INTERNAL AUDIT QUALITY - A KEY ELEMENT FOR THE MANAGEMENT DECISION

The dialogue among stakeholders, audit committees and the regulatory authorities on the role and performance of internal audit has never been more robust, or more candid. The quality should be considered from three points of view: effectiveness in meeting the needs of stakeholders, efficiency and effectiveness in the use of the latest internal audit best practices, and effectiveness in complying with applicable professional and/or regulatory internal audit standards and requirements. Internal audit must address all three dimensions to be considered highly effective in today's challenging environment. Increasingly, audit committees and management are looking for objective feedback on the effectiveness of their internal audit functions. This demands a structured approach and methodology as well as indepth knowledge of internal audit practices and processes.