The Audit Balancing Act: Managing Time – April 2026

Description

$275 (per person) includes an online webinar for 4 hours of CPE credit

Government auditors often face tight deadlines while completing complex projects demanding precision and focus. This interactive, 4-hour live workshop equips auditors with practical tools and strategies to effectively manage time to meet deadlines with competing priorities. Attendees will learn how to prioritize time, organize everyday aspects of life, and become aware of practical ways to maintain balance throughout the audit cycle. Through practical exercises and guided discussions, auditors will leave with refreshed perspectives and a new clock set with actionable alarms to increase efficiency, reduce stress, and deliver higher-quality results on time.

Whether you are managing a solo engagement or leading a team, you do not have to stay stuck in reactive mode. This class will teach you how to set your clock to increase productivity, improve your work life balance and take control of each day.

This powerful 4-hour webinar features Frank W. Jones, a governmental auditor, manager, and trainer with over 35 years’ experience leading teams to execute complex audits of the Internal Revenue Service. Frank is an award-winning trainer for the Council of the Inspector General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) and routinely delivers engaging presentations at conferences for the audit community.

Each objective below identifies common causes of time overruns, best practices, and strategies when applied to mitigate them.

Learning objectives:

• Define the interdependent phases of an audit and their impact on meeting milestones and performance measures
• Compare the relationship between the four types of overall audit objectives and how they should be integrated into report writing during planning and fieldwork phases to avoid last-minute bottlenecks
• Identify best practices to avoid scope-creep and digging rabbit holes that compromise audit timeliness and stakeholder confidence with audit results
• Define time management key factors that align with planned audit scope and methodologies
  Identify common time management myths, challenges, and best practices
• Recognize your time management style to identify how you naturally make decisions and approach tasks and priorities to reduce rework
• Describe how organizing, decluttering, and self-discipline improve time management

Program Level: Basic
Field of Study: Auditing (Governmental)
Who Should Attend: Governmental auditors who seek to learn new skills
Prerequisites: None
Advanced Preparation Required: None
Instructional Method: Webinar (Group Internet Based)
CPE Credit Hours: 4

Date: Tuesday, April 21, 2026
Time: 12:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Central

Webinar Leader:

Frank W. Jones, CIA

Frank Jones currently serves as a Management Analyst with the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) in Atlanta, GA. Frank previously served as an Audit Manager in the Returns Processing and Account Service program and as an Audit Director in the Compliance and Enforcement Operations Program. His auditable areas included IRS’s Small Business/Self Employed and Wage and Investment Income Operating Divisions functional offices that include Examination, Collection, Criminal Investigation, Office of Professional Responsibility, Field Assistance, Electronic Tax Administration, Media and Publications, and Stakeholder, Partnership, Education and Communication. Frank is an auditing instructor for TIGTA and has served as a Council of Inspectors General on Integrity and Efficiency (CIGIE) adjunct instructor since 2009. In addition, Frank regularly presents at Institute of Internal Auditors, Association of Local Government Auditors and the Association of Government Auditors conferences.

Frank began his career with the IRS Inspection Service in 1989 and has been with TIGTA since its establishment in 1998. While with TIGTA, he has participated in several notable customer service reviews where Frank and his team have played the role of taxpayers and conducted anonymous visits to IRS Taxpayer Assistance Centers and Volunteer Income Tax Assistance sites. For this review, auditors evaluated IRS employees and volunteers’ ability to correctly answer tax law questions and prepare accurate tax returns. During the 2008 filing season, Frank expanded his efforts and his team conducted anonymous visits to unenrolled commercial tax return preparation companies. The results from these reviews were instrumental in the IRS establishing the Taxpayer Assistance Blueprint and Paid Preparer Strategy.

Frank has received CIGIE awards for innovative customer service performance audits, the inaugural Adjunct Instructor Training Award of Excellence (2016) and the Barry R. Snyder Joint Award of Excellence (2024) for his contribution helping redesign the Introductory Auditor Course.   Frank is a mentor with more than 35 years of auditing experience. The unique blend of high energy and positive outlook on life makes his presentations motivational, leaving class participants excited and enthusiastic about the auditing profession. His educational mission is to inspire all students to go from being good to great auditors.

Frank has a BA in Accounting and Finance from Loyola University in New Orleans, Louisiana, and is a Certified Internal Auditor. Frank lives in Stone Mountain, GA with his wife Lori. In his free time, Frank enjoys coaching basketball, reading, playing on-line chess, fantasy football, and spending time with his family.

Questions? You can find our FAQ here and our policies here.

To see a breakdown of how many polls and minutes of attendance are required for this webinar, see this page.