The Productive Auditor

William and Brian’s book should be mandatory reading for audit staff, managers, and partners everywhere, and especially audit leadership, who set the tone for the entire firm.

For those who don’t like reading, you can just pick an area you struggle with - review comments, PBC management, planning - go that chapter, and quickly find some new ways of doing things that will greatly improve your team’s efficiency and communications.

It’s hard for me to think of someone picking up this book and NOT have it pay back many times over, even if you implement just a handful of the suggestions. I bought a few extra copies to hand out to colleagues.

One could argue it could be trimmed a bit, but I believe most of the repetition is due to the “field guide” nature of the book - structured in a way that’s intended to let you flip to the end of each chapter and get summary tips and action items for what you can implement quickly.

I can attest to all of their success. Auditology is even more than shared in this book. Following their simple approach organizations can gain huge improvements in performance. In reading the book it seems too simple, it is when done religiously and properly. Start with some basic improvements and then you can build to go as deep and wide as you desire. Don't stop at audit as we executed similar gains in tax and risk assessment. Consider internal audit and financial organizations as a whole. With this straightforward approach you can make transformative performance improvements throughout finance and back office operations. The best part is it is fun and addictive because everyone participates and owns the improvements. As I shared with an audit manager, "what's the worst thing that can happen, go back to what you were doing". The best thing that can happen is improved quality, economics and you get to see your family in year end. Buy this and go for it!

This book provides a great argument for why the benefits of a Quality Management System extend beyond compliance.

If audit firms implement the 5 core principles of Auditology™️, they will experience regulatory resilience, credibility in the market, operational excellence, profitability, advantageous market positioning, and growth.

Please read this book, especially if you are an auditor! finance and back office operations. The best part is it is fun and addictive because everyone participates and owns the improvements. As I shared with an audit manager, "what's the worst thing that can happen, go back to what you were doing". The best thing that can happen is improved quality, economics and you get to see your family in year end. Buy this and go for it!

Whether you’re an Audit Associate just cutting your teeth or a seasoned Partner steering entire engagements, Managing the Hell Out of Your Audit is a must-read. This book is packed with practical methods, disciplined approaches, and proven best practices to keep your audit on track, on budget, and on time.

What makes it stand out is its grounding in the real world—many of the principles outlined aren’t just theory. They’ve been used (and continue to be used) at two of the Big Four powerhouses, KPMG and PwC, to drive consistency, efficiency, and quality across engagements.

The writing is straightforward, no fluff, and the strategies are universally applicable—whether you’re navigating complex client expectations, managing a fast-paced team, or trying to avoid last-minute fire drills.

In short: this book delivers practical wisdom with the kind of edge and clarity that the title promises.
Highly recommend for anyone serious about mastering the art (and grind) of auditing.

As someone who works in public accounting and more importantly audit, this book proved extremely helpful. It talked about so many pain points that I experience year over year on the same clients, and offers some insights on why these problems pop up every year, why no change has happened and how to take steps for a brighter tomorrow Improved audits for all stakeholders may seem out of reach for many but Brian has proved it possible in some of the largest firms possible.

Unlike my CPA Review material, I’ll be reading this fine piece of “ battle ready” literature again and again.

Brilliant new audit method to discover insights into the process flow, root causes of issues, and non-standard operation steps of any process. The 5 audit principles along with the 5 continuous improvement phases will create much more value from audits than the common 'inspect-document-depart style' audits. This powerful method will provide the continuity needed for continuous improvement of any process type. AUDITOLOGY is the supplemental phase for all define-measure-analyze-improve-control (DMAIC) or plan-do-check-act (PDCA) projects to furnish continuous improvements.

Take back your power and run your finances more efficiently. Great book!