Introduction: Over the years, both the challenges auditors face and the profession of auditing have evolved significantly. The need to adjust to the new revenue recognition standards is the profession's biggest challenge right now. As a result of the significant shift in the field brought about by the new revenue recognition standards, auditors will need to modify their methods and processes in order to keep up. Auditor knowledge of accounting principles and financial statements will also be required by the new standards. The need to combat fraud is the profession's second obstacle. The profession has not responded quickly to a number of high-profile fraud cases in recent years. The profession faces the challenge of gaining a deeper comprehension of fraud and improving methods for its detection and prevention. The need to address the issue of talent development and retention is the third obstacle that the profession must overcome. Auditor qualifications are in short supply, and this trend is expected to persist. The profession must devise strategies for attracting and retaining skilled auditors. Offering incentives to auditors to remain in the field is one approach. The need to address the issue of workplace stress is the fourth obstacle facing the profession. Auditors are under a lot of pressure to deliver accurate information and meet deadlines. Stress and burnout can result from this pressure. The profession will need to find ways to alleviate auditors' workload. The need to address the issue of out-of-date skills is the fifth obstacle that the profession must overcome. The skills that were once considered essential are no longer relevant because the profession is changing rapidly. The profession will need to find ways to keep its members' skills current. Numerous questions about the importance of the audit and the degree of public trust in the auditing sector have been raised in light of the recent economic crisis. The work of an auditor requires a number of technical procedures that call for planning, resources, the application of international and domestic law, as well as professional judgment. Auditor methods must be planned and executed in order to obtain enough data to make a valid conclusion about their client. The amount of sufficient audit work, which includes risk management and analysis of audit procedure findings, is used to determine both the quality and quantity of audit evidence. Superior grade assessments must include expert doubt and expert judgment from the assessors. Despite the fact that "professional scepticism" is a word that is commonly used, not all instances of it necessarily apply. Reference: Elias SARKER, D.A.B.U. and PATHAK, R.D. (2003) Public Organization Review, 3(1), pp. 55-75. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1023/a:1023048011336.

Literature review

The purpose of this chapter is to review previous research done by other researchers on the challenges and changes faced by the audit profession. This chapter will present the main recent works on the challenges and changes faced by auditors. Bazmi, N. A., Rehman, M., & Rehman, C. A,(2016) gathered the views and perceptions of internal auditors working in private sector limited companies of Lahore city. An interview was conducted conveniently among 20 internal auditors of selected private sector companies of Lahore city. Data analysed thematically and in narrative form. Internal auditors narrated that they face a number of issues and challenges in their organizations. Results determine that due to lack of coordination of accounts staff, lack of management interest, Staff shortage, Ignoring rules and regulations while processing income and expenditures bills, staff union support to fraudsters and lack of awareness and training. (Bazmi et al., 2016)

Asare, S. K., Wright, A., & Zimbelman, M. F. (2015) conducted a research which is the first to develop after which empirically check out a multi-dimensional framework of factors and their elements affecting auditors' failure to discover monetary assertion fraud. They evolved their framework through analyzing previous research on auditors' detection of fraud and interviews with four specialists. The observe attracts on the reviews of fraud examiners who are added in ex post to investigate fraud and are have the field experience and the knowledge on how to provide important insights on why auditors fail to come across fraud. Many of our members have been engaged as professional witnesses at the cases that they pronounced on. Since our individuals have been engaged to testify regarding the reason of an auditor's failure to discover the fraud, their evaluations are applicable to assisting auditors guard their work in litigation settings. Data from the fraud examiners' experiences supplied numerous insights and advocate promising studies directions. First, three foremost factors in their framework (the audit system, KTE( knowledge, training and experience), and auditor incentives) seem to play a extensive and comparatively same role in inhibiting auditors from detecting fraud. For example, their participants indicated that the audit process consisting of danger tests and audit checks were inadequate to detect fraud and that GAAS audits are not typically designed to come across the types of fraud that they skilled. Even so, in a slight majority of the cases they mentioned that a GAAS audit might have detected the fraud, suggesting that failures arise both whilst auditors do no longer sufficiently observe GAAS and, in other cases, auditors comply with GAAS but the audit process is insufficient to locate the fraud. In comparison, institutional forces which include the regulatory environment had been considered to be the least critical element. Overall this finding indicates that while research at the audit procedure is important, which has been the focus thus far, future research ought to pay extra attention to KTE and auditor incentives. (Asare et al., 2015)

Norman, L. M., G, T., & Swami, B. N. (2015), sought to analyze the demanding situations confronted via external auditors with precise connection with audit corporations in Botswana. The look at changed into performed in Gaborone, the capital metropolis of Botswana, where samples of 20 out of 28 registered with Botswana Institute of Chartered Accountants (2015) as external audit corporations were decided on for the take a look at the usage of random sampling technique. The primary statistics turned into collected by way of administering questionnaires and accrued each quantitative and qualitative statistics and the records turned into further processed with the aid of the usage of SPSS statistical package deal. The effects showed that outside auditors encountered many demanding situations inclusive of knowledge the consumer company wishes, their expectancies and a harmonious working courting. Even although external auditors come across many demanding situations, they indicated that International Financial Reporting Standards are very a whole lot suitable in phrases of guiding on auditors on auditing duties and additionally improves management, consistence economic reporting and transparency. Though this studies did now not cover the full populace, the firms which had been under have a look at represent the entire population, hence the findings are universally relevant. The findings are emanated from the primary statistics collected through the questionnaire administered by using the scholars and analyzed by the use of SPSS, the scholars authenticate the findings and applicable universally. ( Norman et al., 2015)

Analysis

In our findings, the main major challenges that are faced in the audit profession are, firstly, revenue recognition. According to Devi (2022), revenue recognition is the biggest audit challenge in an organization for auditors. Sometimes, it becomes very difficult to identify the accuracy or revenue. It is because of the weak or large evidence to identify whether the claimed revenue is valid or not. The lack of proof may make it difficult for the auditor to give accuracy. The auditor should organize the substantive test on all revenue documents, to verify their authenticity.

The second major challenge that is faced by auditors is the limited of adequate staff resources. A recent study by Sullivan(2022) in their 2021 compliance benchmark report the author asked more than 200 cyber security, IT, quality assurance (QA), internal audit, finance, and other professionals about their compliance programs. He learned that lack of time and limited dedicated resources available for compliance projects are very common main points. In his report, it was found that more than 70% of organizations believe limited staff resources and evidence collection are the greatest challenges of their audit process.(Sullivan, 2022)

In addition , Fraud is also a major challenge and change that is faced by auditors. According to Devi(2022), Fraud is the most common exercise but it is continually performed deliberately. It will become very tough for the auditors to locate the hobby of fraud whether or not it's far carried out deliberately or no longer. The auditors can perceive fraudulent activity simplest by means of a method of inspection or commentary.

Moreover, inventory inaccuracy is also a main issue for auditors. Inventory inaccuracy is the most important problem for auditors because of the lack of evidence concerning this. Inventories may be recorded wrongly because may also the products are broken, using a guide selecting technique, minor loss in delivery, and so on. Auditors must ask for all of the inventory statistics to solve this trouble(Devi,2022).

Also, the use of technology is also a major challenge for auditors in the audit profession. According to Egypt( 2022), auditors in Egypt were being spoken by the author and technology is a challenge they faced in auditing in different industries in particular whilst reviewing and studying the information of the financial records, in particular with recognize to laws and accounting requirements. There has been an explosive use of advanced technology in distinctive varieties of industries;audit companies that do not use technology in the long-term could be much less competitive

Furthermore, another main challenge that is faced by the auditors in the audit profession is the lack of professional auditors. According to Egypt (2022), the auditors in Egypt are faced with this issue that the industry has located it hard to locate younger people inclined to commit their careers to accounting and auditing. The problem in attracting expertise to internal audit and the difficulty to hold them is one of the auditors' top demanding situations. Auditors are greater confused out than ever earlier than, Clients are investing extra in automated packages and systems. Auditors need to no longer simplest audit the output but also evaluate those systems for control and accuracy purposes.

Reference

Devi, D. (n.d.). [solved] understanding the auditing challenges gives a broad scope - accountancy (BSA1). StuDocu. Retrieved October 30, 2022, from https://www.studocu.com/en-us/messages/question/2772432/understanding-the-auditing-challenges-gives-a-broad-scope-to-auditing-and-helpful-safeguards-can-be

Sullivan, P. (2022, May 19). The most common challenges of the Audit Process: A-LIGN. A. Retrieved October 30, 2022, from https://www.a-lign.com/articles/common-challenges-audit-process

Egypt, K. (2022, May 30). 5 top challenges of auditors. Ahmed Mamdouh & Co Kreston Egypt Chartered Accountant. Retrieved October 30, 2022, from https://www.krestoneg.com/blog/5-top-challenges-of-auditors

Norman, L. M., G, T., & Swami, B. N. (2015). Challenges Faced by External Auditors In Botswana. International Journal of Social Sciences & Humanities, 1(2), 38-49.

Bazmi, N. A., Rehman, M., & Rehman, C. A. (2016). ISSUES AND CHALLENGES FACED BY INTERNAL AUDITORS OF PRIVATE SECTOR ORGANIZATIONS. Social Science Learning Education Journal, 1, 11-19.

Asare, S. K., Wright, A., & Zimbelman, M. F. (2015). Challenges Facing Auditors in Detecting Financial Statement Fraud: Insights from Fraud Investigations. Journal of Forensic & Investigative Accounting, 7(2), 63-112.

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