The Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) has announced changes to their internal auditing standards. The changes will go into effect on January 1, 2013. The proposed changes were approved without edit after a 90 day comment period.

The IIA is an association of internal auditors. Internal auditors assure that internal controls exist and are sufficient for the risks an organization is exposed to on a regular basis. A good internal auditor must understand the business, its organization, and its systems. They are invaluable to a well run business and a great asset to the management.

The IIA produces standards for the internal auditing profession. The standards are set in place to achieve several goals:

• Set the basic requirements for what is required and expected from an internal audit.
• Guidelines for evaluating the performance of auditors.
• Promoting the benefits of audits to the business community at large.
• Set the definitions used but the profession.

Some of the key changes are:

• More focus on quality standards. It defines more clearly on requirements and steps to achieve the quality needed and expected.
• Aligning the goals of the audit with the overall goals of the business. This should include risk to the targets.
• Set up requirements to update the audit plan to in a reasonable time frame.