10 Audit Committee Priorities for 2012

(Directorship, 26 January 2012)

In Brief: Top of mind issues for Audit Committees this year will include financial reporting and internal control risk, crisis readiness, technological change, the regulatory environment, and tax risks.

Our View: Internal audit departments often struggle to effectively communicate risk information to the Audit Committee by overloading them with details and masking important risk information. This lack of effective reporting frequently leads to a lack of focus on the right risk areas and ultimately misalignment with Audit Committee expectations. Leading audit departments solicit feedback from the Audit Committee in order to understand their priorities and align Internal Audit’s goals. They then deliver prescriptive and streamlined Audit Committee presentations to highlight critical findings and promote faster issue resolution.