Leistungsmessung der Internen Revision

This paper explores approaches to measure the performance of the internal audit function.Based upon three proposed dimensions of formal internal audit performance – material performance,cost and risk – it uses competence research methodology to characterize and structureinternal audit competence as the prerequisite for material performance that can be measuredby instruments of service quality measurement. A second approach to measure formalinternal audit performance is taken by linking the other two dimensions in the context of makeor buy decisions, where activity-based costing can be used to analyze internal audit servicesand cluster this service portfolio according to transaction costs or risks associated with them.Whereas the first approach uses management's expectation as a benchmark for material performanceand allows for deeper analysis of deviations between the expected and the actualperformance, the second approach uses the comparison of actual costs with costs of outsourcingsolutions adjusted for the specific risks incurred. Both approaches are subject to furtherinquiry as their validity for practical and theoretical problems has not yet been evaluated.