Asked to Audit a Project? Your Team Doesn’t Have to Know Everything.

You have excellent auditors.

You also have a major project to examine and nobody who can confidently explain the schedule, assess a contractor’s claim, or distinguish a reasonable cost estimate from hopeful fiction.

The temptation is to send your strongest auditor and assume they will figure it out.

That is quite a lot to ask of one person and a highlighter.

Start by mapping the work before assigning the people.

For each significant risk, write down the question the audit needs to answer. Then identify the expertise required to answer it.

For example:

• Testing payment approvals needs audit and financial control skills.

• Assessing whether a schedule is achievable may require an experienced scheduler.

• Examining quantities or pricing may call for a cost specialist.

• Evaluating technical quality may require a suitably qualified engineer.

• Interpreting disputed contract terms may need legal advice.

Next, mark each area: covered, needs support, or currently missing.

That simple exercise turns “we lack project experience” into a staffing discussion you can actually resolve.

You may be able to pair an auditor with an internal specialist, arrange targeted training, or bring in outside expertise for a defined part of the assignment. Check that specialists have the time, competence, and objectivity needed, especially if they helped design or deliver the work under review.

Agree how their work will be documented, reviewed, and incorporated into the audit conclusion. A specialist’s involvement should strengthen the evidence, with responsibilities clear from the outset.

Try this today: Choose one upcoming audit. List its three hardest questions and name the person qualified to help answer each.

LG3’s project management and construction audit courses can help your auditors build their knowledge, recognize technical boundaries, and work more effectively with specialists.

Which skill is hardest for your team to access: scheduling, construction costs, contracts, or technical quality?

Learn it. Grow it. Own it.