responsibilities and roles
2. 0:28 Professional scepticism and team consultation
3. 2:07 Engagement quality review explained
4. 3:00 Who can perform quality reviews
5. 5:26 Direction, supervision and review hierarchy
6. 7:34 Resources for quality management
7. 9:48 Communication and monitoring systems
8. 11:19 Continuous improvement and root cause analysis

About this lesson

You'll explore how audit teams are structured and supervised, the critical role of engagement quality reviews, and the resources and communication systems that support quality. This directly applies to the Audit and Assurance (AA) module and is essential for understanding how audit firms meet professional standards and regulatory requirements. The video covers the practical side of quality management: how responsibilities are assigned to team members, why professional scepticism and challenge are vital, and how consultation procedures resolve disagreements. You'll see how supervision works through a hierarchy of review, from the engagement partner down through managers and seniors, and why an independent engagement quality reviewer must assess the team's judgements before the audit report is signed. The lesson also explains what makes someone suitable for this reviewer role and why they can't be part of the original engagement team. Finally, you'll learn about the resources that support quality—human resources, technology like data analytics software, intellectual resources, and specialist services—and how information flows through a firm to keep everyone aligned on quality standards. The lesson emphasises monitoring and continuous improvement: identifying deficiencies through root cause analysis, investigating non-compliance, and conducting cold reviews after engagements to strengthen future work. Throughout, the focus remains on why quality matters: generating the correct audit opinion and reducing audit risk.

Duration: 13m