Internal audit review

At Audit Alchemy (a trading name of Board Alchemy Limited), we help audit committees assess the effectiveness of their internal audit functions. 

Expectations of internal audit are higher today than they ever have been.  Boards, through their audit committees, rely heavily on internal audit for a key element of their assurance.  Regulators, in financial services for example, expect internal audit to play a key role in the risk and control framework of a regulated business.  Unlike external audit which focuses mainly on financial statements and takes mainly a historical perspective, an effective internal audit team provides the audit committee and the board with a wider base of assurance focused on the key risks the organisation faces.  Accordingly, an audit committee should regularly ask itself: “How effective is my internal audit team?”.

In undertaking our reviews, we consider both the quality of internal audit’s work and the impact it makes.  We also consider internal audit’s performance in the context of the organisation’s governance framework.  Internal audit doesn’t work in a silo: to be effective, it needs to operate in the right environment.  The right management attitude towards audit, risk and control.  Audit committee support and challenge.  Internal audit's working relationships with risk, compliance and external audit.  These are all important factors enabling internal audit effectiveness.

Audit Alchemy’s reviews of internal audit effectiveness:

• take into account context – the role of the audit committee, management and other assurance functions – and recognise internal audit doesn’t operate in a vacuum
• draw on our team’s extensive experience as reviewers of internal audit, audit committee members and heads of internal audit
• deliver a board level perspective, drawing on Board Alchemy’s work on board reviews, so bringing a thorough understanding of the needs and expectations of internal audit’s key stakeholder 
• build on our extensive experience and what we have learnt from working with the assurance frameworks of a wide range of organisations
• are forward looking and consider whether internal audit is fit for purpose to face future challenges as the business and its environment change.

In addition to our internal audit effectiveness reviews, our work at Audit Alchemy includes supporting clients with:

• internal audit strategy and transformation
• coaching and mentoring for heads of internal audit
• training and development
• undertaking governance audits to help deliver an audit plan.