TACC608 – Auditing and Assurance

Group Research Assignment – Major Audit Risk Areas

Due – Week 9

Value: 20 percent of final marks

Assignment Background

In the unit we cover a wide range of Auditing and Professional Practice issues including numerous case studies in varying depth.

There is obviously not enough time to cover everything in depth.

This assignment enables students to examine in more detail Auditing and Professional Practice in companies that are of particular interest to them.

It can also be started from ‘Day 1’ of the semester and will enable students to explore the wonderful world of Auditing and Professional Practice by doing their own research on how it is practiced in an organisation that is of interest to them.

Your Mission

Students are to form groups of 4 students to perform this analysis.

Each group will select a listed public company from the ASX200.

Your group will identify the major audit risk areas (at least 2) for your selected company.

For each audit risk, your assignment should:

• explain the potential impact of the audit risk on the company’s financial statements and

• detail the auditing procedures to verify the account balances impacted by the risk

Note: While you can do background research etc. you shouldn’t start writing this assignment until after week 3. By this time you should have a better understanding of what auditing is based on what you have learnt from the lectures and text (and other) reading/research.

In doing this assignment you should use the concepts you have learnt from this subject and your own research.

Important: you are the independent or external auditors of the company and your ‘job’ is to express an opinion on the truth and fairness of the accounts.

Some business risks are material and relevant to the external audit but others e.g. shoplifting in a retail environment whilst important (to the business) would not be material from an external audit perspective.

Remember to link the risks back to the account balances you are expressing an opinion on.

Full details including assignment length (15 pages) is on the unit’s Moodle site. The assessment will contribute 20% to your final mark in this unit and is due in week 10.

For the assignment please assure a thorough edit and spell check using English (Australian). Minor errors, typographical mistakes and poor spelling detract from the quality of any report will be penalized.

Structure and citation of sourced work with references are to comply with scholarly conventions. Harvard system is preferred.

TOP has a Quick Guide to Referencing (Harvard Style) for your reference. This guide is available online and students can also get a copy from the library.

Please also see:

1. Library Guide: Referencing in Business

http://top-au.libguides.com/c.php?g=438320&p=3308145

2. Moodle: Study Skills and Academic English Module (all students are enrolled in this course and have access to numerous resources helping to reference using the Harvard System

3. Students are welcome to book a consultation with Caroline Thornton, TOP’s English Language and Academic Skills Coordinator (email: learning@top.edu.au ). She can give you help and support with referencing for assignments

Research not just restating theory

Note: The assignment involves a great deal of research and requires you to demonstrate a high level of the associated research skills.

Students are expected to conduct extensive research in completing this assignment and to clearly display the results of their research in the presentation of their paper.

Students should not just restate theory from auditing textbooks.

Research should look at the actual ASX200 listed company selected along with (potentially) its competitors, industry, economic environment/outlook, market etc.

Instructions / Rules

1. The report should have appropriate headings and subheadings.
2. In your report include references to other websites and articles.
3. Ensure you have an appropriate Executive Summary.
4. This work should be in one document such as Microsoft Word. This assignment should be typed using Times New Roman font size 12, single spacing with appropriate headings and attention to spelling and grammar. The report should not exceed fifteen (15) pages (excluding the list of references).
5. You should read additional material which should be included your sources in a list of references at the end of your assignment.
   • Normal University referencing rules apply.
   • Students should use the Harvard (Author-Date) Style because it is the common style used in the Auditing and Professional Practice discipline.
6. You are able to use any e.g. graphics you want. Feel free to be creative.
7. Whilst the assignment should follow academic standards in relation to non-plagiarism, recognition of sources etc.; the report presented should be of a professional (business) standard in terms of content and layout. It should include:

1. A Table of Contents
2. An Executive Summary
3. Appropriate use of headings, sub headings etc.

1. Single spacing and no ‘widows and orphans’ (paragraphs that go over a page)
2. The assignment is due at the start of the Week 7 lecture. Late submission – it is TOP policy that assignments cannot be submitted late without prior approval of the unit coordinator and only in extenuating circumstances supported by evidence. Assignments submitted late without prior approval will not be graded.
3. You should physically hand your lecturer a hard (printed) copy of the assignment prior to the commencement of the lecture in week 7.

10. Also you must also submit also a copy of your work ‘online’ – through the unit’s Moodle site which will use Turnitin

Note: only one student in each group needs to submit the assignment.

11. Your assignment must have the correct TOP sheet as its first page.
12. Please ensure a thorough edit and spell check using English (Australian). Minor errors, typographical mistakes and poor spelling detract from the quality of any report will be penalized.

All students are expected to contribute equally to the assignment and any problems with group member participation should be brought to the lecturer’s attention as soon as possible. In addition each group member will be expected to complete the (confidential) GROUP ASSIGNMENT: PEER AND SELF ASSESSMENT OF TEAMWORK which is attached to this document.

TACC608 – Auditing and Assurance

Group Assignment – Major Audit Risk Areas

Due Week 9

Value: 20 percent of final marks

	Fail (0-49)	Pass (50-64)	Credit (65-74)	Distinction (75-84)	High Distinction (85-100)	Total
Organisation/ Structure	Lack of focus with no purpose or context. Inappropriately structured. 0-12.25 marks	Clear purpose and context. Weak paragraph structure. Good use of headings and sub-headings. 12.5-16 marks	Appropriate use of structure. Information is presented in a logical sequence that clearly addresses the questions asked. 16.25-18.5 marks	Student presents information in logical, structure which audience can follow with some additional interest 18.75-21 marks	Student presents information in logical, interesting and entertaining structure which audience can follow. 21.25-25marks	/25
Subject Knowledge and use of Auditing and Professional Practice concepts	Inaccurate use of Auditing and Professional Practice concepts. Lack of assertions, development and/or support. 0-12.25 marks	Limited grasp of Auditing and Professional Practice concepts. Assertions exist but are not supported or developed adequately. 12.5-16 marks	Accurate but limited use of Auditing and Professional Practice concepts. Developed and supported assumptions. 16.25-18.5 marks	Clear and competent use of Auditing and Professional Practice concepts. Developed and supported assumptions. 18.75-21 marks	Especially skilful identification and analysis of Auditing and Professional Practice concepts. Fully developed and supported assertions. 21.25-25marks	/25
Focus on Assigned Topic (answered the question asked)	No attempt to link assessment task to the Topic. 0-12.25 marks	Some of the task is related to the Topic but a reader does not learn much about the Topic. 12.5-16 marks	Most of the work is related to the Topic but occasionally wanders off into other unrelated areas. The reader can still learn something about the Topic. 16.25-18.5 marks	All of the work is related to the Topic and the reader learns something more about the Topic. 18.75-21 marks	The entire work is related to the Topic and challenges the reader with new insights. 21.25-25marks	/25
Research and Referencing and Mechanics and Language	No evidence of additional research or reading. Students work has spelling and grammatical errors. Poor referencing. 0-12.25 marks	Some research and additional references although poor quality or not related to the Topic. Spelling and grammatical errors. Limited referencing. 12.5-16 marks	Evidence of research and reading with some quality references mostly related to the Topic. Some spelling and grammatical errors. Some errors with referencing. 16.25-18.5 marks	Evidence of research and reading with some quality references all related to the Topic. Some errors with spelling/grammar or referencing. 18.75-21 marks	Evidence of wide reading/research and inclusion of quality references (including academic references) related to the Topic. No spelling or grammatical errors. Referencing is appropriate. 21.25-25marks	/25
					Total Points:	/100
						/20

GROUPASSIGNMENT: PEERANDSELFASSESSMENTOFTEAMWORK

You are required to assess both your own and other team members’ contribution to your group’s overall performance throughout the process of completing the group assignment. Thisinformationisconfidentialand should notbe discussedwith other membersofyourteam.

Please score both yourself and every member of your group, marks out of 100% (i.e. total should add up to 100%) in the table below.For example, if there were 4 members in your group (including yourself) and you felt that every member contributed equally to the group, you should award yourself and every group member 25% each. If you felt that a member(s) contributed less than an equal fair share, you should award the member(s) proportionately according to their contribution. Then hand back the completed form to the lecturer in the final class.

Please PRINT the names of yourself and your group members in the table below.

Member	Given Name	Family Name
Myself

TeamworkCriterion	GroupName:
Member 1	Member 2	Member 3	Self
Contributionsto group meetings: Actively participated in discussions, offering logically argued viewpoints using clear communication. Punctual and well-prepared. Engaged in task and committed to achievement of outcomes.
Leadership Sought opportunities to lead; assumed leadership roles in appropriate manner. Facilitated the development of work plan and goals through consensus. Maintained group focus, participation and level of organisation. Helped others and offered solutions to problems.
Proactive in managing issues.
Fostering teamwork Respected other members and was open to their different viewpoints. Listened to other’s ideas, asked for opinions and responded where appropriate. Offered constructive feedback. Shared workload fairly.
Individual contribution toachievementofoutcomes Assigned tasks completed on time and targeted to team goals. Quality of contributions was of a consistently high quality. Completed responsibilities for their group role.