In late 2020, the International Auditing and Assurance Standards Board (IAASB) issued three new and revised quality management standards. The standards strengthen and modernize how a firm of any size or level of complexity approaches quality management.

  • They address the evolving and increasingly complex audit ecosystem, including growing stakeholder expectations and a need for quality management systems that are proactive and adaptable.
  • They mark an evolution from a traditional, more linear approach for quality control to an integrated quality management approach.
  • They recognize the importance of firm governance and leadership, with quality embedded in the fabric of the firm’s culture, strategic and operational decisions, and leadership’s actions and behavior.

The standards also drive more robust and effective monitoring and remediation. At the engagement level, they increase the responsibility of engagement partners for managing and achieving audit quality. And they bolster who can perform engagement quality reviews and how the reviews are performed.

Professional Accountancy Organizations

For PAOs, the new and revised standards are an opportunity to champion audit quality by driving the necessary collaboration between key national stakeholders.

Moving from binary, compliance-based processes to a much more proactive, dynamic, risk-based quality management approach is crucial to improving audit quality. We have a responsibility to do what is best in serving the public interest. Taken together, these new standards should establish a new baseline architecture to foster change, progress how firms consistently manage and achieve quality, and better align with the needs of all participants in the financial reporting ecosystem.

Transformation at the national level will involve extensive education and change management for firms, regulators and educators, among others. As PAOs, you can be an agent of change; you have the opportunity to facilitate a coordinated approach to adoption and implementation in the public interest.

 

Quality Management Series: Small Firm Implementation

It is time to get ready for the new quality management standards

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IAASB Quality Management Materials

Exposure Draft, Fact Sheets, Videos, Bases for Conclusions, and more

Access Resources

With New Standards in Place, Proactive Quality Management Will Underpin the Next Era of Audit Transformation

IAASB Chair's Quality Management Article

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Achieving High-Quality Audits

IFAC's Point of View

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IAASB-IFAC Quality Management Webinar Series

Four webinars breaking down firms’ risk assessment, expectations, and monitoring and remediation

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Gateway Articles

 
Quality Management Videos & Webinars
ISQM 1: Getting Ready for the New Risk-Based Approach
ISQM 1: Early Lessons Learned and Next Steps
ISQM 1: Se préparer à la nouvelle approche basée sur les risques
ISQM 1: Premières leçons apprises et prochaines étapes
ISQM 1: Preparándose para el nuevo enfoque basado en el riesgo
ISQM 1: Primeras lecciones aprendidas y próximos pasos
Supporting the New Quality Management Standards
All You Need to Know about the Firm's Risk Assessment Process
Resources: Expectations for Firm and Engagement Partners
What’s New for Firms' Monitoring and Remediation Process
Bringing it all Together: Exploring all the Components of a Quality Management System
Quality Management Standards: Perspectives on Initial Implementation Efforts
IFAC Global Quality Management PAO Knowledge Exchange (English)
ГЛОБАЛЬНОЕ УПРАВЛЕНИЕ КАЧЕСТВОМ​ОБМЕН ЗНАНИЯМИ ПБО
Gestion globale de la qualité partage des connaissances des PAO
الإتحاد الدولي للمحاسبین والبنك الدوليتبادل عالمي لمعارف إدارة الجودة في منظمات المحاسبة المھنییة
Gestión de calidad mundial intercambio de conocimientos de las PAO
Respaldar los nuevos estándares de gestión de la calidad
Soutenir les nouvelles normes de gestion de la qualité
Поддержка новых стандартов управления качеством
دعم معايير إدارة الجودة الجديدة
 

Resources from Across IFAC's Network

ISQM 2 Fact Sheet

September 10, 2021 | IAASB

ISQM 1 Fact Sheet

September 10, 2021 | IAASB

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