Audit Thinking Model: Integrating Operational Auditing and Design Thinking for Inventory and Production Management

Abstract

This study proposes a hybrid methodological approach that integrates operational auditing with Design Thinking to improve inventory control and production planning in a rice milling company. Traditional auditing approaches primarily focus on diagnosis and the formulation of recommendations but often lack mechanisms to develop and validate context-specific solutions. To address this limitation, this research introduces the Audit Thinking Model, which incorporates the Design Thinking phases—empathize, define, ideate, prototype, and validate—into the auditing process. A case study was conducted in a small agro-industrial company where inventory management was performed manually, resulting in errors, inefficiencies, and economic losses. The proposed approach enabled the implementation of a digital inventory system, ABC classification, and a Monte Carlo simulation model with 10,000 iterations to estimate demand scenarios and optimize production levels. The results show a significant reduction in operational errors, improved inventory organization, and estimated annual savings exceeding USD 12,500. Furthermore, the use of prototyping and validation ensured that the solutions were feasible and aligned with operational needs. This study demonstrates that integrating auditing with Design Thinking enhances both the analytical rigor and practical impact of operational improvements in small and medium-sized enterprises.