When evaluating the help desk services provided by a third-party service provider which of the following is likely to be the internal auditor's greatest concern?
A.
Whether every call that the service provider received was logged by the help desk.
B.
Whether a unique identification number was assigned to each issue identified by the service provider
C.
Whether the service provider used its own facilities to provide help desk services
D.
Whether the provider's responses and resolutions were well defined according to the service-level agreement.
An internal auditor's primary concern in evaluating third-party help desk services is ensuring that the provider meets Service-Level Agreement (SLA) requirements, particularly regarding response times, issue resolution, and service quality.
Correct Answer (D - Whether the provider's responses and resolutions were well defined according to the SLA)
The SLA defines expected service levels, including:
The IIA Practice Guide: Auditing Third-Party Relationships states that internal auditors must assess SLA compliance as a key control in outsourcing arrangements.
Why Other Options Are Incorrect:
Option A (Whether every call was logged):
While logging all calls is good practice, the focus should be on meeting SLA requirements, not just documentation.
The IIA GTAG 7: Continuous Auditing emphasizes measuring performance, not just recording activities.
Option B (Whether a unique ID was assigned to each issue):
Issue tracking is important, but an ID alone does not guarantee service quality or SLA compliance.
Option C (Whether the provider used its own facilities):
The location of the service provider’s facilities does not impact SLA compliance.
IIA Practice Guide: Auditing Third-Party Relationships – Outlines how auditors should evaluate SLAs and vendor performance.
IIA GTAG 7: Continuous Auditing – Highlights the importance of performance measurement in outsourced services.
Step-by-Step Explanation:IIA References for Validation:Thus, ensuring the provider meets SLA-defined response and resolution times (D) is the internal auditor's greatest concern.
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