The Global Internal Audit Standards: How to Show Intent

With the new Global Internal Audit Standards™ (the Standards), the Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) added a new level of conformance called Full Achievement or Conformance.

Per the IIA’s Quality Assessment Manual, they define this level as fully achieving all 15 principles, the Purpose of Internal Auditing, the IIA Standards, and fully conforming to all requirements of the Standards and their intent. As you think about your next quality assessment review, you may find yourself asking “How do I show intent in meeting the Standards?”

For assessors and internal audit functions (IA function), the intent is a new wrinkle. Assessing intent is determining if one’s actions merit credit for doing the right thing. Discover how assessors determine if the intent is met.

How quality assessors may consider intent

As part of determining standards conformance, assessors will also determine if the intent to conform is achieved. This could assist smaller or less mature IA functions and those in the public sector, where resources allowing for full standards achievement may not be available. Intent will be evaluated for all IA functions during a quality assessment review.

An assessor’s professional judgement plays a large role in determining if the intent is enough to allow for general conformance of each principal and standard or partial conformance. If there is no evidence a control was performed, auditors normally conclude a control gap exists.

In the context of a quality assessment review, while conformance to a standard means there is some tangible evidence of intent to conform, considering verbal evidence could still result in general achievement or conformance to the standard being assessed.

The IIA expects quality assessors to apply critical thinking to determine conformance to the standards’ intent. Considering the IA function’s ability to conform to the standards, the quality assessor is required to apply professional judgement and consider the context of the organization the IA function serves.

This is the path for quality assessors to take in objectively assessed conformance and where the experience of the assessment team is important.

How internal audit functions should consider intent

If you’re the leader of your audit function, how might you demonstrate your intent to follow the standard if you’re not sure you can demonstrate full conformance with at least one of the standards or principles?

If you don’t have the resources or ability to generate an all-encompassing strategic plan or audit manual, but you can put together something less robust, in this situation, you can demonstrate the intent to meet the standard. While general conformance could still be achieved, the assessor could very well still make a recommendation to enhance such documentation.

The IIA’s website has comprehensive resources explaining the standards’ intent and provides guidance for standard implementation. IA function leaders should frequently check the IIA’s website for such information. It’s likely the quality assessor will use that same information to determine if intent to conform is enough for at least some level of conformance.

How CLA can help

CLA’s Business Risk Services Team has experience in performing QARs and is able to determine if an IA function has met the intent criteria, when evidence may not be clear to properly assess standards conformance.

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