How to track audit findings until they are independently verified
A finding is not finished when someone types Closed. It is finished when a different person has checked the evidence.
When the final report is issued, each agreed action needs an owner and a target date. That record should be the only copy. A second tracker on a desktop will drift within a month. If the team is still arguing about what counts as a finding, start with what an internal audit finding is.
The follow-up that does not depend on you chasing
Owners should confirm before the due date, from email, with a yes or a no. If they need a new date, audit approves it and the old date stays on the record. Overdue items escalate to the line manager, not into another reminder you send by hand.
Who may close
The owner can say the action is done and attach evidence. They cannot verify their own work. A reviewer accepts or returns it. Only an independent verifier closes it. The evidence stays attached, so the leadership pack can show what is open, what is overdue, and what was actually checked.