The primary role of internal audit is to help an entity secure its assets, reputation and sustainability along with ensuring its smooth functioning. However, the function also has several other significant roles in organizations. The Internal Audit function is expected to evaluate risks, monitor and assess controls, ensure accuracy of reporting and improve operations. The internal auditor is also expected to investigate fraudulent activities and assure safeguards to prevent their recurrence, review processes and procedures and offer independent insights and advice to the senior management.
Objective of Internal Audit
Internal audit helps in enhancing the overall governance
mechanism of the organization, including the strategic risk management, internal control system &
processes.
An effective internal audit function is a valuable
resource for any entity that helps them achieve their goals.
An in-house internal audit team is more expensive than an outsourcing company. Outsourcing helps entities reduce cost, along with giving employees sufficient time to focus on the core activities of their business.
An external party can give better insights about the performance of a company, compared to employees within the firm. There are fewer chances for conflict, ego and competition, and it can also lead to novel ideas & proposals for enhanced performance and alleviation of risks & control.
Independent consultants have a better understanding of issues, be it industry specific or general. They would have helped numerous companies with their internal audit function and hence will have an upper hand in analyzing and solving issues.
An outsourced internal audit team is likely to have domain experts from diverse fields such as Finance, Operations, Human Resources, IT and even Strategy. People with diverse skill sets are an asset and it is usually rare to find it in a relatively smaller internal team.
An internal audit team within the organization might feel less empowered when compared to an outsourced team, as the possibility of management not giving heed to their opinions are quite high. They can’t operate independently and according to their will.
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