We consult to Australian Government entities and build trusted relationships as an assurance partner

Understanding the risk appetite and tolerance of an organisation is crucial to how we provide internal audit and assurance services. We work with organisations to review their programs, frameworks and supporting processes and controls to mitigate their risk exposure. 

Our internal audit and assurance services provide a proactive mechanism for identifying and managing your risks. We don’t believe in waiting for something to go wrong before responding to the issue, we pride ourselves in keeping our clients ahead of the issues so that they meet their compliance requirements, and continually improve their performance and maturity.

Fraud and corruption risks are commonly faced by organisations, regardless of their size and nature of operations. 

Our team include personnel with qualifications and certifications in Australian Government fraud control and investigations. We have significant experience delivering these services, including: 

• Development of fraud risk assessments and fraud control plans for Australian Government entities in accordance with the Commonwealth Fraud and Corruption Control Framework.
• Forensic audits and reviews of accounting records. We can supplement these services with data analysis and e-discovery. The nature of these services commonly include, but are not limited to, misappropriation of funds and theft of assets, and processing of inaccurate payments and employee entitlements.
• Investigations undertaken in accordance with the Australian Government Investigation Standards. The nature of our investigations commonly include, but are not limited to, breaches in Code of Conduct, workplace investigations and conflicts of interest.
• Reviewing the design and operating effectiveness of fraud control arrangements.

In line with PGPA Act requirements and better practice grant and contract management, there is an expectation for the Commonwealth to enter into arrangements with entities that are financially viable and likely to remain in operation to deliver on their commitments over the grant or contract period. 

Cobalt has significant experience helping Commonwealth entities identify and mitigate financial viability risks associated with funding applicants or prospective suppliers of varying sizes and complexity. This includes as part of large-scale grant opportunity rounds through to one-off grants or procurements. Our experience also extends to assessing funded or contracted entities, where the Commonwealth has concerns with respect to their ongoing financial stability during the life of an agreement. 

Cobalt’s suite of financial viability assessment services includes, but is not limited to, consideration of: 

• Financial ratio and trend analysis 
• Industry comparisons 
• Entity structures and cross-entity loan and guarantee arrangements 
• The reliability of financial reports, including compliance with Accounting Standards, whether the statements have been audited, and the auditor’s opinion 
• Board and senior leadership tenure and experience 
• Diversity of income streams and funding reliance 
• Financial projections and supporting assumptions. 

Cobalt’s experience and established methodologies means we are able to provide these services in an efficient manner and to a high quality. We provide practical advice on actions you may wish to take to manage risks identified through the viability assessment.  

A compliance framework helps organisations establish, maintain and improve processes to conform with requirements. 

Cobalt designs compliance frameworks in accordance with industry standards (e.g. ISO 37301:2021 Compliance management systems – Requirements with guidance for use) and better practice standards for the related risks and industry. We assist Commonwealth entities design and implement compliance frameworks for various purposes including, but not limited to:

• Agency-wide legislative compliance
• Program and grantee compliance
• Contractual and service delivery compliance
• Work health and safety compliance.

An effective compliance framework may consider various factors and levers that can impact on compliance, including culture and leadership; policies, procedures and guidance; training and awareness initiatives; and review and audit activities. Review and auditing activities should be proportionate to risk, from light-touch and sample-based (with desired educational and corrective outcomes) through to targeted forensic reviews (with potential punitive outcomes).

Cobalt’s experience and expertise supports entities to design an effective, risk-based compliance frameworks. We can also support delivery of compliance activities, including undertaking compliance-based review and audit activities on your behalf and training / upskilling your teams. 

Have you achieved value for money and are you meeting your probity obligations? Navigating the requirements of the Commonwealth Procurement Rules and understanding the guidance provided by the Department of Finance is challenging for Commonwealth entities. Don’t expose yourself to the risk of non-compliance with legislative requirements, our team of consultants are specialists in procurement for Commonwealth entities and are always available for a chat.

Contract management can be another hurdle for Commonwealth entities. There’s limited guidance and better practice standards available for Commonwealth entities. We have an established framework for assessing the maturity of your contract management processes and capability. Let us work with you to improve the contract management capability and framework of your organisation.  

We’re experts in designing and establishing governance arrangements that are tailored to the risk profile of your organisation. We start by assessing the organisational structure, dependencies between business areas and existing governance arrangements. We can then identify and highlight gaps before designing optimised risk management and governance arrangements that are mapped specifically to your organisational needs.