Myambo, Vusi2024-10-032024-10-032022-11-01https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14519/757This study aims to examine the performance audit approach followed by internal auditors in the Gauteng public sector. The starting point of this research is the assumption that performance auditing is strongly present in the South African public sector today. A critical review of the literature describing the spread of auditing as a global practice for achieving good governance and accountability and examining how performance auditing has greatly influenced society in a democratic country like South Africa, was undertaken. Arising from the literature reviews the indications are that performance auditing has an enormous influence on citizens’ daily lives through its ability to identify methods and practices that facilitate economy, efficiency, and effectiveness in the delivery of government services. The problem identified in this study is directly linked to the audit challenges and to the audit methodology followed in the execution of performance audits. It should be noted that performance audits are performed by both internal and external auditors. The literature review identified gaps in the knowledge base: that prompted this study which examines the government’s management practices, controls, and reporting systems in relation to its own public administration policies and to globally recognised best practices. Analysis of the literature revealed that performance auditing requires flexibility, imagination and analytical skills to provide organisations with innovative solutions and new ideas. Another challenge arises from the fact that performance audit is a relatively new type of audit when compared to financial and compliance audits in that it expands audit’s realm beyond simply the verification of controls. However, regardless of the increase in use of performance audits in the South African public sector, there is no formal and/or universally accepted audit methodology to follow. Concerns have been raised about this lack of an internationally accepted, standardised approach. Moreover, performance audits in the public sector environment follow the standard internal audit approach, which is a risk-based approach, whereas the performance audit typically employs a symptom-based approach in its efforts to identify the gaps in the value-for-money chain in the delivery of services. This researcher adopted a quantitative research methodology using descriptive statistics to summarise and describe the data. The descriptive statistics were used to provide a detailed summary of the questionnaire responses received from performance auditors operating in internal audit environments about the practice of performance audit within their internal audit environments. This study examines specifically the performance audit approach followed by internal auditors in the Gauteng Province’s public sector. The study identified 98 performance auditors in the Gauteng public sector environment: thereafter a convenience sampling approach was followed, and the research instrument achieved a response rate of 68 percent. Data were collected through a questionnaire consisting of three (3) sections that addressed: alignment of performance audit methodology with IIA Internal Audit Standards; differences and similarities in roles played by internal auditors and external auditors in relation to conducting performance audits; and challenges faced by internal auditors in conducting performance audits within the public sector internal audit environment. Collected data sets were analyzed using SPSS software. The study used a cross-sectional survey method through questionnaires to collect data from performance auditors. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and inferential statistics using SPSS results. A one sample t-test was run on a 4-point Likert scale to evaluate statements related to factors that affect choice of performance audit approach for internal auditors in the public sector. The reference point was defined as 2.5, and the mean scores for all responses regarding alignment of performance audit methodology with IIA items were significant. The findings from the research illustrate that performance audits added value. The Bartlett's Test of Sphericity showed statistically significant results (p< .001) in all three question sets and further indicates that Principal Component Analysis was appropriate for the alignment and challenges, with the Bartlett test being statistically significant for both the similarities and differences. Thus, overall, there is strong evidence to conclude that the majority of respondents agreed or strongly agreed with statements regarding alignment of performance audit methodology with the IIA’s standards. The findings of this study indicate that there is a statistically significant relationship between alignment, similarities and challenges at the 1% level of significance. The study’s limitations relate to its heavy reliance on the research survey of performance audit approaches of internal auditors in the Gauteng provincial administration. Similarly, the information received was “filtered” by what respondents believed was within their discretion to share with the researcher. Beyond that, only performance audit practitioners were invited to participate in the study. Despite these limitations, this study contributes to the debate of how to align the audit processes and methodologies of compliance and performance audits. The research conclusion thus highlights the need for formal IIA guidance for performance audit practitioners which, at this relatively early stage in performance audit’s life, are identified as areas in need of further research.1-152 PagesenCC0 1.0 Universalhttp://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/Performance auditingPublic sectorEconomyEffectivenessEfficiencyAudit methodologyThesis