The importance of introducing internal audit in pre-university education institutions

The aim of this paper is to introduce the standard principles of operation of educational institutions, as well as to emphasize the need for the introduction of internal audit in pre-university institutions. A short research on the educational institutions' management opinion on internal auditing is presented in the text. There is the great need to introduce internal auditing function in these institutions according to modern standards. If they decided to make changes, this process would also encounter the difficulties.

The role of internal audit in public procurement and the fight against corruption (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

Relevant governmental bodies and organizations, non-governmental organizations, international organizations and institutions, especially the media, show increased interest in corruption related to the public procurement. Public procurement is the most frequently cited area in the context of systemic corruption for the simple reason that it directly represents the spending of public money on a large scale, which according to OECD data represents about 7-15% of GDP. One of the possible approaches to prevent corruption in public procurement is the systematic building of the integrity of all entities and institutions involved in the public procurement process. Due to the fact that the internal audit way of organization and work is closest to practical issues of public procurement it has the opportunity to achieve the largest coverage of cases for which public funds are engaged.

Agility of internal audit

The dynamic changes in the market conditions are increasingly moving away from the reactive audit planning. The increasingly prevalent approach implies agility, i.e. faster adjustment to the external and internal environment, whose result includes the improved operational performance, quality and satisfaction of audit clients. One way to introduce agility in internal audit is to adopt the methodology Scrum, a management approach applied in several project organizations in various industries. By implementing the best experiences of Scrum, a better overview, thinking, learning and adjustment would be achieved. The principles of having to check and adjust, which are inherent in Scrum, enable the teams to work efficiently in the ever-changing conditions, resulting in a high level of sustainable productivity. The paper provides an overview of the agile organizations, specific planning, Scrum principles and concepts for application in audit teams.

Financing innovations in the contemporary world

As a practical application of new ideas, innovation is a multidimensional, complex, dynamic, long-term, and cumulative process based on organizational decision-making, from the stage of a new idea's emergence to its final implementation. There is a strong positive correlation between innovation and economic growth. Access to finance is a key driver of new innovative ventures' creation, survival, and growth. On the other hand, the lack of financial resources prevents and inhibits the growth and development of new innovative companies. This paper considers bootstrapping, crowdfunding, and mezzanine financing as widely accepted, specific innovation funding sources worldwide.

Various approaches to communication in internal audit

In order for the auditor's reports to be adequate, the auditor's communication with the audited entities and its representatives must be adequate. The paper discusses ways how to make internal audit more popular and what communication techniques to use with audit client management. Every aspect of vertical and horizontal communication in internal audit should be approached carefully in order to unify, integrate and focus audit activities on controls, risks and objectives. This includes an introductory and closing meeting, a specific approach to conflicting clients, information on specific objectives and the level of their achievement, using the experience of audit teams in the Telekom Srbija Group.

Sequential sampling in the public sector audit procedure

A fundamental weakness of the audit procedure of financial statements in the public sector is eliminating the functionality of sampling and thus the importance of the concept of materiality. The experience of the State Audit Institution (SAI) shows that 100% of the examination of documentation dominates in practice. Non-statistical sampling methods have a significant advantage because they put the scope of testing in the foreground as a matter of professional audit judgment. In contrast, statistical sampling requires the use of a statistical apparatus, usually an interval of confidence, which may or may not be decisive in determining the magnitude of the error. In addition, the importance of spending budget money requires the highest levels of accuracy in testing documentation, which extrapolated to the population does not have to be significant.

A "forest" of concepts and solutions in internal audit regulations

The Law on Budget System stipulates that the head of public funds is responsible for establishing and providing conditions for adequate functioning of internal audit. The Rulebook on Common Criteria and Standards for the Establishment, Functioning and Reporting of the Public Sector Financial Management and Control System stipulates that the head of internal audit reports directly to the head of the user of public funds. The unanswered question is who is the manager of the user of public funds.

Foreign trade in agricultural products of the Republic of Serbia and the Republic of Armenia: Euro-Asian integration processes

The paper analyzes the foreign trade of agro-industrial products of the Republic of Serbia with the Republic of Armenia during the period from 2008 to 2017 to identify current problems and assess the prospects for further development of export expansion. The Republic of Serbia exported agro-industrial products from the Republic of Armenia, but there was no import. That represents a long-term characteristic of the Serbian economy. Based on the statistical research, a systematic assessment of the depth of economic cooperation in the mutual exchange of agricultural products is given, and recommendations are given to develop Serbia and Armenia's economic ties.

Cross-sectional analysis of factors affecting out-of-pocket healthcare expenses in Serbia

Out-of-pocket expenses in healthcare show the level of direct payments by individuals paying for the healthcare services that are not covered by the insurance. In the Republic of Serbia, high level of out-of-pocket expenses is present considering dominant Bismarck model of healthcare system and level of user income. Previous research shows the significant impact of the socio-economic and healthcare system indicators afecting out-of-pocket expenses. The objective is to perform a cross-sectional analysis of the economic, healthcare, and demographic variables impact on the out-of-pocket expenses. We use quantitative methods of analysis of data collected for the data time frame from 20002018. Results show a high impact of the 7 out of 13 factors we explored.