Report on Key Compliance Attributes of the Public Service Commission of Canada’s Internal Audit Function

The Internal Audit and Evaluation Directorate (the Directorate) provides independent objective assurance. It also provides consulting and evaluation services to add value and improve the Public Service Commission of Canada’s operations.

The Directorate conducts its audit work in accordance with:

• the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat Policy on Internal Audit
• the Institute of Internal Auditors’ International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing

The Directorate’s mission is to enhance and protect organizational value by providing risk-based objective assurance, advice and insight. The Internal Audit Function allows us to meet our goals. To do so, it uses a systematic, disciplined approach to evaluating and improving the adequacy and effectiveness of its processes for risk management, control and governance.

This report provides information on the professionalism, performance and impact of the Internal Audit Function.

The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat Directive on Internal Audit requires all departments and agencies to provide information on key compliance attributes to show that the internal audit function is in place and working as intended.

1. Do internal auditors have the training needed to do the job effectively and are multidisciplinary teams in place to deal with diverse risks?

Yes. Collectively, the Directorate’s staff have the knowledge, skills and abilities needed to do their work and fulfill their duties. The compliance attribute for measuring training is the percentage of staff who are:

• Certified Internal Auditors (CIAs) or Chartered Professional Accountants (CPAs)
• working on getting either a CIA or CPA designation
• certified with the following internal audit designations:
  • Certified Government Auditing Professional (CGAP)
  • Certification in Risk Management Assurance (CRMA)
  • Internal Audit Practitioner (IAP)
  • Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA)
  • Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE)

For this report, 5 Directorate staff members are included in the staff making up the internal audit function. This includes the Chief Audit Executive and 4 members of the internal audit team. The breakdown of the Directorate’s staff is in Figure 1.

The internal audit staff is made up of people with diverse backgrounds, qualifications and education. This includes people who have Masters Degrees and degrees in Information Technology.

2. Does internal audit work meet international standards for the profession as required by Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat policy?

Yes. The Directorate’s internal audit work meets international standards for the profession. The compliance attribute for measuring compliance is the date of the last briefing on the performance of the Internal Audit Function to the Internal Audit Committee (including the results of internal assessments and any changes to audit methods, guidance and procedures) and the date of the Directorate’s last external assessment.

3. Are Risk-Based Audit Plans submitted to audit committees and approved by deputy heads? Are they implemented as planned with resulting reports published? Is management acting on audit recommendations?

Yes. The internal audits conducted by the Directorate are planned based on the approved Internal Audit and Evaluation Plan 2018-21. They are listed in Table 1 and will be updated to track:

• planned internal audits
• progress in implementing actions as a result of the internal audits

4. Is internal audit credible and does it add value in support of our mandate and strategic objectives?

Yes. Based on the results of the external assessment conducted from January to March 2018, the Internal Audit Function generally meets the expectations of the President, the Internal Audit Committee and senior management and adds value to the organization. Some successful internal audit practices were identified in the external assessment. They included the quality of reports recognized as being useful to clients.

The Internal Audit Function is currently updating its Internal Audit Manual to address the recommendations included in the external assessment. One component of the Internal Audit Manual will identify how the function’s performance will be evaluated. A post-audit survey tool will be developed to collect performance information and set out key performance indicators, which will be tracked. This will support timely, relevant reporting to Canadians on results.