We have just opened our first branch. I have just completed the initial audit of the branch. Other than reporting the findings to Audit Committee and the Board, do you also give the full report (the good, the bad and the ugly) to the branch manager?

Or do you just give an abbreviated report on what he/she needs to work on specifically? FYI- We do not have a scoring system yet, I am just getting started but wondering what other banks do regarding reports to managers on how their staff and branch is doing.

THANKS!

We give the branch manager a copy of the full report. They should get to see it.

I would expect whoever has been delegated responsibility for branch operations to respond, and it would be up to that person, in my opinion, as to what items need to be addressed with the branch manager.

Head of the branches....let them deal with the branch manager/supervisor to craft a response and action plan with timeframe.

I recently completed the branch audit for all branches of our bank and here's what I did. For the branch managers, I gave them copies of the full audit report for their respective branch.

For the operations general manager (COO) and the CEO, I created a comprehensive management report identifying what I thought were major systemic and controls issues and recommendations for the total branch operations system holistically. I also gave them copies of each of the branch audits.

It was well received.

This is why I love BOL...I got just what I needed, effortless, in less than a 24 hour period! I would still like to hear from others, but THANKS to everyone!

I essentially do the same as everyone else. In my position, I report to the board, so everything goes to them. However, the report that gets sent to the board is similar to ESKs, as it is only the major issues that they see.

A full listing of all findings gets sent to the branch manager, separated out by what is being reported to the board and what isn't. The branch manager is responsible for correcting the errors, and also formally responding to the findings getting sent to the board.

I give the full report to the branch manager and give him/her time to reply to my recommendations and make any changes if any. I then give a scaled down version of my findings, recomendations and branch managers responses to the Board of Directors. If the branch manager and I disagree I let the board make the final decision. I feel at this point I have done my job by pointing out the problem, I am there to make recommendations not enforce them.

I send a full report to the branch manager. The branch manager then has two weeks to respond to me in writing. If they can "prove me wrong" on something (such as if I couldn't locate something, they found it misfiled somewhere during the response time) then I alter that report. I send a full report including the branch manager's response to the bank officers who are on the Audit Comm. as soon as the response is received from the branch manager.

The full Audit Comm. gets a very condensed version of the report when we have our quarterly meetings. I always bring along the full reports with me so that I can answer any questions or provide more detail as needed at the meetings.

The only other step we have is that, after responding to me, the branch manager also must write up an action plan which is submitted to the branch administrator.

I would give the branch manager a copy of the full report to keep on hand. I would also send a copy to their manager as well as head of operations.

Hoosierland - do you follow up to make sure they item you documented as missing is actually there - or do you take there word for it? I have found that I just don't have time to go back and follow up for all the missing items - and have often wondered what other auditors do.

Full report with Executive Summary included with Full Report to Branch Manager, VP over branches, CEO and the Board. Most audits I do cover all branches. In those cases, the report goes to the VP and the VP goes over the report in a committee of branch managers and they address best practices. The VP then responds to the report with an action plan and due dates. That action plan had to be updated monthly and it goes to the board so they can monitor progress.

CC82--For us, it depends on the severity of what is missing or wrong. Most times, I do not go back to verify that they have corrected the error because most of the errors (thankfully) aren't that critical. Audit Committee has given me some direction on what are "zero tolerance" items, and those cases get a follow up visit from me.

In my situation, we are a $240 million bank with 11 branches and I am a department of one, so I don't have time to follow up on all exceptions. Also, because of our small size and the longevity of most of our management level or higher employees, I can have a pretty good confidence level that people I'm dealing with are being truthful. I know them well and they know me well also.

We give report to AC, CFO, Risk Manaager, Branch Manager, Head of Retail Banking, and Overall Branch Coordinator.

I provide the branch manager with the report and give him/her time to respond. We can then "discuss" the findings before they are reported to the Audit Committee. The last thing you should want is the branch manager and you disagreeing at the Audit Committee meeting. All issues should be discussed beforehand and handled, even if it means that the two of you agree to disagree. I can promise that if the branch manager disagrees with you, he/she will have examples and instances proving his/her point, and if you are not prepared (or do not know that he/she disagrees with you), it will make you look as though you are not doing a good job.

Besides, the Audit Committee should expect a response to the findings from the branch manager. If they do not, the FDIC seems to want to see that happen.