Which Audit App(s) Should Auditors Use? An Exploratory Study of Using Recommender Systems for Audit App Selection

• In Event: Emerging Technologies

Abstract

Recently, “apps” have become a popular notion in auditing profession. Audit apps are formalized audit procedures that are performed through computer scripts. Caseware, one of large company who provides software solutions for auditing, has developed an audit app platform and launched more than 50 audit analytic apps. Other app distribution platforms, such as Apple App Store, Google Play, and Windows Phone Store, are also providing a potential increase of audit apps. Predictably, the numbers of audit apps will keep continue to rise as audit apps become more prevalent across auditors.
The explosion in number and variety of audit apps makes discovery a main challenge, which in turn leads to the demands of recommendation services for audit apps. Auditors, especially less experienced auditors, desire guidance or assistance to select the appropriate audit apps for specific audit clients. Moreover, since vastly increase of audit apps, auditors’ capability to manually seek the right audit apps will be restricted. In this paper, we propose a “super audit app” which can provide such assistance for the condition above. The super audit app can suggests the appropriate audit apps by analyzing audit environment and auditors’ historical preferences. Based on such information, the super audit app can provide personalized suggestions for a particular auditor, such that he (she) can select suitable audit apps for a specific audit client. Ultimately, with appropriate audit apps, auditors are able to efficiently conduct audit activities and provide accurate opinions.

Authors

• Jun Dai, Rutgers University - Newark

• Desi Arisandi, Rutgers University - Newark

• Miklos A Vasarhelyi, Rutgers University - Newark