Ways to Strengthen Internal Audit to Meet Stakeholder’s Needs
But not all businesses are aware of what
impact internal audit has on their business especially its relationship
with its stakeholders. Often, the audit report fails to truly represent all the
essential data and list all identifiable risks about a business enterprise. In
such a situation, stakeholders might lose their confidence such reports or the
enterprise itself. As an internal audit is a standard process that helps
management to take their decisions, a weak audit report will result in weak
decision making.
At VGNC,
we believe that your business must focus on strengthening internal audit
process to be aligned to the needs of the stakeholders and to make
well-informed decisions. Here are a few ways you can do so.
Focus on Your Brand
If you want your internal
audit to create the right impact on your business, you need to tailor it as
per your brand. You are known for your brand. Your internal audit should
reflect your true brand identity as your stakeholders are interested in the
true picture. To influence stakeholders perception about your enterprise, you
need to analyse what your audit reports are conveying them. This will allow you
to tweak your audit report for a better and more correct representation of your
brand.
End-to-End Risk
Internal audit acts as one of the lines
of defence in risk management. Internal
audit assures the effectiveness of risk management activities that are
being performed by the enterprise. If the risk management is not strategically
sound, an internal audit helps in re-assessment of the strategies and adoption
of the effective ones. A fragmented risk management strategy creates redundancies
and gaps in the operation and also adds to the cost. It also exposes an
enterprise to unanticipated higher risks.
Skills and Capabilities
A weak internal
audit system is a creation of a lack of adequate skills and capabilities.
This deficit of skill is one of the root factors that limit the impact of audit
procedures. Internal audit strategies should evolve over time to incorporate
the growing needs of the business.
Review and Analytical Strategies
If you want to add value to your audit
reports and enhance the impact of your internal audit on your business and its
stakeholders, you need to leverage the analytics capabilities every area of
your business. This will help you to identify cost erosion and will lead to
cost savings through effective and stakeholder-targeted audits.
When the audit process starts to
improve, it helps in saving cost and time. It also facilitates better risk
management and compliance. A strong internal audit process improves the
decision-making process. By aligning your internal audit vision and strategy
with the strategic vision of your enterprise and stakeholders, you can magnify
the influence and value to the internal audit function.
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