Read Internal Auditor October 2019 online

Editor's Note: Internal Audit's Emerging Stars

Read Internal Auditor October 2019 online

This marks the seventh year Internal Auditor has recognized emerging leaders in the internal audit profession. Our 2019 Emerging Leaders join 100 other young professionals who have been recognized since 2013.

Past honorees have not rested on their laurels, but instead, as expected, continue to achieve great things. For example:

• At the time they were named Emerging Leaders, 74 had their Certified Internal Auditor (CIA) designation. Today, 89 are CIAs.
• Since being named an Emerging Leader, 71 have new job titles or have moved to new companies.
• Three Emerging Leaders have served on The IIA’s North American Board and Global Board of Directors. Seventeen leaders have served on one or more of The IIA’s committees.
• Emerging Leaders have written 88 blog posts/articles for the magazine, and 46 leaders have been interviewed for Internal Auditor articles.

Two former Emerging Leaders, Leslie Bordelon (2014) and Alex Rusate (2017) share how their careers have progressed since their recognition in this issue’s “Eye on Business." Rusate, for example, has obtained three new certifications since 2017. Bordelon and Rusate offer up-and-coming internal auditors advice on how to advance in the profession and explain why they stay in internal auditing. Bordelon says she’s excited about the future of the profession. “As companies start to embrace new technologies such as machine learning and robotic process automation, internal audit teams have to really rethink how they approach their work,” she says.

Technology is a theme throughout the “Emerging Leaders 2019” article. “In fact, emphasizing analytics seems almost old-fashioned to the 2019 honorees; they assume analytics are key to internal audit and continually expand their skills — often on their own time,” writes author Russell Jackson. This year’s leaders recognize that this expertise can open doors for internal auditors, and they’re eager to be meaningful players in their organization’s success, Jackson says.

On another note, when you’re Wright, you’re Wright. With this issue, we wish “Risk Watch” contributing editor Charlie Wright a fond farewell and introduce Rick Wright (no relation) as the new contributing editor. A big thank you to Charlie for his time and effort, and for the outstanding contributions he’s made to this department. We are fortunate to have Rick as Charlie’s replacement beginning in December. Rick is the director of internal audit and enterprise risk management for YRC Worldwide. He is also the author of The Internal Auditor’s Guide to Risk Assessment and Internal Auditing: Uncover the Myths, Discover the Value. Welcome, Rick!

Read Internal Auditor October 2019 online