Checklist for Auditing Overall Project Management
Ensure that sufficient project documentation and software development process documentation (if applicable) have been created. Ensure that the company's project methodology standards are being followed.
Review procedures for ensuring that project documentation is kept up-to-date.
Evaluate security and change-management processes for critical project documentation.
Evaluate procedures for backing up critical project software and documentation. Ensure that backups are stored offsite and that documented procedures exist for recovery.
Ensure that an effective process exists for capturing project issues, escalating those issues as appropriate, and tracking them to resolution.
Ensure that an effective process exists for capturing project change requests, prioritizing them, and dispositioning them.
Verify that a project schedule has been created and that it contains sufficient detail based on the size of the project. Ensure that there is a process in place for monitoring progress and reporting significant delays.
Ensure that there is a method for tracking project costs and reporting overruns. Ensure that all project costs, including labor, are considered and tracked.
Evaluate the project leadership structure to ensure that both the business and IT are represented adequately.
Checklist for Auditing Project Startup
Ensure that appropriate project approval processes were followed prior to project initiation.
Ensure that a technical feasibility analysis has been performed along with, if applicable, a feasibility analysis by the company's legal department.
Review and evaluate the requirements document. Determine if and how customer requirements for the project are obtained and documented before development takes place. Ensure that the customers sign off on the requirements and that the requirements encompass standard IT elements.
Evaluate the process for ensuring that all affected groups who will be helping to support the system, software, or process are involved in the project and will be part of the sign-off process, indicating their readiness to support it.
Review the process for establishing the priority of requirements.
Determine whether the system requirements and preliminary design ensure that appropriate internal control and security elements will be designed into the system, process, or software.
If the project involves the purchase of software or technology, review and evaluate the vendor selection process and related contracts.
Checklist for Auditing Detailed Design and System Development
Ensure that all requirements can be mapped to a design element.
Verify that the key stakeholders have signed off on the detailed design document (or equivalent).
Review processes for ensuring ongoing customer involvement with the prioritization of tasks on the project.
Look for evidence of peer reviews in design and development.
Verify that appropriate internal controls and security have been designed into the system.
Checklist for Auditing Testing
Verify that design and testing are taking place in a development/test environment and not in a production environment.
Review and evaluate the testing process. Ensure that the project has an adequate test plan and follows this test plan.
Ensure that all requirements can be mapped to a test case.
Ensure that users are involved in testing and agree that the system meets requirements. This should include IT personnel who will be supporting the system and IT personnel who were involved in performing initial technical feasibility studies for the project.
Consider participating in user acceptance testing and validating that system security and internal controls are functioning as intended.
Checklist for Auditing Implementation
Ensure that an effective process exists for recording, tracking, escalating, and resolving problems that arise after implementation.
Review and evaluate the project's conversion plan. Ensure that the project has an adequate conversion plan and follows this plan.
Review plans for converting the support of the new system or software from the project team to an operational support team.
Ensure that sufficient documentation has been created for use of the system or process being developed and maintenance of the system or software. Evaluate processes for keeping the documentation up-to-date. Evaluate change controls and security over that documentation.
Checklist for Auditing Training
Review plans for making sure that all affected users are trained on the use of the new system, software, or process.
Ensure that processes are in place for keeping training materials up-to-date. Evaluate change controls and security over the training materials.
Checklist for Auditing Project Wrap-up
Ensure that there is a process for closing out the project and recording lessons learned and that the process is followed.
