Chapter 2 Organization and Structure of the Auditing Profess(9)

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Planning executive compensation arrangements, conducting salary surveys, and

devising wage programs

Designing employee benefit and profit-sharing plans, performing annual actuarial

valuations, and implementing health care, life, and disability insurance programs

Communicating benefits and compensation policies to employees Developing benefits and compensation administration systems Determining compliance with government reporting requirements

Those consultants also may provide technical support to audit engagement teams. (c) Firm Structure

It is difficult to generalize about the organization of accounting firms because each one has its own structure and no two are exactly alike. Some multioffice firms are organized by groups or regions, with one partner assigned overall responsibility for the practice offices in each group or region. The group or regional partners may report to a number of vice chairmen or other designated partners. Each practice office is headed by a partner, often called the managing partner or partner in charge of the office, who is responsible for day-to-day operations. Within each practice office, there may be separate units for assurance services, tax, consulting, and perhaps one or more specialized practice areas. In addition to professional personnel, each practice office may have an administrative staff to handle personnel management, including recruiting, and to support the office's accounting and reporting function. In addition to their practice offices, many large accounting firms have a number of specialized departments, usually organized as part of a national office, that provide support to the practice. Examples of such resource groups are industry specialization, marketing and planning, professional education, and accounting and auditing policy setting, research, and consulting. Firms that practice in different countries are further organized under an international structure usually governed by a committee of representatives from the various member firms or geographic areas.

(d) Audit Engagement Team

Each audit is staffed by a team headed by a partner who signs the audit report and is ultimately responsible for the audit and its results. Especially on large or complex

engagements, there may be more than one partner, or the partner may delegate many

functions to one or more managers; however, one partner retains responsibility for the quality of the audit and thus should be actively involved in its planning and in evaluating the results, as documented and summarized by the members of the engagement team. The team usually includes a manager (or more than one on a large engagement) and other personnel with varying degrees of experience and professional expertise and competence. Firms establish staff classifications through which employees progress and policies that set forth the