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What to audit… what not to audit. Have you ever wondered how a municipality decides which processes need to be improved, what new services are required or how risks are avoided? One of the ways is through completing an internal audit.
At the City of Vaughan, our job as internal auditors is to ensure the administration has an ironclad governance framework. Through an internal audit, the team evaluates department-specific processes and provides recommendations to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of risk management and control activities. This is done regularly across the organization.
Here’s a look into how we plan our audits:
Developing an Internal Audit Risk Based Work Plan
We developed an Internal Audit Risk Based Work Plan to reflect the current and emerging risks within the municipality. How are risks identified? Using a risk assessment process that combines financial, reputational, compliance, operational and external criteria. The assessment is a dynamic and iterative process that identifies any risk to achieving the department’s objectives and forms a basis for determining how that risk should be managed.
In addition to the risk assessment, other sources are used for determining risk and work plan priorities. These include:
- Discussions with senior leaders
- Insight from Council
- Financial impacts
- Current and emerging risks in the municipal government sector
- High-profile issues in other municipalities
- Management requests
- Themes from previous audits and investigations
- Significant changes in the external environment or within the City’s business model
Based on available resources, a list of priority projects for the year is then established.
In the summer of 2022, we performed an entity-wide risk assessment to inform our 2023 and 2024 audit plan priorities. A total of 80 entities were identified in the City’s audit universe. For some areas, entities were consolidated to create further efficiencies and for the purposes of conducting future audits.
Issuing Audit Client Surveys
After completing each audit project, members of the management team who are directly involved in the process are asked to complete an Audit Client Survey. This 15-question survey asks for feedback on how we communicated throughout the audit, our understanding of the department’s issues, the professionalism of our audit staff and the quality of our findings.
We distributed a total of 20 surveys in 2022, including for our Fleet Services Audit, Animal Services Audit, Building Standards Phase 2 Audit, Service Vaughan Audit, Accessibility Audit, Vendor Master File Audit and the Phase 1 Audit of the Construction of the Carrville Community Centre, Library and District Park. We received an outstanding 100 percent participation rate.
After each survey closed, we met with the members involved in the process to discuss the results, assess if the objectives of the audit were met and identify any further areas of potential concern. The process is considered a success when management participates, concurs with the observations and recommendations, and is committed to addressing them through tangible management action plans.
Leveraging the Audit Committee
Vaughan’s Audit Committee is comprised of Members of Council, City staff and members of the public and has an objective to guide the City’s governance, accountability and controllership responsibilities. This is done by ensuring risks are appropriately addressed through strong governance, a risk/control and compliance framework, appropriate stewardship and effective internal audit activity. The Audit Committee also has the authority to request projects not on the work plan. The Audit Committee meets at least five times per year to assist and provide Council with timely information.
Identifying Areas for improvement per Department
Another key responsibility for our team is to conduct audits on departments and services to identify opportunities for further improvement to continue delivering Service Excellence. In 2022, 13 audit reports were completed and presented to the Audit Committee. One of which was the 2022 Animal Services Audit.
The assessment: Vaughan Animal Services is a valued and established core public service, responsible for managing the animal shelter and animal control in Vaughan, Richmond Hill and King. The shelter also administers pet licensing and animal adoption.
Since 2010, Vaughan Animal Services has been operating out of a 6,700 square foot leased facility in an industrial plaza. Currently, the shelter has 123 permanent cages for cats and 40 permanent cages for dogs. This location was originally planned to be a temporary solution until a permanent facility could be secured. In 2021, 652 dogs and cats were impounded—happily, 79 percent of them were reunited with their families. Homes were found for 230 unclaimed animals. As operations progressed and expanded over the years, spacing challenges for the animals and staff became apparent. Firstly, the current facility had no outdoor green space for dogs to exercise, making it necessary for dogs to be hand-walked twice a day within the
parking lot area adjacent to the shelter. Second, at times of peak capacity, staff were forced to reduce service levels, such as not trapping nuisance feral cats. The limited space also required Animal Control Officers to perform many of their administrative duties from their vehicles. Lastly, leasing created a business continuity risk as the property owner may choose not to renew the lease. Vaughan Animal Services would then be under immense pressure to find a suitable replacement facility.
The identified improvement: As part of our assessment, we determined that finding a permanent, City-owned facility with more space and additional amenities would alleviate potential business continuity risks, health and safety and reputational risks. The location should be large enough to allow proper species segregation and provide areas for treatment, quarantine and exercise. It should also be conducive for management to provide adequate oversight of shelter and control activities, while ensuring a positive client experience. Such positive public experiences are known to encourage greater public donations, partnerships and community investment—all great outcomes.
The objective of the internal audit undertaken: To investigate the feasibility of acquiring a permanent location for the Vaughan Animal Services shelter.
The scope of the audit: Conducted from January 2020 to November 2021, in conformance with the International Standards for the Professional Practice of Internal Auditing.
The recommendations: We recommended that management:
- Finalize the Animal Services Operations Centre and Shelter Funding Plan to support the construction of a new operations centre
- Secure the City-owned Maple Nature Reserve lands as the location for the future Animal Services Operations Centre and Shelter or identify another suitable location for land acquisition.
- Develop an Animal Services Operations Centre and Shelter Business Case so it may be considered as part of the City’s 2023 budget cycle.
The results: Management agreed with the audit recommendations and hired a consultant to prepare a Business Case to outline options for a permanent facility location, which identified the City-owned Maple Nature Reserve as the recommended location for a permanent animal shelter facility. This location provides an immense area of protected green space, with a number of land use restrictions that limit alternative uses and directly align with establishing a new facility for Vaughan Animal Services.
The results of our audit and the feasibility study were submitted to the City’s Infrastructure Delivery department for consideration and inclusion in their budget cycle deliberations.
What is happening now: The City’s Business Case Decision Committee approved the recommendation to move forward with the Animal Services Operations Centre and Shelter. The budget will be considered and formalized in the City’s 2024 budget cycle.
These are just some of the ways we, as the City of Vaughan’s internal auditors, help keep the municipality running as efficiently and effectively as possible. Want to learn more about our work? Visit vaughan.ca. 
Kevin Shapiro is Director of Internal Audit for the City of Vaughan.
