In our last article we looked at the importance of conducting regular IT audits for your business and what an audit should include. But, once you have received your IT audit report, how should you act on the results? Here, we outline our top tips.
What will be included in my IT audit report?
Your IT audit report should clearly outline the findings of the audit in an accessible way. That is, it will contain technical information but it can be understood by all the key stakeholders, not just the IT manager.
The details and analysis contained in the report will depend on the scope of the audit. But, in general terms, an IT audit report will provide an extensive assessment of a business’s IT infrastructure, both internal and external, and remedial recommendations to mitigate risks and increase efficiency.
You can expect your IT audit report to outline:
- An external penetration test
- A vulnerability assessment of your internal systems, hardware and software, including any liabilities your business may face if compromised
- An evaluation of your servers, including available storage and recommendations of more efficient and cost-effective solutions, if required
- Employee feedback on usage and any problems with IT support, access, software and applications
You may also be interested in: How often should your business run an IT audit?
How should I act on the IT audit report?
Conducting an IT audit is a practical exercise that will require action to be taken.
We will help you to:
Prioritise
While the findings of the report may bring up a number of remedial actions that are needed, it’s usually the case that these can be broken down in line with your budget. Those vulnerabilities that could imminently lead to loss or damage to your business assets will need top priority, while other recommendations can be dealt with later on.
Project manage the process
To make best use of your budget and resources, any action taken on the audit should be properly project managed. This will make sure that any changes or updates made do not conflict with your business operations or between your IT systems. It will also allow for the most efficient use of any resources and specialists involved.
Work with a specialist
Working with an IT specialist will give you the best result from the above. A specialist will outline what you need to prioritise to reduce the risk for your business operations. They will work within your budget and suggest the most cost-effective solutions, while professionally project managing the implementation of these changes.
Conclusion
A comprehensive IT audit report will give you the information and data you need to ensure that your infrastructure and operations are all exactly where they need to be. But, for an IT audit to be truly worthwhile, these changes will will need to be acted upon in a timely manner.
Find out more
If you would like to speak to us about an IT audit for your organisation, please contact Andrew Wayman at andrew.wayman@sdt.co.uk or call our office on +44 (0)1344 870062.