The combination of balancing expertise through the multidisciplinary model of public company audit firms and the strength of auditor independence requirements created by SOX laid a foundation for high-quality financial statements and audits. Over the years, the public company auditing profession has continued to emphasize independence and expertise while also constantly innovating to improve the quality and reliability of audits today — using new technologies, machine learning, and data and analytics. Today, this combination of auditor expertise, independence, and continuous innovation all contribute to a strengthening system of audit quality.

Building on this foundation, auditors are continuously evolving to meet the needs of rapidly changing capital markets, including meeting the demand for company information outside of the traditional financial statements, such as ESG information, and to maintain the high-quality audit standards that improve audit quality.

Explore more of our resources on how the public company auditing profession is evolving to build trust in the capital markets and maintain high audit quality.