1. Perceptions of Internal Auditors
David A. Wood
Brigham Young University

2. Thank you!

3. Internal auditors are ROCK STARS now! - CFO.com
One Perspective…
Internal auditors are ROCK STARS now! - CFO.com

4. Another Perspective…
An internal auditor is someone who watches the battle from the safety of the hills and once all the fighting is finished, comes down and bayonets the wounded.

5. Research Findings on Internal Auditing
High Quality internal audit:
Improves internal controls
Improves operating, compliance, and financial risk
Lowers external audit fees
Reduces the likelihood of earnings management and fraud
Increases company performance (ROA/ROE)

6. Research on Perceptions of Internal Auditors
Surveyed
~500 Accounting Students
~100 External Auditors
~500 Non-accounting students and business professionals

7. What do you think?

8. What do you think?
Thanks For The Great Information In The Audit. Clearly, We Have Some Work To Do With This One!
High Potential To Support Management But Low Usable Output
Oh No, Here Come The Auditors
Consultants, Spies, Compliance Experts, Policy Experts, Independent, Objective
They Don‘t Like To See Internal Audit In Their Office But They Are Usually Welcome To Recommendations That Will Help Them Be More Effective And Compliant With Regulation.
Accepted As Required And Valuable In The Long Term, But A Pain In The Short Term
Hide The Women And Children, Here Come The Auditors!

9. Your Own Perceptions
Please indicate how you believe each of the following groups views internal auditing as a job:

10. Is the Profession “Tainted?”
Physical taint – Garbage Collector, Mortician
Moral taint – Prostitution, Abortion Clinic Workers
Social taint – Prison Guards, Social Workers
Professional taint
Yes, all professions have some taint.
Physical taint refers to naturally offensive acts performed
under noxious and dangerous conditions (e.g., garbage collectors, nurses
and funeral directors). Social taint involves regular contactwith stigmatized
groups (e.g., social workers and prison guards). Moral taint indicates
sinful or dubious virtue, including tactics that are deceptive and
uncivil (e.g., abortion clinic workers and police investigators).

11. Your Own Perceptions
The profession of internal auditing suffers from professional taint—meaning others have a negative or bad view of the profession of internal auditing. 

12. What’s the big deal?

13. What’s the big deal?

14. What’s the big deal?

15. Take a break…

16. What do you do about it?
Factors that increase interest in working in internal audit
Topic
Below Median GPA
Above Median GPA
Less Boring/Tedious Work
13.3%
21.9%
No Interest/Not a Good Fit
10%
Better Pay Incentive
43.3%
15.6%
Work in a preferred company/field
3.3%
12.5%
More Understanding of Career 0%
Other Factors
6.3%
Work/Life Balance
More Creativity/Flexibility
3.1%

17. What do you do about it? Change the name
Consider the type of work you are performing
Strategic Business Risk, Risk Management, Operational Consulting decrease taint
Compliance and Financial Auditing increase taint
Get involved! Involvement with the IIA lowers taint

18. A few more suggestions…
Get small wins and build off of them.
Make their job easier
Timeliness
Provide evidence of value add

19. Thank you!
If you have any comments or wish to dialogue more about this topic, please me at