Analytical procedures are a cornerstone of audit quality, required at multiple stages of the engagement and critical to identifying risks, developing expectations, and evaluating financial statement assertions. This course provides auditors with a clear, practical, and up‑to‑date understanding of how to perform analytical procedures in accordance with the latest ASB and AICPA standards.
Participants will explore best practices, common pitfalls, and recent pronouncements affecting analytical review techniques for private entity audits. Using real‑world examples, the program breaks down the four phases of analytical procedures and highlights methods for enhancing precision, improving documentation, and strengthening audit conclusions.
Publication Date: August 2026
Designed For
This course is designed for accounting and audit professionals responsible for performing or reviewing analytical procedures.
Topics Covered
- Phases of analytical procedures: expectation formation, identification, investigation, and evaluation
- Understanding account characteristics and assertion‑level risks
- Reliability and sufficiency of data used in developing expectations
- Precision considerations and expectation‑forming methods
- Conducting comparisons and ratio/trend analyses
- Relationship between analytical procedures and the audit risk model
- Purpose and application of preliminary and final analytical reviews
- Common challenges and best practices for documentation and investigation
- Q&A and practical examples for enhancing audit effectiveness
Learning Objectives
- Describe the purpose, scope, and required use of analytical procedures throughout the audit
- Identify ASB and AICPA requirements governing analytical procedures for private‑entity audits
- Recognize appropriate applications of preliminary, substantive, and final analytical procedures
- Explain the four phases of analytical procedures and apply them effectively
- Evaluate changes in account balances using trend, ratio, and expectation‑based analysis
- Apply updated guidance and pronouncements to strengthen audit quality and documentation
Level
Intermediate
Instructional Method
Self-Study
NASBA Field of Study
Auditing (2 hours)
Program Prerequisites
Basic understanding of auditing standards
Advance Preparation
None
Instructor
Salvatore Collemi
Salvatore A. Collemi, CPA is the Managing Member and Founder of Collemi Consulting and Advisory Services, LLC where he relies on over two decades of global business experience to guide U.S. and International public accounting firms, litigation attorneys, valuation experts, the C-suite and related institutions that support the profession in order to promote and enhance audit quality.
His practice provides outsourced high-level strategic and technical accounting & auditing guidance. Services include a full range of U.S. and International accounting & auditing consultations, technical reviews of financial statements and workpapers, AICPA Peer Review & PCAOB Inspection preparation, perform internal inspections, customized CPE training, independence & ethics consultations, etc. Salvatore is also a keynote speaker at company retreats and conferences. His past work experience at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the AICPA, combined with his previous roles as external auditor and technical partner to both national and international public accounting firms, gives him a keen understanding into the mindset of both regulators and standard-setters that he shares with his clients.
As a recognized subject matter expert on International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), Salvatore was named by the AICPA as an official participant in the development and review of IFRS questions for the Uniform CPA Examination and served as the IFRS Expert-at-Large for the AICPA Board of Examiners Content Committee from 2011-2014. Salvatore also served as AICPA liaison to the International Federation of Accountants (IFAC) Transnational Auditors Committee and Global Peer Review Subcommittee to assist in the development of their international quality assurance review program.
For more information about Salvatore, visit Collemi Consulting & Advisory Services, LLC and LinkedIn.