Recommendation Brief for an Internal Accountant The current company system is out of control and steps need to be taken to regain system control Internal control is vital to improve an organization s operation efficiency and effectiveness financial reporting reliability and law and regulation compliance COSO 1992 To assist in achieving this internal control management can hire an internal accountant to conduct internal audits An internal audit is a process that offers a systematic approach to evaluate and improve a company s risk management controls and processes The services provided by internal auditors include 1 financial audits of financial reports and accounting control systems 2 compliance audits that ensure conformity with company polices plans and procedures and with laws and regulations 3 operational audits that evaluate the economy and efficiency of business process 4 audits of effectiveness in achieving program results in comparison to established objective and goals IIA Standards 2110 and 2210 An internal auditor along with management would develop an evaluation plan and document the current control system in place The auditor would evaluate the design and effectiveness of the controls and pinpoint any control deficiencies that exist These deficiencies are further evaluated for causes and possible correction methods At the conclusion of the audit the auditor will write management an audit recommendation to address the control system and make correction recommendations to management By following through this process control deficiencies are corrected and damages can be minimized or eliminated By incorporating an internal auditor into the business operation system not only will the system improve but also the company can save a large amount of money because there is no need to hire external consultants to come in and act like an internal auditor Instead there will be an accountant on staff that knows the ins and out the concerns and have continual access to the company information The continuous access and evaluation of company finances allows auditors to contribute even more to the company and the management on a continual bases than an external auditor To go forth with hiring an internal auditor there are some basics that are required The most important is experience the auditor must have experience in internal control as well as informed and compliant with current laws and regulations Part of being compliant is to have the proper licensing and education in the appropriate area There are several internal auditor institutes like The Institute of Internal Auditors which can be used to check references and licensing Louwers Ramsay Sinason Strawser 2007 This experience offers added insight into different situation and ways that have worked in other situation similar to this one to fix the deficiencies and strengthen control Besides experience the auditor needs to have some specific personal attributes The auditor should be ethical open minded diplomatic observant perceptive versatile tenacious decisive and self reliant Each of these attributes assist the audit process going forth with investigations figuring out what works and with implementation of control system changes Standardization 2002 With the business internal control out of control I would recommend to hire an accountant with extensive internal audit situation with businesses that was in a similar state A company executive should be placed as project head to work with the auditor This will help to give the auditor a clear understanding of where the company is and the direction it wants to go By them working together the executive offers the business plan of what they want and the auditor offers the expertise and experience in process to get the company there The sooner the company hires an internal auditor the sooner the business internal control system can be turned around References COSO 1992 Internal Control Integrated Framework Retrieved May 28 2011 from COSO Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission http www coso org IC IntegratedFramework summary htm Louwers T Ramsay R Sinason D Strawser J 2007 Backmatter Module D Internal Governmental and Fraud Audits In T Louwers R Ramsay D Sinason J Strawser Auditing and Assurance Services McGraw Hill Companies Inc Standardization I O 2002 Guidelines for Quality and or Environmental Management Systems Auditing ISO19011 2002 1e Switzerland ISO The Institute of Internal Auditors IIA S a n d International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing Retrieved May 28 2011 from The Institute of Internal Auditors http www theiia org guidance standards and guidance ippf standards full standards