Auditors gather a lot of their evidence by dropping into clients’ offices, stopping by cubicles, reading facial expressions and body language in response to their questions.
They hover over shoulders as finance team members demonstrate controls intended to ensure the accuracy of financial reports. They travel to warehouses and plants to inspect inventory, opening boxes to see what’s inside.
Those in-person checks can’t happen, though, while businesses are shuttered or corporate staff work from home during the still circulating coronavirus. The pandemic has effectively stripped away a key check auditors use on management: ...