The incorporation of information technology within the production processes of an organization can become a competitive advantage, allow them to be more efficient and give them the ability to develop products and services of lower quality.
One of the main challenges of modern auditing is to adequately and efficiently evaluate and control business management using computer tools.
An information system can be defined as the set of elements or components among which information can be entered, stored and presented for timely and efficient decision-making.
auditing-of-organizational-information-systems-importanceInformation systems have had a profound development from the 1950s until today, with the passage of time they have become a valuable tool within organizations, thus improving efficiency and increasing productivity.
Knowledge management is not something new, there are many companies that in recent years have sought to implement programs in order to achieve this objective, companies have opted for information technologies and the different solutions provided by the software have been giving what to talk about.
It is clear that knowledge is very difficult to manage, but the information that is available can be managed. For this reason, information has a relevant role and is made by a base knowledge management strategy…
Audit of organizational information systems
Information systems have had a profound development from the 1950s until today, with the passage of time they have become a valuable tool within organizations, thus improving efficiency and increasing productivity.
Today there are no public or private companies that do not carry out their activities through the use of a computer. The technological revolution has suggested the need to ensure that such information systems are as accurate and reliable, especially in financial information processing.
One of the main challenges of modern auditing is to adequately and efficiently assess and control business management using computer tools.
An information system can be defined as the set of elements or components among which information can be entered, stored, and presented for timely and efficient decision-making.
When speaking of information systems, he does not exactly refer to computers or computing. There are four groups of IS according to the hierarchical levels of the organization: operating level systems: directly related to the operational and transactional processes of an organization.
Knowledge level systems: they are related to the secondary level of the organization, the purpose of these systems is to help develop, process, order and interrelate the flow of information and new knowledge of the organization.
Administrative level systems: they focus on activities of monitoring, direction, control and decision making of the bosses, here are the decision support systems such as cost analysis systems, production analysis, sales analysis, profitability. They are characterized by presenting periodic information for analysis and generally relate internal and external variables to produce results that help management make decisions.
Strategic level systems: they support long-term strategic level decision-making, considering the proposed policy and goals, relating to the external environment of the organization so that decisions can be made to improve competitiveness.
The organizations depend on information systems, in such a way that the strategies and the organizational planning will be given based on the growth capacity, flexibility and capacity of their IS.
The incorporation of information technology within the productive processes of an organization can become a competitive advantage, allow them to be more efficient and give them the ability to develop products and services of lower quality.
The administrative audit
The administrative audit cannot take place in a vacuum, but is part of a change strategy that requires a decision of the highest quality and the consensus of the wills and seeks the objective of achieving that an organization has the capacity to transform and so grow efficiently.
The systemic analysis of each of the aspects that are involved in its operation requires that a structure be established that enables the flow of sufficient information, that is relevant and truthful, and in this way have at the right time and in the right place the elements of decision and quality that are adequate.
“The administrative audit can be defined as the total or partial analytical review of an organization with the purpose of specifying its level of performance and outlining opportunities for improvement to innovate value and achieve a sustainable competitive advantage” (Franklin, 2007)
The objectives of the administrative audit
Administrative auditing is a fundamental tool to drive the growth of organizations, since it allows detecting in which areas a deeper study is needed, what are the actions that can be taken to address deficiencies, how to help the organization overcome obstacles, and how to increase cohesion.
However, it is of utmost importance that the framework is established to define the objectives that are consistent and that their coverage leads the tasks to specific results.
The most outstanding criteria are:
Control: they are intended to direct the effort in the audit application and thus be able to evaluate the organization's behavior in relation to its standards.
Productivity: they focus the actions of the audit for efficient use of resources according to the administrative dynamics of the organization.
Organizational: they establish that the course of the audit is in accordance with the definition of the structure, its competencies, processes and it is carried out through delegation of authority and teamwork.
Of services: it is the way in which the audit manages to verify that the organization is in a process related qualitatively and quantitatively to customer satisfaction.
Audit
Knowledge management is not something new, there are many companies that in recent years have sought to implement programs in order to achieve this objective, companies have opted for information technologies and the different solutions provided by the software have been giving what to talk about.
However, most of these programs have focused on the implantation of intranets that try to facilitate communication between people and document all the processes of the organization.
In addition to making the evaluation statistics and indicators available to two employees.
It is clear that knowledge is very difficult to manage, but the information that is available can be managed. For this reason, information has a relevant role and is made by a base knowledge management strategy.
Proper information management is an essential element.
Companies have incorporated information technologies as part of their axis of information systems, to the extent of comparing it with a company computer system, however it has rarely been carried out correctly.
Information and organization
Information, although it is a vital resource for the organization, is not valued by the business strategy, traditional vision of information as a means of control and coordination, it must progress in order to be seen as a way to generate value for the business, achieving more efficient processes..
Knowledge VS information
Knowledge in an organization is reflected when people apply their knowledge and attach it to the information they have to carry out their work.
The value of knowledge is not something new. The knowledge management strategy is based on human resources, processes and technology.
Audit
It is a process that helps to detect, control and evaluate the existing information in an organization and its flows, the use they make of the information and the adaptation to the needs of the personnel.
In this way the uncertainty of what the organization has and where it is established will be resolved, this will help us to:
- Duplications: refers to the units of the same organization that sometimes keep the same information independently. Deficiencies: sometimes if the information is not shared, gaps are detected that are detrimental to the correct operation of certain business units within the entity.Inconsistencies: keeping the same information independently can lead to information
The audit also makes it possible to diagnose what use is made of the information and, ultimately, the importance given to it. This will give the possibility of knowing who uses it in each case and for what purpose, thus identifying critical points in the chain of information. value where the use of this information is essential.
Phases to establish the audit of the
Planning: in this stage the objectives are defined, the starting point and how far you want to go, the tasks carried out in this stage include identifying the key people, the magnitude of the project and the location of resources, the action plan for implementation, a strategic plan and a business plan.
Data collection: at this stage the information to be received is prepared, databases, interviews, etc. are developed.
Data evaluation: gaps and duplicates are found, will serve to interpret the flow of information, evaluate problems, formulate recommendations and develop an action plan for change.}
Once the previous stage has passed, the recommendations to address the irregularities detected and explain the work carried out must be communicated, thus the organizational and corporate environment will have information on the results.
Implement the recommendations: an implementation program must be developed, changes in the formal plans must be incorporated and the post-implementation strategy must be developed.
Once the changes have been made, you must be aware of the need for continuous monitoring, measure and assess the changes, and plan a cyclical information audit cycle. (González & Lluch, 2003)
An audit approach considering the
The technological revolution has made audit work more complex, both for internal and external auditors, the latter when conducting audits of financial statements, must consider different types of administrative-accounting systems using different technological platforms.
Traditional audit programs and procedures are altered or replaced by new procedures that consider the evaluation of computerized internal control and the use of new information analysis tools.
Some of the analysis tools consider CAATS computer aided auditing techniques.
It is essential that the auditor uses a computer as a tool to have a better efficiency in reviewing the information and thus allows him: (Dominguez & Solis, 2009)
- Extend the scope of the examination Use statistical sampling Use computer packages
conclusion
The auditing of information systems gives organizations the possibility of knowing how they work in relation to information and, as a result, in turn allows the identification of the areas of the organization that are producing knowledge and those where there is a need for implantation of mechanisms for their transfer.
In this way, once the audit has been carried out, the organization will be ready to develop or improve its information management strategy and will be able to support the development of a correct knowledge management strategy that will also allow access to its sources. of knowledge, exploit it through values, a culture and leadership.
Bibliographic references
- Dominguez, JB, & Solis, G. (2009). Analysis and use of information systems for an efficient audit and management control. DSPACE. Franklin, E. (2007). Strategic change management. Mexico: Pearson Education. González, SS, & Lluch, MZ (2003). Information auditing, the starting point of knowledge management. The information professional.
