Misunderstandings in the Revenue Cycle During the Independent Audit Process and Improvement Strategies
Günay Deniz Dursun, Sinan AslanIn an independent audit process, errors occurring in revenue cycle audits affect audit quality and the decisions of financial information users. The annual review reports published by the Public Oversight, Accounting and Auditing Standards Authority for the years 2016-2022 were examined within the scope of this study, and the accounting findings identified by the authority were addressed as part of the study, focusing on inventory, revenue, trade receivables and payables, and the revenue cycle. The similarity of the findings identified in all published reports and the ratios on a file-by-file basis underscores the significance of research in the field of revenue cycle audits. With this significance, the purpose of this prepared article is to comprehend the errors in the revenue cycle audit process and establish strategies for improvement, aiming to enhance the financial performance of businesses and facilitate accurate decision-making for financial information users.
Bağımsız Denetim Sürecindeki Hasılat Döngüsü Yanılgıları ve İyileştirme Stratejileri
Günay Deniz Dursun, Sinan AslanBağımsız denetim sürecinde, hasılat döngüsü denetiminde gerçekleşen yanılgılar bir taraftan denetim kalitesini diğer taraftan da finansal bilgi kullanıcılarının kararlarını etkilemektedir. Kamu Gözetimi Muhasebe ve Denetim Standartları Kurumu tarafından 2016-2022 yılları arasında yayınlanan yıllık inceleme raporları doküman analizi yöntemi ile bu çalışma kapsamında incelenmiş ve kurum tarafından tespit edilen muhasebe bulgularından stok, hasılat, ticari alacak ve borç, hasılat döngüsü olarak çalışma kapsamında ele alınmıştır. Yayınlanan raporların tamamında tespit edilen bulguların ve dosya bazında oranların benzerlik göstermesi ise hasılat döngüsü denetimi konusunda yapılacak araştırmaların önemine işaret etmektedir. Bu doğrultuda çalışmanın amacı, işletmelerin finansal performansını güçlendirmek ve finansal bilgi kullanıcılarının doğru kararlar almasını sağlamak için hasılat döngüsü denetim sürecindeki yanılgıları anlamak ve iyileştirmeye yönelik stratejiler belirlemektir.
According to the latest 2024 Occupational Fraud Report published by the International Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE), asset misappropriation is the most common and has the highest financial impact in 89% of the cases studied (ACFE 2024, p. 10). It aims to prevent these abuses by the entity through an independent audit process and to convey fair information to the users of financial information.
In Turkey, the Public Oversight Accounting and Auditing Standards Authority (POA), which is authorised to ensure and maintain the quality of independent audit processes and publish accounting and auditing standards, shares its reviews of audit reports and processes, excluding denunciations and complaints, with financial information users through annual reports and imposes sanctions for misstatements it detects. These POA feedback ensure the quality assurance of the independent audit process and prevent misstatements. The accounting findings identified in the annual review reports published by POA for the years 2016-2022 are similar in terms of years. In a revenue cycle audit consisting of inventories, revenue, trade receivables, and trade payables, the similarity of the findings on compliance with accounting and auditing standards over a seven-year period reveals the need for research on revenue cycle audits. The purpose of this study is to understand misstatements in the revenue cycle audit process, which are similar over the years, and to determine strategies to improve misstatements to enable financial information users to make appropriate decisions.
There are five basic subsystems that constitute the accounting information system. These are directly related to each other; revenue cycle, expenditure cycle, production cycle, human resources, and finance cycles. The revenue cycle is realised in two basic stages. The physical stage, in which assets or services are passed from the seller to the buyer, and the financial stage, which involves the receipt of payment by the seller (Hall 2011, p. 153).
Regulations required to be complied with in the accounting records and reporting of entities subject to independent audit regarding revenue, inventories, trade receivables, and payables in the revenue cycle; TFRS 15 Revenue from Contracts with Customers, TAS 1 Presentation of Financial Statements, TAS 2 Inventories, TAS 23 Cost of Borrowing, TAS 8 Accounting Policies, Changes in Accounting Estimates and Errors, TAS 21 Effects of Changes in Foreign Exchange Rates, TAS 37 Provisions, Contingent Liabilities and Contingent Assets, Conceptual Framework. In accordance with these standards, an independent auditor shall carry out auditing activities for accounting transactions and financial reporting.
Each year, the POA discloses to the public through inspection reports any irregularities that arise in the independent audit processes that are expected to be performed in accordance with the Standards on Independent Auditing (SIA) issued by the POA. In the annual inspection reports published by the POA for the years 2016-2022, the findings commonly identified in independent audit processes performed by independent auditors, excluding denunciations and complaints, are similar across all seven years.
Auditors are expected to analyse these annual examination reports carefully, particularly considering the misappropriation of assets, errors, and fraud detected in the revenue cycle elements. Although the fines and administrative sanctions imposed by the POA are important for solving the problem, the fact that the same findings are detected in seven annual reports indicates that different strategies need to be developed to solve the problem.
Studies in the literature have revealed that the quality of an independent audit process can also be negatively affected by reasons arising from the auditor and the audit team. In order to reduce misstatements as a result of this effect, it is suggested that this issue should be addressed separately in the continuing education of auditors, and revenue cycle misstatements should be emphasised in independent audit examinations. In addition, due care should be taken to ensure that auditors perform the processes in strict compliance with accounting and auditing standards. It would be useful to establish audit quality working groups, transfer the results of academic studies to stakeholders, and focus auditors on the processes of the companies they audit and the activities of the sector. It is important that firms perform risk-focused revenue cycle audits and use more audit evidence in their revenue cycle audits. As a result of this study, it is recommended to prepare checklists to be used in audit activities, especially in areas where the findings are similar, and to address the sanctions imposed by POA more systematically.
