Using data analytics to your advantage is possible. Let’s start with the basic: data analytics is examining or reviewing the information available for a certain purpose using technology.

It can be as key performance indicators of any area of a company…or to predict market trends…or a detail analysis of the inventory. Even segregation of duties by checking which users are involved in the transactions!

The data can be internal or/and external and include quantitative or/and qualitative data. Thus, the data can come from many different sources and formats. How to analyze such different data? There are different softwares on the market that can help to combine the information and then analyzed it.

But before using a software knowing what to do is key to use data analytics.

For audit, data analytics is analyzing patterns and finding deviations and inconsistencies, related to the subject matter of an audit. Obviously, this helps to reduce risk and to add value to the client. For auditors, using data analytics allows them to more effectively audit the large amounts of data in larger clients. Also, data analytics tools have the power to turn all the data into pre-structured templates that can be understood by everyone involved in the audit.

Among the benefits of data analytics are identifying more easily risks, having a consistent way to audit by the auditors within an international company with presence in different places, streamline audits, detect fraud, etc. But as anything in this life, it also has issues. Such as the data protection needed for the information collected and analyzed. The access that many people can have to it. Or that the data is not accurate or completed as it should be. However, there are more benefits than issues.

So, how to use data analytics to your advantage?

The answer is at the Advanced Audit and Forensics Data Analytics Methods Masterclass on February 19 and 20. See you there?

Also, check out the upcoming conference on Internal Audit.

By Mónica Ramírez Chimal, International Speaker & Trainer, Writer, Consultant-Partner at Asserto RSC