Description
This session establishes the purpose, structure, and mindset of modern internal audit. Participants explore what internal audit actually does, how it is positioned within the organization, and why a risk-based approach is fundamentally different from a checklist-based one. The session grounds new auditors in the frameworks and vocabulary they will use throughout the course and throughout their careers.
Description
This session walks participants through how a modern internal audit department actually functions — from organizational structure and staffing to how audit work flows from planning through reporting. Participants explore the differences between risk-based and auditable-entity approaches, how internal audit coordinates with second-line functions, and what success looks like from a departmental perspective.
Description
This facilitated discussion session gives participants the opportunity to explore foundational concepts in greater depth through dialogue, debate, and real-world scenarios. Rather than delivering new content, the session challenges auditors to think critically about independence, audit planning philosophy, and what meaningful success looks like in practice. Facilitators should encourage candid conversation and draw on participants' own experiences.
Description
This session focuses on what happens before fieldwork begins. Participants learn how to develop a project-level risk assessment, build a focused audit scope, write clear audit objectives, and design audit procedures aligned with risk rather than simply trying to address everything. Effective planning is the foundation of every high-quality engagement.
Description
Participants apply the concepts from Session 4 through structured practice exercises. Using realistic business scenarios, auditors draft scopes, risk assessments, and audit objectives — then receive feedback from peers and the facilitator. The goal is to build confidence in making planning judgments and to understand what a well-designed audit program looks like before fieldwork begins.
Description
Before an audit begins, modern auditors must understand not just business processes but the data environments that support them. This session explores how to map an organization's data ecosystem, how to validate information produced by the entity (IPE) before relying on it, and how to approach auditing in environments where AI tools are generating outputs that auditors and auditees increasingly rely on.
Description
Participants practice applying data ecosystem concepts through hands-on exercises. Using sample datasets and realistic IPE scenarios, auditors work through the steps required to validate data reliability before using it as audit evidence. Exercises emphasize professional judgment about when data are sufficient and what additional steps are required when they are not.
Description
This session covers the critical fieldwork skills of conducting effective interviews and walkthroughs, and evaluating whether controls are well-designed to address the risks they are intended to mitigate. Participants also explore how AI tools are changing documentation practices — including the use of AI to generate narratives and convert documentation between formats. High-quality fieldwork depends on asking the right questions, listening actively, and understanding what an effective control actually looks like.
Description
Participants practice interviewing and walkthrough skills through structured role-play exercises. One participant plays the auditor and another plays the process owner, using realistic scenario scripts. The session builds confidence in asking probing questions, managing the pace of a walkthrough, and capturing what was learned in documentation that would hold up under management review.
Description
This session addresses how auditors move from understanding controls to testing whether they actually work. Participants learn the primary testing techniques — inspection, reperformance, observation, recalculation, and inquiry — and understand the important distinction between a control that is poorly designed versus one that simply isn't being followed. Equal emphasis is placed on how to document testing in a way that is clear, complete, and review-ready.
Description
Participants apply testing and documentation skills to structured exercises using sample control populations and realistic workpaper templates. The session emphasizes the four primary types of evidence and reinforces proper workpaper construction. A key component is a review-note simulation in which participants submit draft workpapers, receive manager-style feedback, and revise their documentation — replicating one of the most important skills new auditors need to develop
Description
Writing clear, well-supported audit findings is one of the most visible and high-impact skills an auditor develops. This session teaches the professional structure for issue writing — criteria, condition, cause, effect, and recommendation — and places particular emphasis on root cause analysis and on writing issues that focus on risk and impact rather than just describing what was observed. Participants learn what separates a meaningful finding from a vague observation.
Description
Participants spend this session writing, critiquing, and improving audit findings through structured exercises and peer review. Using realistic observation sets drawn from familiar scenarios, auditors draft full findings and then workshop them with peers and the facilitator. The goal is to develop a clear, confident writing voice that produces findings management will take seriously.
Description
The audit report is the product the organization sees. This session walks participants through the structure and purpose of a typical internal audit report and explores the different formats auditors use — formal narrative reports, executive presentations, and one-page summaries. Participants learn how to write for a senior audience, present findings verbally, and understand the roles and responsibilities that govern the reporting process from draft through final issuance.
Description
This session examines four areas that are reshaping how internal audit functions in modern organizations. Participants explore how Agile methodologies are being applied to audit delivery, how AI is changing the way auditors work, what advisory engagements look like and when they are appropriate, and how audit departments follow up on action plans and track remediation. Each topic is explored at a practical level — focused on what new auditors need to understand to work effectively in a contemporary audit environment.
Description
The final session focuses on life after this course — how to continue growing as an auditor and build a career that is both rewarding and impactful. Participants explore the behaviors and activities that lead to promotion, how to leverage the broader internal audit community for professional development, and what it looks like to move from competent executor to trusted advisor. The session is designed to leave new auditors with a clear sense of direction and a strong foundation to build on.
Toby DeRoche is a bestselling business writer, governance professional, and entrepreneur with more than twenty years of experience in internal audit, risk, and compliance. Most recently, Toby led the IT SOX and cybersecurity controls teams for a healthcare company. Now, he serves as the Community Director for the Internal Audit Collective, where he focuses on driving meaningful conversation, elevating community programming, and strengthening connections across the Collective. Toby also facilitates the Synergy program, which teaches IT audit skills to business process auditors.
16 NASBA-accredited CPEs
Course syllabus, presentation, and templates
1-year membership to the Internal Audit Collective community
Unlimited Opportunities to improve your Internal Audit performance and career
Clarity on fundamental concepts of Internal Auditing
Full audit methodology from planning to reporting
Practice with root-cause analysis and issue development
Understanding of strategic Internal Audit activities and advisory services
Awareness of Connected Risk and other emerging trends
A new network of like-minded individuals interested in continuous improvement
Who is this course for?
This course is designed for new and early-career internal audit professionals who are building their foundational skills and want to contribute confidently to real audit engagements from the start. It is well suited for:
- Entry-level and staff auditors who are beginning their careers in internal audit and want a structured, practical foundation in methodology, communication, and professional judgment
- Recent college graduates joining internal audit rotational programs or full-time audit roles who need to understand how audit work actually flows from planning through reporting
- Auditors transitioning from compliance, accounting, or operational roles who are new to the audit function and want to understand the risk-based audit mindset
- Internal audit departments onboarding new staff and seeking a common language, shared methodology, and a faster path to contribution
- Chief Audit Executives and audit managers looking to reduce the coaching burden on senior staff by preparing new auditors to produce quality work earlier
What if I cannot attend all of the meetings?
You will receive CPE credits for all sessions that you attend.
You will receive a certificate of completion for participating in 80% of the meetings (13 total).
Meetings will be recorded so you can watch / re-watch at your convenience.
What happens once I register?
You’ll soon receive a welcome email from the Internal Audit Collective with details on how to access both the community and your course. Inside, you’ll find step-by-step instructions to log in through our community application.
From there, you’ll be able to:
• RSVP for each session
• Access course resources and materials
• Stay up to date with announcements, changes, and discussions
Everything for the program lives inside the community app, so it will be your single hub for learning and connecting.