Meaning & use
control environment
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Meaning
nouncountable or uncountabletechnicalbusiness
The overall attitude, awareness, and actions of an organization's management and staff regarding internal controls.
Grammar: Often used with 'the' when referring to a specific organization's environment; can be countable with 'a' when describing one type.
Patterns
- the control environment of something
- a strong control environment
- assess the control environment
The auditors began by evaluating the company's control environment.
A weak control environment can lead to fraud and errors.
Management is responsible for establishing a sound control environment.
Word forms
| plural | control environments |
|---|
Common combinations
- assess the control environment
- Auditors assess the control environment before testing specific transactions.
- a strong control environment
- A strong control environment reduces the risk of financial misstatement.
- a weak control environment
- The report identified a weak control environment in the sales department.
- the control environment of a company
- The control environment of a company sets the tone for how employees behave.
Synonyms and how they differ
- internal control framework
- A broader term that includes the control environment as well as specific control activities and procedures.
- corporate governance
- This refers to the systems by which companies are directed and controlled, which overlaps with but is wider than the control environment.
Word family
- control noun
- The power to influence or direct people's behavior or the course of events.
- environment noun
- The surroundings or conditions in which a person, animal, or plant lives or operates.
- environmental adjective
- Relating to the natural world or to the conditions in which something operates.
Commonly confused: control environment or controlled environment?
control environment vs controlled environment
A 'controlled environment' is a place where conditions such as temperature or humidity are regulated, whereas a 'control environment' is a business concept about internal controls.
Practice
In an audit context, what does 'control environment' refer to?
Choose one answer.
'Control environment' is a technical term for the tone set by management and staff regarding internal controls. The other options refer to physical, technological, or ecological matters, not to internal control culture.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “control environment”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.