Why your Company Should Prioritize a Strategic Audit

Your company should prioritize a strategic accounting audit to ensure that the procedures you have in place are complying with a strategy for long-term success. Long-term success will differ from company to company. However, if you ever want to make your success a reality, it needs to be well defined within a strategic plan. Schedule an accounting audit to get essential information about your business, as well as the tools to make progressive changes.

What is a strategic audit?

A strategic audit is a written report that analyzes each component of your business and how well they align with the goals stated in your strategic plan. A strategic audit compares the current state of your business with the goals and objectives laid out in your strategic business plan. The results of the audit gives business owners the facts that they need to influence internal structures, so that they better align with the company’s long-term goals.

Fail to plan, plan to fail

Do you know where you want your company to go? Have you written down a strategic business plan to achieve this vision, or is it just a collage of ideas in your head? How will your team help you to achieve these long-term goals if they have never been clearly articulated? If you do not create a strategic business plan for your enterprise, then you will never know how successful each functional unit of it is.

To judge any action as a success or failure you need to know how well it aligns with your business’ strategic plan. You need a strategic plan that specifies what your enterprise wants to achieve in the short-term, as well as how these objectives contribute to your long-term goals. A strategic plan enables you to create benchmarks that accurately indicate how your company’s actions are aligning with its overarching strategy. Continuously operating without a strategic plan may sacrifice your brand integrity and your bottom line as it limits the cohesiveness and clear definition of your organization’s strategy.

What do you do once the strategic audit is complete?

Once your written report is complete, your auditor can advise you regarding the necessary next steps that will bridge the gap between where you expected your company to be and where it was during the strategic audit. Your audit report may be typed out and delivered, but remember that a strategic audit is a working document, it should never be complete. The strategic audit process must be ongoing. Determining success demands that you continuously compare the realities of your business with its strategic benchmarks. Should your enterprise struggle to achieve its objectives, you may need seasoned professionals to advise you about the tactics that will position your enterprise for success. Even the most successful enterprises require ongoing audits: as your company achieves its articulated goals, you need to update your strategic plan so that you may continue to progress.

Why hire an external auditor?

Most importantly, accounting and auditing may not be your area of expertise and this will threaten the validity of the strategic plan that your internal team produces. Leveraging a team that is both objective and experienced may expose internal shortcomings before they affect your success.

Leveraging a team that is both objective and experienced may expose internal shortcomings before they affect your success. Small and medium-sized enterprises establish a variety of goals that may or may not enable them to remain profitable. An entrepreneur may be determined to grow or diversify production, but that does not mean that his/her company’s pre-established processes are set up to realize these goal.By staying in contact with your external auditor you can better understand business outcomes when your strategic plan dictates more favourable alternatives.

Secure your enterprise’s success with a strategic audit

Make your enterprise more sustainable, successful, and strategic with a comprehensive audit and the ongoing support that will help you achieve your goals. Hogg, Shain & Scheck’s seasoned accountants will perform a strategic audit for your enterprise, and then collaborate with your team to help you achieve measurable success. If you want to create goals that elevate your profitability and longevity, contact Hogg, Shain & Scheck for a business planning consultation.