Audit Quality
Combined Assurance Maturity
Maturity of combined assurance models coordinating management, internal audit and external assurance.
Why combined assurance reduces audit surprises
King IV advocates a combined-assurance model in which management, internal audit, external audit and other assurance providers coordinate so that significant risks are covered without duplication or gaps. Where assurance providers work in silos, the same risk is over-audited in one place and unwatched in another, and the external audit becomes a source of surprises. AuditPro Core measures combined-assurance maturity so audit committees can see whether the assurance lines genuinely add up to coverage.
The Numbers
AuditPro Core renders this view from your tenant's live, tamper-evident records. The figures below are illustrative sample data.
Documented models
62%
Optimised maturity
14%
Ad hoc / none
26%
Assurance gaps logged
143
Entities by maturity level
Maturity detail
| Maturity level | Entities | Clean % |
|---|---|---|
| Ad hoc | 64 | 9% |
| Emerging | 102 | 21% |
| Defined | 121 | 38% |
| Managed | 72 | 52% |
| Optimised | 58 | 67% |
Figures shown are illustrative sample data for demonstration. AuditPro Core renders these views from your own tenant's live, tamper-evident records.
The lines of assurance
Management owns and operates controls (first line), risk and compliance functions oversee them (second line), and internal and external audit independently test them (third and external lines). Combined assurance coordinates all of them against one risk map.
Maturity, not existence
Most entities can name their assurance providers; few can show that the providers' work is mapped to risks and consolidated into a single assurance view. Maturity measures that coordination, not mere presence.
Closing assurance gaps
The value of combined assurance is exposing risks that no provider covers and risks that several duplicate. A mature model reallocates effort from over-assured to under-assured risks.
How AuditPro Core Bridges the Gap
- Maturity scoring: AuditPro Core rates each entity's combined-assurance model against King IV maturity stages.
- Coverage mapping: assurance activity is mapped to the risk universe to expose gaps and overlaps.
- Provider traceability: each significant risk links to the providers assuring it.
- Assurance export: the maturity and coverage map exports for audit committee and risk-committee oversight.
Key Takeaways
- Combined assurance coordinates all assurance lines against one risk map.
- Maturity measures coordination, not the mere existence of providers.
- Silos cause both over-auditing and unwatched risks.
- A mature model reallocates effort from over- to under-assured risks.
See This on Your Own Data
AuditPro Core renders this dashboard from your tenant's live, tamper-evident records — every figure traceable to source.