Mind of Jacka: To Whom It May Concern
Blogs Mike Jacka, CIA, CPA, CPCU, CLU Feb 27, 2025
Who are you writing your reports for?
No, this isn’t one of those, “I’m writing for the board/executives/clients” type answers. This isn’t about trying to figure out which of our myriad customers are important in what part of the audit report. All a great discussion, but not the point right now.
No, instead, I’m thinking about the auditors who actually write those first drafts. If you are the one putting those first words on virtual paper, who are you really writing the report for?
Because, I have a sneaky suspicion that, as much as we like to get all high-minded and reverential talking about the many important clients we work with, instead, we are writing for the boss. While every report has a message that we are trying to convey, in the back of our minds (and sometimes front and center) is a superior who controls our destiny, our future, and our salaries — someone who will look at that report and pass judgement upon us. Ultimately, auditors are writing to make the boss happy.
And you, bosses, have to take much of the blame. You may claim you are reviewing the report to ensure it provides solid communication. But isn’t your real objective that the report makes you happy?
Yes, I know that making the boss happy and good communication are not mutually exclusive — a happy boss is one who sees a report that communicates effectively. But in your reviews, is such communication the core message within your comments? Or in your pursuit of making yourself happy. Have you lost sight of the customer? Have you lost sight of ensuring the auditors understand why reports need to be written in certain ways? (And I’ll go so far as to ask, do you understand why you want it written a certain way? Or is it an example of the worst review note ever: “I don’t know what’s wrong; I just don’t like it”?)
No matter how we want to sugar coat it, the primary customer — the first one every auditor has to make happy — is the boss. And, when our focus is misdirected in such a manner, that impacts what is written. Auditors become so focused on what they think the boss wants that they lose sight of the actual purpose of the report.
Again, the customer’s and the boss’s needs should be aligned. But there are differences. Mayhaps subtle differences, but impactful differences that can affect the final product. Every auditor/author must stand back and look at what needs to be said, making sure the message always comes first. And every reviewer needs to step away from their preconceived notions of correctness and ensure the customer is seeing the important message, not one washed up on the shores of preconceived acceptance.