Evaluating the impact of risk management and risk-based internal audit on fraud detection in local governments

Risk management is one of the prominent issues which are pivotal to the success of a business and may adversely affect profitability if not properly practised. Therefore, the main objective of this paper was to determine risk management practices in manufacturing SMEs in Cape Town. The research conducted was quantitative in nature and constituted the collection of data from 74 SME leaders, all of whom had to adhere to a list of strict delineation criteria. All data collected were thoroughly analyzed through means of descriptive statistics. From the findings made, it is clear that SMEs in the manufacturing sector do in fact understand risk management initiatives applicable to ‘manage’ their respective businesses towards sustainability, but not to a large extent. It was found that respondents are unaware of the elements which make risk management effective, which ultimately aids to the development of problems for SMEs. All employees, managers and owners must coordinate their efforts together to identify and manage organizational risks within their ambit to obtain total risk coverage, as well as provide assurance that these risks are effectively managed from a coordinated approach. Further studies may be carried out to identify measures that can be taken to improve the effectiveness of risk management practices in SMEs.

Information economy, being the newest type, in the course of formation acquires its distinctive features, which include a significant change in the needs of investors, producers, consumers and other economic relation participants. In order to achieve a competitive information economy, state support for high-tech industries is needed. It is crucial to create a clear legal framework, give boost to the formation of intellectual capital based on other countries' experience. Implementation of the strategy for high-tech industries development in Ukraine is a decisive step in creating a platform for information technology dissemination, creation of new competitive products with high added value. The purpose of the article is to investigate the transformation to the information economy, to analyze the industry competitiveness, to define the opportunities for information sphere improvement. The theoretical aspect of the emergence and formation of the information economy category is studied, the approaches to the defining this economic category and its derivatives have been studied and generalized, essential features of the information type of economic relations have been investigated, and their main components have been determined. In the article, the relationship between the level of information economy development and the competitiveness of domestic enterprises' products has been described, the factors influencing high-tech industries development in Ukraine are considered, and suggestions as for increasing the assistance to the development of knowledge-intensive sectors, including information technology, are proposed.

This paper aims to discuss the concepts and methodological issues of enterprise risk management (ERM). The case study of company A shows that ERM has been implemented and integrated with management control as a means of monitoring its subsidiaries. First, ERM system was implemented through comprehensive review of corporate risk policies, risk management processes, roles and responsibilities, and risk culture. Second, company A integrated ERM with the existing management control system in order to evaluate the risk underlying the current management activities. Finally, ERM implementation was expanded to all subsidiaries so that each business unit would be delegated for its own risk management. This paper provides insight on the process how group-level internal auditors can use ERM as a tool to manage risk of subsidiaries, thereby filling the gap between academic research and practice. This successful ERM adoption case can be used as a guideline for other organizations, which plan to adopt ERM with reduced costs and improved processes.