Internal Audit

  • Description
  • Tasks
  • Skills
  • Useful Knowledge
  • Entry Qualifications
  • Professional Qualifications
  • Trends
  • Resources

Operational efficiency, controlling risks and ensuring organisations maintain good financial controls are the main focus of internal audit work.  Internal auditors work very closely with management teams to ensure everything is working as it should be. For instance, that costs are being contained and that the organisation is fully complying with laws and regulations relevant to their area of work.  Efficiency features strongly in this job but it’s not purely about monetary efficiency. Internal audit teams have to make sure risk controls in place are working; firstly to prevent and detect fraudulent activities and secondly to protect the organisations’ reputation. Internal auditors are tasked with recognising and reporting any discrepancies. While some of the work is focused on finance, in fact any aspect of the organisation/business can be subject to internal audits, from IT and customer services to health and safety procedures and environmental policies.

Salary

Entry level positions for people with school and college level qualifications start at an approximate £15,000 per annum. Graduate training schemes, or equivalent, start at approximately £20,000 per annum. With the right experience, qualifications and skills you could progress to management roles and earn in excess of £70,000 per annum. This does not include potential bonuses or additional benefits. Salaries will vary considerably based on location and employer.

  • Planning individual audits, defining audit objectives and preparing audit plans
  • Completing on-site business audits, evaluating the effectiveness of controls and writing up reports
  • Interviewing business teams about working practices
  • Challenging current working practices and finding ways to improve internal risk controls
  • Adapting your behaviour, where necessary, to encourage auditees to co-operate fully to achieve the purpose of the audit
  • Collecting and reviewing financial accounts and other data
  • Proactively evaluating risks and internal controls against changing trends and market/economic conditions
  • Sharing with the auditees the results of the audit and agreeing appropriate corrective actions to remedy any non-conformances and the date by which the actions should be carried out
  • Reviewing compliance, ensuring the organisation is adhering to rules, codes or practice, business ethics, internal guidelines and principles
  • Identifying ways in which the organisation can deliver better value for money and service
  • Monitoring and maintaining a safe, healthy and secure environment, updating executive managers on risks identified, providing assurance that all key risks are being managed effectively
  • Advising and overseeing change programmes
  • Confident and professional manner
  • Articulate, both verbally and in writing
  • High level of technical auditing skills and knowledge of the organisation/sector you are working in
  • Objective, logical and enquiring mind
  • Strong analytical skills
  • Persistent and good negotiators
  • Tactful but assertive
  • Resourceful
  • Good project management and team working ability
  • Self-motivated and happy taking on responsibility
  • Commitment to gaining professional qualifications and ongoing self-development

A new entrant will not always be required to have this knowledge. Employers usually provide training to acquire skills for:

  • How to plan audits and assess risks, designing audit programmes to reflect the operational and business environment
  • Relevant international standards and quality benchmarks governing internal audit practice, including internal audit code of ethics

Some larger organisations offer schemes for people with school and college qualifications, alongside graduate training scheme opportunities. Those joining such schemes would still be required to work towards relevant professional qualifications. Experience in related professions such as accountancy, banking or other areas of financial services can be helpful. Whatever the route in, internal auditors need an understanding of numbers and to be able to communicate with people and produce written reports, so qualifications in maths and English are important.

For entry level positions, employers will require candidates to have either:

  • A Levels, Scottish Highers or equivalent qualifications such as  Business, Administration and Finance (BAF) Diploma, BTEC National Diploma, Welsh Baccalaureate (BAC), SVQ Level 3 or Higher National Certificate (SCQF Level 7)
  • For graduate training schemes, usually ask for a 2:1 degree or higher.

The Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors (CIIA) is the only professional body dedicated solely to internal audit. It offers a number of professional internal audit qualifications, including:

  • IIA Certificate in Internal Audit and Business Risk
  • IIA Diploma in Internal Audit Practice
  • IIA Advanced Diploma in Internal Auditing and Management

The IIA Diploma is available through an accelerated route to holders of a recognised postgraduate qualification (such as a Masters degree, professional accountancy qualification, or similar).

The IIA Diploma leads to the professional designation PIIA. The IIA Advanced Diploma leads to full chartered status, the CMIIA designation and the title Chartered Internal Auditor.

In commercial organisations and central government internal audit jobs, the IIA qualifications tend to prevail. In other public sector jobs, particularly the NHS, CIPFA qualifications, including the CIPFA Certificate Investigative Practice Qualification (CCIP), tend to be more relevant.

In computing, auditing qualifications are offered by:

  • The IIA IT Auditing Certificate

Many people working in internal audit have a professional accountancy qualification from one of the six Chartered Accountancy bodies in the UK:

  • Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA)
  • Chartered Accountants Ireland (CAI) 
  • Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA)
  • Chartered Institute of Public Finance & Accountancy (CIPFA)
  • ICAEW (Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales) 
  • Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS)

The focus on ensuring organisations are complying with internal controls and a wider industry regulation, as well as the management of risks, means that internal audit is a growth area. Many large organisations offer graduate placements. Others may come into the role through internal progression. Large companies usually provide a clear pathway from internal auditor to senior auditor and then ultimately head of internal audit. Internal auditors work for commercial companies, not-for-profit organisations, in the banking and finance sector, or for accountancy practice firms, either as employees or providing subcontracted services to clients.  The role is often much broader than external audit, as internal auditors will look right across the business at risks, such as computer viruses destroying networks, environmental reputation, health and safety procedures or overstretching resources. Internal auditors are usually based within the central finance and business teams. Although some jobs may be centralised in major cities, there is a wide variety of regional opportunities too.

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