| Detail | For this role |
|---|---|
| Department | Finance and Accounts |
| Level | Senior management |
| Reports to | Audit Committee |
| Direct reports | Internal Audit Manager, Internal Auditor |
| Experience | 12+ years in audit with 4 years leading audit teams |
Head of Internal Audit job description template
Copy this job description, replace the text in square brackets and post it on your careers page or a job portal.
Job title: Head of Internal Audit
Department: Finance and Accounts
Reports to: Audit Committee
Location: [City], [office, branch or site]
About the role
A Head of Internal Audit gives the board independent assurance that controls, risk management and governance are working. They build the risk based audit plan, lead audits across finance, operations and compliance, and report findings to the audit committee. The role stays independent of the business it reviews and usually reports to the audit committee, with an administrative line to the CEO. A good audit head finds the risks that matter, drives real fixes and helps the company run cleaner, not just tick boxes.
Key responsibilities
- Build the annual risk based internal audit plan and get it approved by the audit committee.
- Lead audits across finance, procurement, operations, IT and compliance functions.
- Assess the design and working of internal controls and flag gaps and weaknesses.
- Report findings, risks and recommendations to management and the audit committee.
- Track closure of every audit action and follow up until the fix is in place.
- Investigate suspected fraud, leakage or policy breaches and report the outcome.
- Review compliance with company policy, delegation of authority and statutory rules.
- Advise management on control design when new processes or systems are set up.
- Coordinate with the statutory auditors and share relevant internal audit findings.
- Build the audit team and keep its skills current with changing risks.
Requirements
- Chartered Accountant (CA) or CIA
- Strong internal audit and controls background
- CISA or CFE is an advantage
- 12+ years in audit with 4 years leading audit teams
KRAs and KPIs for a Head of Internal Audit
Key result areas for the appraisal form, each with a KPI you can measure every month or quarter.
| Key result area | How to measure it |
|---|---|
| Audit coverage | Approved audit plan completed in full within the financial year |
| Action closure | Agreed audit actions closed within the committed timeline, tracked to the committee |
| Risk focus | Every high risk area covered at least once in the annual plan |
| Report quality | Audit reports issued within the agreed days of field work ending |
| Fraud response | Reported concerns investigated and closed within the agreed timeline |
| Independence | No audit compromised by conflict of interest during the year |
Skills and tools
Tools used day to day: Audit management software, Advanced Excel, IDEA or ACL, SAP, Flowcharting tools.
Reporting line and career path
Next roles: Chief Audit Executive, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Risk Officer
Interview questions for a Head of Internal Audit
- How do you build a risk based audit plan when everything seems important?
- How do you keep independence when the business pushes back on a finding?
- Walk me through an audit that uncovered a real control failure.
- How do you use data analytics to test a whole population, not a sample?
- How do you handle a suspected fraud during a routine audit?
- How do you get management to actually close audit actions?
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What does a Head of Internal Audit do?
A Head of Internal Audit gives the board independent assurance on controls, risk and governance. They build the risk based audit plan, lead audits across the company, report findings to the audit committee, track fixes and investigate fraud. They stay independent of the business they review and lead the internal audit team.
Who does a Head of Internal Audit report to?
To protect independence, a Head of Internal Audit reports functionally to the audit committee of the board, which approves the plan and reviews findings. There is usually an administrative reporting line to the CEO or MD for day to day matters, but the committee owns hiring, pay and the audit head's independence.
What is the difference between internal audit and statutory audit?
Statutory audit is an external, legally required review that gives an opinion on whether the financial statements are true and fair. Internal audit is an ongoing, in house function that reviews controls, risk and processes across the whole company and reports to the audit committee, not to shareholders.