Naval Surface Warfare Center Port Hueneme Division gets 'audit ready'

Photo By Brian Melanephy | PORT HUENEME, Calif. – Financial Improvement and Audit Readiness (FIAR) Team Lead Tanya Anderson educates the workforce and provides tips to successfully traverse the road to audit readiness during the FIAR Town Hall, Nov. 2.  

PORT HUENEME, CA, UNITED STATES

11.08.2016

Story by Brian Melanephy 

Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Division

PORT HUENEME, Calif. – Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Division (NSWC PHD) employees gathered in the Audiovisual Center for a Financial Improvement and Audit Readiness (FIAR) Town Hall, Nov. 2.
Audit readiness is mandated by Congress and the Department of Defense must be audit ready by September 30, 2017.
The event started with opening comments from NSWC PHD Comptroller Bill Schlesinger. It had been more than a year since the last FIAR Town Hall and much had happened since it was held in September 2015.
After giving an update on current audit readiness efforts at NSWC PHD, Schlesinger yielded the podium to FIAR Team Lead Tanya Anderson. Anderson gave a quick overview of the four audit opinions- adverse, disclaimer of opinion, qualified and unqualified. She then shared some tips with those in attendance about how to get and stay audit ready. This included having internal controls, standard operating procedures, desk guides, solid records management, accurate time and attendance, adherence to proper procedures for travel, timely and accurate travel vouchers, appropriate use of government travel cards and government purchase cards and issues related to contracted services.
All of the audit readiness tips she shared were tied to NSWC PHD’s 10 business segments. These segments are: civilian pay, contractor and vendor pay, financial statement compilation and reporting, funds balance with treasury, military standard requisitioning and issue procedures, reimbursable work orders for the grantor and the performer, transportation of people and things, asset management of supplier-owned materials and supplies, asset management of general equipment and asset management of inventory.
Anderson also educated the workforce about the vital role each individual plays regardless of their job position at the division.
“Everyone influences the reliability and accuracy of our financial data,” Anderson said. “What you do is important; we are all stakeholders in audit readiness.”
Starting in fiscal 2018 any component of the Department of Defense or its subordinate organizations can be audited with a very short amount of time to respond, with each audit being a pass/fail event- although what causes failure is still yet to be determined.
An audit is a formal examination of an organization’s or an individual’s accounts or financial situation, with the outcome providing reasonable assurance that the respective financial statements are free from material errors.
Some key aspects of a financial audit are the determination of the reasonableness and reliability of information, an assessment of existing internal controls and confirmation the results of the audit can be repeated and reproduced throughout future rounds of testing.
There are a number of reasons behind an audit. However in the end, a successful audit and the accountability of money and resources bestowed upon government employees has the potential to increase the public trust and confidence in Department of Defense and the Federal Government.
The road to the audits currently involves periodic internal testing of NSWC PHD’s business segments, with the possibility of external testing in the future either from the Office of Financial Management or an independent public accountant.
According to Schlesinger, the goal in audit readiness is to minimize variation. Variation leads to failure.
“Audit readiness is a forcing mechanism for standard operating procedures,” Schlesinger said.
At the conclusion of the informational briefing and update Anderson took questions from the audience and the command leadership. The event culminated with NSWC PHD Commanding Officer Cord Luby picking up a microphone and sharing some final thoughts with the group.
“This [audit readiness] is going to a part of our lives and is not going away; everybody has a play in this.” Luby said. “I am seeing a lot of progress and I am really happy about it.”

• Date Taken: 11.08.2016
• Date Posted: 11.08.2016 18:26
• Story ID: 214195
• Location: PORT HUENEME, CA, US