Longwood University: 1,200 audit hours saved annually

Introduction

A University built on progress 

While students praise Longwood University’s homeliness and community feel, it also has a reputation for progress and reinvention. But despite that reputation, their internal audit process was archaic – and frustrating. 

in 2014 by their newly appointed Internal Audit Director, Ella Maokhamphiou, became a champion for change. 

The challenge

When progress stops at the audit department door 

Back in 2014, Ella Maokhamphiou was stepping into her role as Internal Audit Director. She discovered a stark contradiction: a university celebrated for embracing change was still running audits with pen and paper. 

"Progression shouldn't be limited to our University's values but should be incorporated in our processes," she explained. "It was time to evolve from a manual audit process to digital, automated system." 

The hidden cost of manual processes 

As guardians of the University's risk management and governance,  the internal audit team had a clear mandate: provide independent, objective assurance that Longwood's internal controls operate both effectively and efficiently. 

But there was a problem. How could they champion efficiency when their own processes were drowning in inefficiency? 

The page numbering nightmare 

Without a way to track audit time accurately, it was difficult to quantify the extent of the problem – but the signs were there. Work hours on each audit seemed outrageously high, and one of the culprits was surprisingly mundane: manual page numbering. 

Here's how a simple edit created cascading chaos: 

• Reviewer suggests a minor change to the audit workpapers 
• Change affects pagination throughout the document 
• All subsequent page numbers shift 
• Every cross-reference must be manually updated 
• Hours vanish into administrative busywork 

It was frustrating, wasteful and entirely preventable. For a team tasked with optimizing university processes, this inefficiency felt particularly painful. 

The solution

Having worked with Ideagen Internal Audit in previous roles, Ella knew exactly how to solve this problem. She'd seen firsthand how the right audit management software could transform manual drudgery into streamlined efficiency. 

Ideagen Audit is purpose-built internal audit software that empowers teams to reclaim essential time, boost efficiency, and unlock the full potential of collaborative working. 

For Longwood University, it was time to bring that transformation home. 

Immediate Impact, Lasting Results 

The benefits arrived almost immediately after implementation. 

What disappeared: 

• Setting up individual Word documents for each audit section 
• Printing stacks of paper to accommodate reviews 
• The soul-crushing page numbering and renumbering exercise 
• Guesswork about actual time spent on audit activities 

What emerged: 

• Automated document management that eliminated manual formatting 
• Paperless review processes that accelerated collaboration 
• Built-in time tracking that revealed exactly where hours were spent 
• Real-time visibility into audit progress and resource allocation

The results

The numbers that changed everything 

With Ideagen Audit's time recording functionality, team could finally quantify what they'd long suspected.

The data was stunning: 

100 hours saved per audit 

Armed with accurate tracking for the first time, the team calculated they were saving approximately 100 working hours on each audit project. 

The annual impact

• Average of 12 audits per year 
• 1,200 hours reclaimed annually 
• Equivalent to seven months of full-time work 
• Time redirected to higher-value audit activities 

The team described this as an "astounding saving" - and it's easy to see why. For a lean audit team, 1,200 hours represents transformational capacity. That's not just efficiency; it's the difference between reactive and strategic audit planning. 

An unexpected bonus: Sustainability 

Sustainability has always been a core value at Longwood University. The institution is deeply committed to reducing its environmental footprint and promoting a more sustainable future. 

Implementing Ideagen Audit delivered an environmental win the team hadn't initially anticipated. 

By eliminating substantial volumes of manual workpapers, Longwood is: 

• Conserving significant amounts of paper 
• Reducing energy consumption from printing and storage 
• Supporting the University's broader sustainability initiatives 
• Setting an example for other departments 

In moving from paper to digital, the audit team didn't just modernize their process - they aligned it with the University's values. 

Your turn to evolve 

Is your internal audit team still fighting manual processes that drain time and energy? Discover how Ideagen Audit can help you reclaim hundreds - or thousands - of hours annually while supporting your sustainability goals.