Internal Auditing Around the World, Volume 19: Relevance: One Goal, Multiple Paths

The big picture: Consistency, persistence and a strong belief in the value that a highly relevant internal audit function can deliver for the organization are key characteristics we observed in the CAEs profiled and serve as a good lesson for others making the journey.

Why it matters:

• A strong embrace of new and emerging technologies and related skill sets is vital to advancing the relevance journey for many internal audit functions.
• To deliver relevant, actionable recommendations to the business, internal audit functions need teams of people with diverse backgrounds, perspectives and expertise.
• One of the best indicators of whether an internal audit function is considered relevant is the business proactively reaching out to the organization for guidance.

The bottom line: Relevance is a destination and an ongoing journey — with multiple viable paths — for internal audit.