This 8 credit hour course, taught by Garland Granger, CIA, CPA, CFE,  covers internal controls designed to allow for oversight in financial matters and fraud prevention, as well as how to best manage assets. 

In this course we explore how to gain a good understanding of the nature of business risk, how these risks can negatively impact the organization and the basic definition of internal controls and problems this definition has created. We discuss Chaos Theory and materiality as a vehicle to distinguish the difference between these concepts in an audit from the development and evaluation of internal controls, along with discovering the role of ethics and integrity and how they affect the effectiveness of any internal control system. Finally, we examine the 2013 COSO model for evaluating and developing internal controls and explore how to apply the concepts from these models in real-world cases.

Learning Objectives
  • Explore how to gain a good understanding of the nature of business risk, how these risks can negatively impact the organization and the basic definition of internal controls and problems this definition has created.
  • Discuss Chaos Theory and materiality as a vehicle to distinguish the difference between these concepts in an audit from the development and evaluation of internal controls.
  • Discover the role of ethics and integrity and how they affect the effectiveness of any internal control system.
  • Examine the 2013 COSO model for evaluating and developing internal controls.
  • Explore how to apply the concepts from these models in real-world cases.
Last updated/reviewed: August 19, 2023
60 Reviews (301 ratings)

Reviews

4
Member's Profile
This course provided valuable information and skills necessary to be a CPA.

4
Member's Profile
Very good written course materials. Very logical and well developed set of content. The speaker is very engaging and provides plenty of good examples to supplement the written materials. Occasionally the stories ramble a bit. Some of the review and test questions could have been better written. Otherwise a great course.

5
Member's Profile
Very good course with a very thorough insight into the process of implementing internal controls. Much focus is given to the need to implement most useful and risk based controls for small to mid-sized businesses as smaller organizations often do not have resources to implement all available controls.

5
Anonymous Author
Great course for reviewing the COSO framework and getting a broader understanding of internal control principles. It is important for all companies big and small to have some level of internal control as the dynamics of business are evolving and becoming more complex.

5
Anonymous Author
I find this instructor entertaining to listen to with humorous examples. The history of internal control development and organizations involved was helpful, and the test is structured in a logical flow that reinforces what was taught in the lecture.

3
Anonymous Author
I would like this course to be a little bit more example based on small business rather than too theory-based. I mean, to have a framework is nice, but I'd like to see more of the practical implementation with the small business environment.

5
Member's Profile
The course is wonderful, the exam is quite hard but reasonable, it really tests how much you understood the course not just if you memorized it. Great instructor, this is my second course under Mr. Granger, will seek out other ones by him.

5
Anonymous Author
Garland Granger is one of the more enjoyable presenters on this website. His passion for the subject matter, and his thorough preparation, which includes many real world examples, make his courses engaging and interesting.

5
Anonymous Author
Excellent overview of COSO and internal controls for preventing fraud in the workplace. Detailed welk-through of the 16 principles with examples facilitate application of the principles to one's own environment.

5
Anonymous Author
This course is simply awesome and Garland is one of the best instructors I ever had. The program is a very good overview of COSO and helps to identify gaps in internal controls and potential threats to businesses.

4
Member's Profile
Very detailed presentation of the broad internal controls framework developed over time by COSO and others. I would have like to have gotten to the second case study at the end but we appeared to run out of time.

5
Anonymous Author
This course was very good to give an overview and details concerning internal controls in their application along with the evolution of the development of guidance different controlling bodies.

4
Anonymous Author
the course is sometimes difficult to comprehend due to the large amount of information. not quite relevant for me due to the lack of some operations (for example, checks, etc.)

5
Member's Profile
Practical teaching in implementing internal controls for small to mid-sized businesses. Good over view of COSO's 17 principles and points of focus. Good advice.

5
Anonymous Author
The course was expansive and was laid out in a very organized, simple manner. A great deal of material is covered, but is summarized well and is easy to digest.

5
Anonymous Author
This was such an amazing course!!!!!!!!! I would highly recommend this course to anyone interested in this topic!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

5
Member's Profile
I liked the stories that Garland used to demonstrate the principles. I like the organization of the course. I especially liked the course materials.

4
Member's Profile
Great overview of internal controls including the initial assessment, development and monitoring of the controls that should be part of any business.

5
Member's Profile
Great refresher on COSO framework and internal control. Garland Granger style of teaching keeps you engaged. He is one of my favorite instructors.

5
Anonymous Author
Exceptional overview of prudent internal controls for any business. The speaker provided great examples to emphasize the importance of controls.

5
Anonymous Author
The course is loaded with valuable information about internal controls for small through large corporate size. I highly recommend this course.

5
Member's Profile
I really liked this course. There were great examples and the material was interesting. Very applicable for small to medium size businesses.

5
Anonymous Author
This was an excellent course. The professor is very articulate and develops the material adequately. I'm very happy to have taken this course.

5
Member's Profile
Very detailed and on point. Instructor clearly understood the topic. Could have been more geared to small businesses, as the title suggest.

5
Anonymous Author
The training is a complete course where you will learn about the importance of having effective internal controls in an organization.

5
Member's Profile
Great course with relevant and applicable information for small and mid-size companies. Very knowledgeable and practical instructor.

5
Anonymous Author
Garland Granger is a good instructor. This course provided a good overview along with more in depth teaching on some of the core ideas.

5
Anonymous Author
This course provides a thorough discussion of internal controls, how to develop, and maintain them. Great for smaller organizations.

5
Anonymous Author
A highly resourceful training. Every professional irrespective of their level will gain one thing or the other from this training

5
Member's Profile
Excellent material that is well presented with good supporting documentation. Will take additional courses from this instructor.

5
Member's Profile
Well presented with at engaging speaker. I thoroughly enjoyed adding words to this review to meet the fifty character minimum.

5
Anonymous Author
Excellent course providing both theory and practical examples. Instructor was engaging and delivered content with excellency

5
Anonymous Author
Interesting and well laid out course regarding internal controls and the history of the development for the need.

5
Member's Profile
The course was very thorough and informative. The course went into specific detail regarding the COSO framework.

5
Member's Profile
Superb presentation by Mr. Granger. Brought a dry topic to life with his enthusiasm and relevant examples.

5
Member's Profile
The course was excellent. Thanks for organizing!! The subject of controls is a solid topic for every CPA!!!

5
Member's Profile
This instructor does an amazing job explaining the information and keeping you interested in the material.

5
Member's Profile
This course gave me easy some great ideas to bring back to my company to strengthen our internal controls

4
Anonymous Author
The information was overall interesting though the instructor's delivery was a bit difficult to follow.

4
Anonymous Author
Good place to start if a company is small and is in need of developing an internal control environment.

5
Anonymous Author
Detailed presentation with great examples and study materials. Instructor's presentation is engaging.

5
Anonymous Author
A good course that covered the topic well! The materials provided were complete and useful

5
Member's Profile
Good course of implementing efficient, effective controls for small to mid-size business

5
Anonymous Author
Good course, with lots of material covered and good reminders about internal controls.

5
Anonymous Author
Great course. Solids review of COSO framework. Would recommend taking this course in

5
Member's Profile
Very interesting. Great refresher for those of us working in smaller organizations.

5
Member's Profile
An excellent course with crisp and clear material supporting learning objectives.

5
Anonymous Author
Good refresh of internal control concepts. Risk Assessment section was on point.

5
Anonymous Author
Great set of information on risk management with good examples and explanations

5
Anonymous Author
Very comprehensive program with relatable concepts and interesting information.

5
Member's Profile
Engaging examples helped lighten this heavy subject matter. Nicely presented!

5
Anonymous Author
Excellent, detailed course on everything regarding internal controls.

5
Anonymous Author
This was an informative course. It was long, but held my attention

5
Anonymous Author
I liked this course as it helped to understand the COSO framework

4
Member's Profile
Great review of internal controls, ethics and risk assessments.

4
Anonymous Author
Relevant material could have been covered in less time.

5
Member's Profile
Very easy to listen to, and very clear exam questions.

5
Member's Profile
Comprehensive, informative and well delivered course.

5
Member's Profile
Great refresher on controls and the COSO principles

5
Member's Profile
Good broad based course to cover COSO requirements

Prerequisites
Course Complexity: Intermediate

No advanced preparation or prerequisites are required for this course.

Education Provider Information
Company: Illumeo, Inc., 75 East Santa Clara St., Suite 1215, San Jose, CA 95113
Contact: For more information regarding this course, including complaint and cancellation policies, please contact our offices at (408) 400- 3993 or send an e-mail to .
Course Questions and Answers1 Question
Member's Profile

On Question 13 of the Final Exam, should the wording be "NOT an incentive"?

Instructor for this course
Course Syllabus
INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW
  Lesson 1- Course Overview and Introductory Discussion Questions14:57
  Lesson 2- Are You in Control of Your Business?9:35
  Lesson 3- Internal Controls and Chaos Theory21:02
  Lesson 4- Ethics and Internal Control - Part 127:44
  Lesson 5- Ethics and Internal Control - Part 226:54
  Lesson 6- A Historical Perspective on Internal Controls19:33
  Lesson 7- Overview of the 2013 COSO Report25:12
  Lesson 8- Organizational Control Concepts Under COSO - The Control Environment Part 117:09
  Lesson 9- Organizational Control Concepts Under COSO - The Control Environment Part 228:21
  Lesson 10- Organizational Control Concepts Under COSO - Risk Assessments25:27
  Lesson 11- Organizational Control Concepts Under COSO - Control Activities37:50
  Lesson 12- Organizational Control Concepts Under COSO - Information and Communication13:16
  Lesson 13- Risk Assessment Approach to Designing Internal Controls28:50
SUPPORTING MATERIALS
  Course Manual: Implementing Efficient, Effective Internal Controls For Small to Mid-Size BusinessesPDF
  Implementing Efficient, Effective Internal Controls For Small to Mid-Size Businesses Glossary/IndexPDF
REVIEW AND TEST
  REVIEW QUESTIONS quiz
 FINAL EXAMexam