4011 Purpose, attendance and timing of the team planning meetings

Dec-2023

OAG Guidance

Although team planning meetings occur during the planning phase of the engagement, a significant number of planning activities are undertaken in advance of the team planning meeting(s), and the team planning meeting(s) is where the engagement leader and team manager convey information relating to the planning activities undertaken to the rest of the engagement team for the team’s understanding, input, discussion and agreement. Planning meetings are used to remind engagement team members of their role in performing a quality audit and to consider the overall audit strategy setting out the scope, timing and direction of the audit. The result of the planning activities performed, these meetings and the proposed strategy will form the basis for the detailed audit plan. As such, the team planning meeting communications and discussions, and the related documentation, provide one important element demonstrating that direction and supervision of the engagement team and the review of their work has been appropriately planned and, in respect of certain topics, performed, as required by CSA 220.30(a).

Depending on the size and complexity of the engagement, a single team planning meeting may be sufficient while other engagements may require multiple team planning meetings. The engagement leader and key team members attend the meeting(s), and endeavors to also include the other engagement team members in the team planning meeting, to the extent practical. The engagement leader determines what needs to be communicated to engagement team members who did not attend the meeting(s).

The planning meeting(s) include communication and discussion of the following matters:

• Sharing of knowledge of the entity and the scope of the engagement;

• The engagement team’s collective responsibility for contributing to managing and achieving audit quality, and the importance of open and robust communication and raising concerns without fear of reprisal;

• The importance of professional ethics, values and attitudes;

• Exercising professional skepticism throughout the engagement;

• Risk related discussions including:

  • Application of the applicable financial reporting framework and susceptibility of the financial statements to material misstatement;
  • Overall risk assessment;

• Audit strategy and the preliminary audit plan;

• Planned engagement team resources, including allocating supervision/coaching and review responsibilities;

• Planned supervision of the engagement team, including planning for taking stock meetings.

Documentation

In respect of 'communication' topics, the extent of our documentation may be more limited and we generally only need to evidence in the procedure that the related matters were communicated to the engagement team members. Documentation of the 'discussion' topics may be more specific and would reflect the points discussed.

OAG Guidance

Key team members are those individuals who set or influence the scope of the audit, make significant judgments and review the work performed by less experienced engagement team members.

The engagement leader and key engagement team members will attend the team planning meeting(s). Key engagement team members include:

• the team manager(s);

• experienced team members;

• experts and/or specialists in accounting or auditing, as appropriate and at the discretion of the engagement leader (i.e., IT Audit specialists, Control Assurance specialists, Data Analytics specialists, Internal Specialist for Fraud, etc.);

• in the case of a group audit, key members of OAG component audit teams auditing significant components.

The engagement leader endeavors to include other members of the engagement team in the team planning meeting as well, to the extent practical, given the need to communicate and/or discuss many of the direction and supervision topics addressed in the team planning meeting to a broader group in order to fulfill the corresponding CAS 220 requirements relating to the direction and supervision of the engagement team and review of their work. The engagement leader determines which matters to communicate to those engagement team members who did not attend the team planning meeting. The audit file includes evidence of what was communicated to the other engagement team members, to whom the communications were made, by whom and when.

Refer to the policies on the involvement of an IT Audit Specialist (OAG Audit 3102).

EQR involvement in the team planning meeting

In addition to engagement team members, the engagement quality reviewer (EQR), if appointed for the engagement, may also attend the team planning meeting(s). The purpose of the EQR’s involvement is to consider audit quality in the context of their own responsibilities (i.e., with respect to significant judgments made and conclusions reached, and the matters required to be considered by the EQR in performing that role), based on the relevant facts and circumstances of which they have knowledge. Attending the team planning meeting(s) may also facilitate the EQR in evaluating the engagement leader’s basis for concluding their involvement has been sufficient and appropriate throughout the engagement, as required by CSQM 2.25(f). If the EQR does not attend the team planning meeting(s), the engagement leader considers having a separate meeting with the EQR in order to help the EQR perform their responsibilities as described in OAG Audit 3063 but also the engagement leader’s responsibilities where an EQR has been appointed, as described in OAG Audit 3062.

OAG Guidance

While we generally include as many engagement team members in the team planning meeting as practical, when the engagement team is large, it may not be feasible or necessary for all engagement team members to attend. The engagement leader determines which matters to separately communicate to those engagement team members who did not attend the team planning meeting.

The determination of which matters to communicate to engagement team members who did not attend the team planning meeting and how the communication occurs is a matter of professional judgment and likely depends on the engagement team members with whom we are communicating. Communications to other core assurance engagement team members might direct them to the team planning meeting notes/documentation, with instructions on who to contact if they have questions. At a subsequent taking stock meeting, key points relating to audit quality, compliance with ethical requirements and exercising professional skepticism may be reiterated.

Communications with the engagement team members that do not attend the team planning meeting are documented in the audit file. Such documentation reflects the matters that were communicated, to whom the communication was made and how the information was communicated (e.g., an additional meeting, email).

OAG Guidance

Typically, on larger engagements we perform audit procedures prior to year-end (e.g., interim procedures) and then at a later stage we perform year-end procedures.

There is no requirement to hold planning meetings at both interim and year-end. However, it may be appropriate to do so depending on the engagement circumstances. Circumstances where a second team planning meeting may be held prior to year-end procedures include:

• If there are significant changes between interim and year end (e.g., due to changes on the engagement team or changes at the entity in the intervening period). In this circumstance, the engagement leader and/or team manager will hold one or more additional meetings prior to commencement of year end audit procedures. Such meetings will cover objectives relating to one or more of the team planning meetings and a taking-stock meeting (see OAG Audit 7022). For example, year‑end materiality levels may be discussed and agreed at this meeting.

• If there are no significant changes between interim and year-end procedures. In this circumstance the engagement leader and/or team manager may hold a further meeting prior to commencement of year end procedures, covering the objectives of a taking-stock meeting.