Writing Effective Audit Reports Agenda
Seminar: ID# 1005025
Agenda
Issue Prewriting- Plotting the report at the beginning of fieldwork
- Methods for consistent client communication
- What an audit issue describes
- 5-step writing formula and the air: key elements in any issue
Issue Writing: Supporting the Issue- Key differences between causes, conclusions, and evidence
- The sweet spot of supportive detail: not too much and not too little
Assessing the Root CauseSteps to effective root cause analysis (RCA)
- The difference between issue, symptom, and root cause
- Strategies in RCA
- When and how to engage the client in RCA
- Reporting root causes: positive vs. negative wording
Writing Strong Business Risks- Purpose of a business risk
- Keeping common risks convincing (LIVe)
- Using action verbs to create change
Developing Effective Issue Statements: A Formula- Title of an audit
- What an issue statement describes
- The 5-sentence burst
- Writing the issue statement
Developing Effective Recommendations- Keeping recommendations SMART
- Using recommendations for issue follow-up
Clean Out the Junk and Get to the Issue- Paragraphing and formatting
- Bullet lists, headings, fonts
- Passive voice
- Wordiness
- Ambiguity
- Negative wording
- Non-parallel structure
- Punctuation
Perfecting Writing: Writing Effective Emails- Timing Your Communication
- Title
- Body
- Closing
- Final Email Writing Tips And Exercise
Improving Tone in Writing
- The Chicken Little Dilemma
- Connotations of Words
- Placement of Negation
- Sequence of Negation
- Relative Information
- How to Change Tone
Design Elements- Instructional Design
- Graphics & Fonts
- Layering
- Using Sidelines and Flow
- Executive Summary Redesign Challenge