Published on April 26, 2024
The Tata Internal Audit Forum, held on March 15, 2024, in Mumbai, brought together industry experts, auditors, and leaders to discuss various aspects of internal audit, corporate governance, and building trust within organisations. The forum shed light on the importance of these factors in today's volatile and complex business environment.
R Mukundan, MD & CEO, Tata Chemicals, delivered the opening address, emphasising the importance of corporate governance as the foundation for a successful company. He advocated prioritising ‘Neeyat’ (intention) over ‘Nee’ (self-interest) and highlighted the role of trust in building strong organisations. Mukundan also emphasised the need for collaboration between auditee and auditor, building relationships without noise, and embedding excellence in every journey.
Thereafter, Satyajit Ghoshal, Chief Audit Executive, Tata Chemicals, showcased their internal audit ecosystem. This included theme-based planning, risk-based audits, stakeholder input good practices such as horizontal mapping of audit areas and regular reviews with co-source partners. He also mentioned their use of the LARS audit tool and methodology for evaluating co-source partner performances.
In the next session, Manoj Agarwal, Head - Internal Audit & Risk Management, Metro Brands, shared his thoughts on the new International Internal Audit (IIA) standards and the evolving landscape of internal auditing. The standards, built on five main domains, 15 principles, and 52 standards, aim to enhance the purpose, ethics, governance, management and performance of internal audit functions. He urged participants to familiarise themselves with these changes.
In an expert fireside chat session, Robin Banerjee, Chairman, Nucleon Research; and Shashank Karnad, Partner, Mahajan & Aibara, shared case studies and discussed the importance of corporate governance layers. They highlighted the role of internal auditors in incorporating forensic checkpoints in routine audits, including ethical hacking and forensic tools to investigate various types of fraud.
S Padmanabhan, Director and Audit Committee Member, Tata Chemicals, outlined the expectations of audit committees from CAEs in a VUCA world. These expectations included protecting reputation, ensuring financial and business integrity, providing an integrated view of the organisation, and transforming from hindsight to insight to foresight. The session emphasised the critical role of internal auditors as a bridge between the audit committee, board and management.
Sanjeev Singh, Vice President & Head, TBExG, discussed conducting an internal benchmarking study within the Group, to create an inventory of tools, policies and frameworks used by Group companies, to foster Best Practice adoption.
Dr Philip Mathew, Head - Executive Education, Tata Sons, introduced the concept of trust triangle, emphasising empathy, authenticity, and logic. He also presented a communication model promoting reflective listening, advocacy, inquiry and clear communication.
Surabhi Mehrotra, GM, Control Assurance, South Asia, Unilever, shared insights from Unilever India audit practices. These included monitoring key performance indicators (KPIs) through a Continuous Control Monitoring (CCM) tool, image analytics and a ‘Controls Week’ to recognise excellence in controls monitoring.
The forum provided valuable insights into strengthening corporate governance, internal audit practices, fraud prevention, and building trust. The sessions highlighted the need for collaboration, adherence to global IA standards, incorporating forensic checkpoints, and effective communication to enhance corporate governance and trust. These learnings will undoubtedly contribute to the continuous improvement in internal audit practices and the overall success of organisations.
Participant Speak
Very insightful and engaging sessions. For effective internal auditing, apart from the focus on governance, risk and controls, a deep understanding of the interplay between trust, authenticity and logic is extremely crucial.
— S Bhaskar, Chief Internal Auditor, Tata CapitalOutstanding mind-opener! Very informative and engaging keynote speakers that triggered self-reflections, well-organised with various topics and perspectives, ample networking opportunities.
— Pratixa Davawala, Chief Internal Audit, Compliance and Risk Officer, Tata Projects