How Can Internal Auditors Add Value To The Organisation?
Imagine that you are just starting your career as an internal auditor and want to excel in your role of providing assurance and consulting services to help an organisation achieve its business goals.
Now, how are you going to do that?
As internal auditors, it is important to have a good understanding of the business and operational issues of the organisation. This understanding is necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of risk management, control, and governance processes.
While auditors are typically experts on financial systems and controls, their knowledge of the business and operational issues can be less than comprehensive. This is why it is important for internal auditors to take the initiative to develop a better understanding of the organisation’s operations and processes.
The following are some of the tips on how to do this:
- Gather input from stakeholders
As an internal auditor, you should take the time to talk to stakeholders such as management, staff, and customers to understand their perspectives on the organization’s operations and processes. This will help provide a more holistic view of the organization and its objectives.
2. Analyze data
Data analysis is a critical component of any internal audit. By analyzing data, auditors can identify areas of risk and understand the organization’s processes more clearly. This can also help identify weaknesses or inefficiencies that may need to be addressed.
3. Take advantage of technology
Technology can help us, internal auditors, get a better understanding of the organization’s operations and processes. For example, using data analytics tools can help identify trends and patterns that can help inform strategic decisions.
4. Learn from colleagues
As internal auditors, we can learn a lot from our colleagues in different departments. For example, managers in the operations or customer service departments that may have valuable insights can help us better understand the organization’s operations and processes.
5. Develop relationships with external auditors
External auditors have a unique perspective on the organization and can be a valuable source of information. We, internal auditors, should take the time to develop relationships with external auditors in order to gain insights that can help in enhancing our own work.
Internal auditors are independent and hence not intricately involved in the operational activities. This unique position provides them the ability to take a step back and have a fresher look at the business processes and identify its key challenges.
It is paramount that the auditor invests a considerable amount of time to understand the operations of an organization. This could be achieved by walking through the value chain but it would be even more effective if there are interactions with the various level of the workforce that is involved throughout the system.
In addition to getting to know the process, this would also assist in building relationships which would greatly assist during the review process.
While internal auditors are not experts in business processes, we ought to be the catalyst that would spur the operational team to look at a business challenge from a different perspective.
