When an internal auditor is unable to find supporting documentation for selected accounts during a test, the appropriate next step is to contact management to determine if the documentation is stored elsewhere. This ensures that all potential sources of evidence are explored before drawing any conclusions.
Detailed Explanation:
IIA Standard 2310 - Identifying Information:
This standard requires auditors to obtain sufficient, reliable, relevant, and useful information to support their findings. If documentation is missing, the auditor must investigate further to determine if the evidence exists in another location or form.
Contacting Management:
Before concluding that the test failed or expanding the sample, the auditor should first check with management to see if the documentation might be stored in an alternative location. This step ensures that the audit results are based on a thorough and complete examination of available evidence.
IIA Practice Advisory 2330.A1-1:
The advisory suggests that auditors should consider all sources of evidence and confirm with management if there are any alternative ways to obtain the necessary information.
Why Not Other Options?
Option A (Conclude that the test failed): This conclusion would be premature without first attempting to locate the missing documentation.
Option B (Select new accounts): This could lead to the same issue if the documentation is not missing but simply stored elsewhere.
Option C (Expand the sample size): Expanding the sample is unnecessary if the issue is simply that the documentation is stored in a different place.
Conclusion: Option D is correct because it involves taking the logical next step of contacting management to locate the missing documentation, ensuring that the audit is thorough and the conclusions drawn are based on all available evidence, in line with IIA standards.