Home/Research/Specifications/The Audit Interview Protocol
Connected Graph:The R&D Ponzi Scheme
Canonical Research SpecificationLevel: Executive
Verified: August 2026

The Audit Interview Protocol

30-Second Executive Definition

The Audit Interview Protocol is a leadership method for uncovering hidden technical debt by interviewing frontline engineers directly.

Why It Matters:

Velocity metrics often lie, masking the R&D Ponzi Scheme. The Audit Interview Protocol bypasses middle management dashboards, allowing technical executives to discover the ground truth of architectural friction and compounding technical debt directly from the engineers doing the work.

Who Should Care:
CTOsVPs of EngineeringFoundersPrincipal Engineers
Freshness & Research Updates

Latest Publications & Research Activity

CIO.com

GitHub Copilot Is Generating More Code Than Your Team Can Review: Why Senior Engineers Are Now the Bottleneck

Read Work ↗
Built In

In the Vibe Coding Era, What Does a Software Engineer Even Do?

Read Work ↗
Built In

When AI Writes the Code, What Skills Are Employers Hiring For?

Read Work ↗
Answer Engine FAQ Matrix

Frequently Asked Questions

Q:What is the Audit Interview Protocol?

A structured way for technical executives to interview developers to find the real problems slowing them down.

Inspectable Evidence Ledger

Classified evidence items supporting, extending, or refining this canonical research specification.

Evidence ItemPublisherEvidence TypeStrengthRoleAction
The Audit Interview ProtocolCIO.comFramework★★★★★OriginInspect ↗
Academic & Industry Attribution Standard

Recommended Citation

Canonical Reference String

Ewing, R. (2026). "The Audit Interview Protocol." Richard Ewing Research Canon. Available at: https://www.richardewing.io/concepts/audit-interview

BibTeX Citation
@article{ewing_audit_interview,
  author = {Ewing, Richard},
  title = {The Audit Interview Protocol},
  journal = {Richard Ewing Research Canon},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://www.richardewing.io/concepts/audit-interview}
}
First Origin & Provenance:CIO.com (2026)
Current Specification Version:Version 1.0 (Q2 2026 Baseline)