In my role as an internal auditor, navigating the intricacies of risk assessment and control testing sometimes leaves me uncertain about whether I’ve identified a noteworthy observation, encountered an actual problem, or if there’s room for refining our processes. Recently, I discovered a method that has proven invaluable in such Read More
The Institute of Internal Auditors has released a long-awaited update to its Global Internal Audit Standards, which provide a set of principles to guide internal auditors in the course of their work. The new standards impact businesses of all sizes, industries, and geographic regions. The IIA says they were designed Read More
In this fast-changing business world, the role of the internal auditor has become increasingly complex. Today, they face not only traditional challenges of fraud detection and financial accuracy but also the daunting task of navigating a digital world where data reigns supreme. To thrive in this age of disruption, driven Read More
There’s a palpable concern for the future among internal auditors. I wouldn’t quite call it anxiety, but there’s certainly some underlying angst about how the next few years will play out for internal auditors. There’s consternation, for sure, over how things like artificial intelligence, increasing digitalization, the data of everything, Read More
The Institute of Internal Auditors’ work on issuing a new version of its professional practice standards cleared an important hurdle this week, paving the way for their release in early January. The IIA’s committee in charge of the project, the International Internal Audit Standards Board (IIASB), voted to approve the Read More
GUEST BLOG POST As internal auditors, we provide assurance, advice, and insight on the system of internal controls over the more significant risks to enterprise objectives. Internal controls provide the basis, the foundation, on which management and the board rely as they manage and direct the organization to success. The Read More
Internal audit has certainly been through a tumultuous few years. At the beginning of 2020, we were barely talking about artificial intelligence and inflation. A global pandemic that would paralyze much of the corporate world for years was unthinkable. And new wars in Europe and the Middle East would have Read More
You will likely find the characteristic of being a good communicator, including the ability to listen well, on just about any list of the top traits of great internal auditors. Internal auditors are always conducting interviews and asking questions, but the real skill happens after a good question is asked—the Read More
As the saying—attributed to management guru Peter Drucker—goes, “You can’t manage what you don’t measure.” To drive performance, most functions need to measure their operations. In internal audit, some metrics, like the percent of the audit plan completed, often act as a starting point for assessing performance. At the same Read More
Chief audit executives (CAEs) have identified risk orientation, stakeholder management, and team leadership as the top three characteristics of the most effective individuals, according to a survey by Gartner. In April 2023, Gartner surveyed 114 CAEs across 180 areas to identify the most important measures of an effective CAE, and Read More
