How internal audit can meet growing expectations
How internal audit can meet growing expectations
Broadening duties in a rapidly changing business environment make it imperative for the internal audit profession to evolve, according to a new research report.
Although audits of operations still make up the largest portion of internal audit plans for 2014, the percentage of internal audit coverage devoted to operations dropped to 24% from 29% in 2013, according to the Institute of Internal Auditors’ Pulse of the Profession global survey.
Financial audits (8%, down from 14% in 2013) also represent a decreasing portion of the internal audit plan.
Increased areas of internal audit focus in 2014, according to the survey of 1,935 audit professionals around the world, include:
- Risk management effectiveness (10%, up from 7% in 2013).
- Business strategy (8%, up from 5%).
- Corporate governance (5%, up from 4%).
The largest increase, though, was reflected in “other” areas not represented in the survey, which rose to 11% of 2014 internal audit coverage from 6% in 2013. This appears to show that internal audit plans are focused more on areas outside of previous norms.
Read the entire Journal of Accounting article here >>