audit process

Introduction

As with a financial audit, a conservation audit involves first and foremost gathering and consulting best available data and information to make an objective assessment of whether best design and management practices are being followed. As indicated above, performing this assessment can take anywhere from a couple of hours to several days, depending up on the approach being followed. Regardless, to ensure buy-in to audit process and findings, the steps below start and finish with consultation of the project team itself. The auditor(s) also should seek to documents findings fully, including justifications for ratings, as this information will be necessary to help the program team to decide what to improve and how.

Steps and Tasks for Conducting a Conservation Audit

Kick-off

• Ensure all participants and intended audiences understand the purpose, framework and methods, audience(s), and process for the audit, including roles and responsibilities of all involved.

• Confirm expectations and planned outcomes.

• If the process will involve site visits, interviews, etc., confirm all schedules and logistics.

Conduct the Audit

• Conduct data collection according to the agreed audit process, whether that is via a team meeting, interviews (internal or external), surveys, and/or site visits.

• Review/analyze all necessary information (e.g., from document review, internal and external interviews, etc.).

• Complete the Project Info and Audit worksheets. Complete the rating and rating justification for each step and criterion. The audited project likely will derive greater value from the justification than from the rating.

Draft Preliminary Findings and Recommendations

• Before concluding the audit exercise, consider summarizing the findings of the audit and draft corresponding recommendations on how to improve the design and management of the audited project.

• Clearly link recommendations to the conservation audit findings and organize them in order of priority.

Check Facts and Solicit Feedback

• Summarize and discuss the preliminary findings and recommendations with the project team.

• Correct any factual errors and misinterpretations and identify additional data or sources of information that may be helpful in filling in any gaps.

• Edit the preliminary findings and recommendations as necessary and appropriate.

• Solicit feedback on the conservation audit process itself.