The results of the audit for fiscal year 2010 provided valuable lessons on preparing for a first-time financial statement audit. In our September 2011 report, we identified five fundamental lessons that are critical to success. 27 Specifically, the Marine Corps’ experience demonstrated that prior to asserting financial statement audit readiness, DOD components must (1) confirm completeness of populations of transactions and address any abnormal transactions and balances, (2) test beginning balances, (3) perform key reconciliations, (4) provide timely and complete responses to audit documentation requests, and (5) verify that key IT systems are compliant with the Federal Financial Management Improvement Act.
