Building Clear, Practical Controls That Meaningfully Address Risk
This course is part of The Complete Guide to Risk and Internal Controls, a comprehensive training series designed to build practical knowledge and skills in identifying, assessing, managing, and responding to risks through effective internal controls.
Designing Internal Controls: What Makes a Strong Control? focuses on what separates a vague or incomplete control from one that is clear, practical, and appropriately designed to manage risk. Learners will examine the characteristics of strong internal controls, including ownership, timing, criteria, reliable information, exception handling, and supporting documentation. The course also covers how to write effective control descriptions, evaluate whether an internal control actually addresses the identified risk, and map risks to internal controls using a Risk & Control Matrix.
Topics Covered:
• Characteristics of strong internal controls
• Clear ownership and responsibility
• Appropriate timing and frequency
• Specific control activities and defined criteria
• Reliable information used in internal controls
• Exception identification, investigation, and follow-up
• Supporting documentation
• Control objectives vs. control activities
• Writing clear and actionable internal control descriptions
• Using active voice and strong action words
• Avoiding vague language and “mega-controls”
• Determining the right level of detail
• Evaluating risk-control fit
• How internal controls affect likelihood, impact, or both
• Identifying gaps and unnecessary control overlap
• Mapping risks to internal controls
• Building and using a Risk & Control Matrix
Audit Smarter, not Harder - with Elizabeth and Audie the Internal Otteror!
Elizabeth McDowell, CPA, CIA has over 20 years of audit experience and is the founder of Audit Forward, an innovative internal audit consulting and training firm. Elizabeth is passionate about advancing and advocating for the internal audit profession and was recognized as one of the 2023 Internal Audit Beacons by Richard Chambers. Elizabeth makes auditing and training fun (no, really!) with the help of her mascot, Audie the Internal Otteror. Elizabeth’s most recent industry experience was at Achieve, where she was Sr. Director, Audit Strategy; prior to that, she held internal audit leadership roles at Elevations Credit Union, Fidelity Investments, and Xcel Energy after first starting her career at Ernst & Young.
