Business Spotlight

Top 7 Internal Audit Services for 2024

Finding the right Internal Audit (IA) Function can be tricky. Here are some of the top internal audit services for continuous improvement of your business' operations from 2024 onwards.

Advertisement

Top 7 Internal Audit Services for 2024
info_icon

An internal audit needs experts in the internal audit process, and that means finding the right internal audit team for the job. However, finding a team that can keep your business working at international standards of effectiveness, management quality, and compliance is not easy.

The Best Internal Audit Function for 2024

Finding the right Internal Audit (IA) Function can be tricky. Here are some of the top internal audit services for continuous improvement of your business' operations from 2024 onwards.

1) Corporate Investigation Consulting

CIC - Internal Audit Consulting Services is a small but versatile team made up of former agents from the DEA, FBI, IRS, DOD, OIG, and even the Secret Service. This professional practice focuses on delivering the best audit services possible, delivering an objective assessment of your organization's operations.

Advertisement

CIC is able to offer a range of services for your existing internal audit functions, from services like digital forensics to discreet investigation reporting and direct risk management services.

From financial advisory support to identifying emerging risks within your business, CIC can deliver improvements upon previous internal audit functions while ensuring that existing effective business processes remain untouched.

2) EY Internal Audit

EY offers internal audit functions through a technical background, using a range of internal auditing tools to assist any organization in optimizing itself. A lot of this technology is able to supply IA functions that would otherwise take the focus away from more human-led tasks.

Advertisement

Although costly compared to some other audit services, EY focuses on technology first and foremost to streamline any processes the team needs to audit. This also allows them to identify opportunities for improvement using a wider range of data.

Their focus on emerging risks also allows them to use emerging technologies in a more direct way, using data for a wider range of purposes to push for greater internal audit depth.

3) KPMG Audit and Assurance

KPMG is a forward-looking internal audit function that combines a professional team with leading practices, focusing on minimizing risk and improving organization effectiveness overall. Their root cause analysis makes it easy to link potential problems to a business' conduct and culture if needed.

KPMG is able to handle risk, compliance, and a range of other services while also focusing on both the management and the processes within the organization. This enables the team to improve business performance in the long term by identifying risk across a wider range of focus points.

4) Deloitte Internal Audit Services

Deloitte Internal Audit Services tries to adapt to a range of business models and company sizes, aiming to give clients the most value possible with each audit. As internal auditors, they can identify gaps in existing business performance structures and survey the state of existing technology and tools.

Advertisement

Their professional practice and attitude have allowed them to serve as an excellent internal audit team for a range of compliance and management processes, focused on fixing the status quo and preventing new risks through their comprehensive review process.

5) PWC Internal Audit Services

PWC is made up of a team of professional internal auditors who are well-versed in accounting in particular and are very good at identifying risks and flaws in existing financial management methods. As an internal audit team, they understand the leading practices that many industries are meant to follow along with.

Working as a forward-looking source of expertise, they use a combination of their own skills and various technology options to audit business effectiveness on a variety of levels. Their understanding of internal controls makes it easy for them to audit any business that may have flaws in its current operations.

Advertisement

6) Crowe Internal Audit

Crowe Internal Audit combines a professional approach with deep assessment skills, allowing it to suggest changes and identify a new risk with barely any time wasted. The team can also walk clients through their findings effectively, explaining exactly what that risk or change would be.

Like many internal auditors, Crowe's internal audit process varies based on its client. However, it is able to serve a valuable internal audit function for almost any industry and can nudge businesses towards leading practices that may benefit them in the long run.

7) RSM Internal Audit Services

RSM is a well-regarded - if costly - team of internal auditors with a deep understanding of many common internal audit functions. Their reporting is up to standard, and they do their best to deliver decent value for their work, regardless of the business niche that they are auditing.

Advertisement

RSM is great at delivering risk reports that can help a business avoid potential issues with its overall effectiveness and leverage a range of different technology types to aid in this goal.

Choosing The Right Internal Audit Functions

While external auditors and audit committees can be important as a whole, an internal audit function is invaluable for keeping your business running smoothly. This could be a general internal audit, one focused on a financial advisory role, or even something specifically focused on internal controls. No matter the kind of audit committees and services you need, it is important to choose the right one, and that means looking for five core things:

Advertisement

Expertise

An internal audit function only works when there is experience behind it - both practical experience and knowledge of the process itself. An auditor does not need to be a global leader on the topic, but they need to offer expertise as part of their overall value.

Accuracy

Accurate internal auditing is vital for getting detailed and accurate breakdowns of your business' flaws and potential future problems. This means reliable technology, solid data-gathering, and a generally accurate internal audit process that does not rely on guesswork.

Versatility

In many cases, an internal audit has to cover a lot of factors, and no company can be the global leader in all of them. A good internal audit specialist should be able to offer value across a range of audit focuses, whether that is internal controls as a whole or something niche like fraud checks.

Advertisement

Innovative Thinking

Even if your business has a set structure for internal controls, sometimes an outside perspective can identify opportunities or flaws with those controls. A good internal audit is not just a by-the-numbers internal audit checklist but a real deep dive into what your business is doing right (and wrong).

Ethics and Honesty

An internal audit should always be done with honesty at the forefront. A lot of the value behind these audits comes from the auditors doing their work ethically, and misrepresenting your situation is misrepresenting the value of their completed internal audit.

Advertisement