## Advantages and Disadvantages of Audit Programme

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### Advantages (7 Points)

#	Advantage
(i)	Provides a clear set of instructions of audit work to be carried out by assistants
(ii)	Gives a total perspective of audit work to be performed
(iii)	Selection of assistants based on capability becomes easier
(iv)	Without a written pre-determined plan, the audit plan remains only a "mental plan"
(v)	Assistants put their signature → formally accept responsibility for work done
(vi)	Serves as a guide for succeeding years (continuity)
(vii)	Principal can control the progress of various audits simultaneously

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### Disadvantages (4 Points)

#	Disadvantage
(a)	An inefficient assistant may take shelter behind the programme — i.e., use it to defend deficiencies in work
(b)	A hard-and-fast programme may kill the initiative of efficient and enterprising assistants
(c)	Work may become mechanical — parts of the programme carried out without understanding the audit objective
(d)	The programme may become rigid and be followed blindly

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### How to Eliminate These Disadvantages

Action	Effect
Imaginative supervision of work carried by assistants	Prevents mechanical execution
Auditor maintains a receptive attitude towards assistants	Encourages critical thinking
Assistants are encouraged to bring significant matters to notice objectively	Prevents hiding behind the programme

Worked example

### Example 1

Example — Advantage (v): Signature = Responsibility

An audit programme for cash verification requires the assistant to count and record cash. The assistant signs the completed programme step. Later, a discrepancy is found. Because the signature is on record, accountability is clearly assigned — the assistant cannot deny having performed (or neglected) the procedure.

### Example 2

Example — Disadvantage (a): Shelter Behind Programme

An assistant is assigned to verify 20 invoices per the programme. He selects the 20 easiest-to-access invoices and signs off. Significant fraudulent invoices (larger amounts, unusual vendors) are missed. When questioned, the assistant says: 'I completed all steps in the programme.' The programme became a shield for poor professional judgment.

### Example 3

Example — Eliminating Disadvantage (b): Imaginative Supervision

A manager notices that an assistant is robotically ticking off steps without noting unusual patterns in the data. The manager holds a brief discussion: 'What did you find? Anything unusual?' This encourages the assistant to think beyond the checklist and develops professional judgment over time.

⚠️ Common exam mistakes

Treating the audit programme as a complete substitute for professional judgment — the programme is a guide, not a guarantee of audit quality.
Failing to supervise assistants imaginatively — supervision limited to checking tick-marks misses the quality of work actually done.
Allowing the programme to become rigid year after year — copying last year's programme without adaptation defeats its purpose.
Confusing 'assistant signed off' with 'work is correct' — the signature establishes accountability, not correctness.

Reference:

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