Examples of social audit in the following topics:
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- Social responsibility audits are a process of evaluating a corporation's social responsibility performance.
- Social responsibility audits are a process of reviewing and evaluating a corporation's social responsibility (CSR) performance.
- As with financial audits, social responsibility audits involve accounting processes.
- The lack of clearly defined standards makes social audits different from financial audits, for which there are generally accepted standards.
- Apply the general concept of auditing to the larger framework of social responsibility within organizations
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- According to companies that have undergone an environmental audit, the process is relatively painless.
- For example, the Glasgow Housing Association in Scotland (the largest social landlord in the UK) had a first-time environmental audit performed at its headquarters by the British Safety Council, which identified over $51,000 in savings.
- (www.britsafe.org/download/audits-advisories/5-star-environmental-brochure.pdf)
- Seen this way, an environmental audit can lead to cost savings that morethan pay for the price of the audit.
- Genzyme Diagnostics, for example, a biotechnology company in the UK, had an environmental audit performed thatuncovered over $80,000 in potential annual savings resulting from waste elimination suggestions, reuse and recycling tips, and lighting and water-use reduction measures.
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- Like a project management audit, a quality audit is an external verification that a project is compliant with regulations and standard.
- A system of quality audits verifies the effectiveness of a quality management system.
- Audits in project management also include regulatory audits to provide external verification that a project is compliant with regulations and standards.
- Best practices of auditing dictate that a regulatory audit must be accurate, objective, and independent while providing oversight and assurance to the organization.
- Project managers benefit from periodic auditing in two broad ways.
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- Acquisition audit.
- Compliance audit.
- Due diligence audit.
- Waste audit.
- Water audit.
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- High-profile cases in which management manipulated figures in financial statements to indicate inflated economic performance highlighted the need to review the effectiveness of accounting standards, auditing regulations, and corporate governance principles.
- As a result, there has been renewed focus on the objectivity and independence of auditing firms.
- An audit of the financial statements of a public company is usually required for investment, financing, and tax purposes, and these are usually performed by independent accountants or auditing firms and included in the annual report.
- Therefore, one needs to collect and present information about environmental, social, and economic costs and benefits (collectively known as the "triple bottom line") to make an accurate evaluation.
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- Communicate the goals of the audit to everyone beforehand.
- Identify the parameters of the audit.
- How will the audit's findings be recorded?
- Determine these issues before an audit begins.
- Audits should be conducted on a regular basis.
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- Just as the process of mapping out a work system isn't called process-mapping by waste-minimization practitioners, when setting out to gather and/or check sustainability facts and figures, many practitioners don't refer to what they're doing as an audit.
- The word ‘audit', however, is appropriate even though most accounting systems fall far short of what an understanding of sustainability requires (e.g. clean air has no financial value, but try living without it).
- Professional auditors go a step further, using the term environmental audit to describe the gathering, checking and analysis of material use – as well as the measuring of waste and emission levels.
- Make no mistake, despite the fact that the word ‘environment' makes up the name, environmental audits are similar to financial audits in that they are very effective in reducing waste.
- Comparing audit results to industry standards (such as ISO 14001 standards and guidelines), and
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- The Government Accountability Office (GAO) is the audit, evaluation, and investigative arm of the United States Congress.
- The GAO's auditors conduct not only financial audits, but also engage in a wide assortment of performance audits.
- These standards, often referred to as Generally Accepted Government Auditing Standards (GAGAS), must be followed by auditors and audit organizations when required by law, regulation, agreement, contract, or policy.
- These standards pertain to auditors' professional qualifications, the quality of audit effort, and the characteristics of professional and meaningful audit reports.
- The GAO is the audit, evaluation, and investigative arm of the United States Congress.
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- Companies ensure the quality of products and services by adhering to ISO standards and performing quality audits to ensure compliance.
- Quality audits and adherence to ISO standards are not just for private corporations; the US Food and Drug Administration requires that medical devices undergo quality auditing, and several countries require quality audits of their educational systems.
- A quality audit is the process of systematic examination of a quality system carried out by an internal or external quality auditor or audit team.
- Quality audits can be an integral part of compliance or regulatory requirements.
- Audits can also be used for safety purposes.
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- Compatibility audit: This deals with the strategic components of the transaction and, in particular, the need to add shareholder value.
- Reconciliation audit: This links/consolidates other audit areas together via a formal valuation in order to test whether shareholder value will be added.