Find out the top 10 core skills you need to master as an internal audit director and what hard skills you need to know to succeed in this job.
The Internal Audit Director is responsible for planning and executing a risk-based audit plan to evaluate, report on and make recommendations for improving the company's key operational and finance activities and internal controls. The position requires the director to issue directives to every staff of the auditing group.
More responsibilities for this post includes - identifying and assisting in documenting existing internal financial records, executing and documenting new internal controls, establishing an internal monitoring function that helps in auditing the company's compliance with the internal controls set, launching ''cross-selling'' business to other practices, promoting new ideas and business solutions that result in extended services to existing clients.
Core Skills Required to be an Internal Audit Director
Core skills describe a set of non-technical abilities, knowledge, and understanding that form the basis for successful participation in the workplace. Core skills enable employees to efficiently and professionally navigate the world of work and interact with others, as well as adapt and think critically to solve problems.
Core skills are often tagged onto job descriptions to find or attract employees with specific essential core values that enable the company to remain competitive, build relationships, and improve productivity.
An internal audit director should master the following 10 core skills to fulfill her job properly.
Initiative:
An initiative is the ability to assess and initiate things independently often done without any managerial influence offered.
An Internal Audit Director must train his workers to take up tasks without being asked to and work on them without being supervised to a quality that is accepted by the company, therefore nurturing a skill that grows the individual and the group as well.
Physical Abilities:
Physical Abilities is the ability of one's strengths and limitations that are also known as the individual resources to perform well at the tasks given.
An Internal Audit Director must understand that his employees are very different types of people who vary in what they can or cannot do and treat each one with respect while supporting them to become the best in what they do.
Adaptability:
Adaptability is the ability to cope with and adapt to unexpected situations in any environment and staying connected with a great attitude.
An Internal Audit Director must shape the workplace with leadership skills that allow employees to adapt to the provided atmosphere and be able to give their best in the workplace while growing in their ability to become the best employees.
Problem/Situation Analysis:
Problem/Situation Analysis is the ability to solve problems and assess situations to know what kind of solution is required to calm it down.
An Internal Audit Director should learn how to identify and analyze problems and situations as well as use available resources to resolve them constructively by reaching a consensus through looking at an issue in a professional, not personal way.
Deadlines - On time:
Deadlines - On time is the ability to prioritize the important tasks and setting up a plan on how to work on them first to deliver within the set period.
An Internal Audit Director must have the art of managing deadlines by being able to prioritize the work that is set for scheduling to the workers according to how vital the projects are and how soon they need to be executed and submitted.
Financial Management:
Financial Management is the skill of learning how to handle accounting, finance, and organizational management through providing daily data on the operations that take place every day.
An Internal Audit Director ought to be highly effective in planning and organization, controlling and management of the financial resources to achieve the company's organizational objectives that are laid down to see the growth of the enterprise.
Knowledge Management:
Knowledge Management is the ability to manage knowledge and information that is presented to the company from different sources without overlooking any of them.
An Internal Audit Director ought to creatively channel all the new information, tools, input, and methodology mean by actively practicing the art of knowledge management within the business by harnessing the organization's inherent wisdom's platform in one place.
Research:
Research is the ability to stay updated on the latest trends in different fields as per your concern or the concern of your company or business.
An Internal Audit Director ought to stay up to date on the latest trends in hiring, leading, retention, technology and much more by using the newest research methods that allow him to make better decisions and improve productivity.
Scheduling:
Scheduling is creating daily workflow charts that the employees are supposed to follow when working and submitting their projects.
An Internal Audit Director must be dedicated to establishing and maintaining the schedule using either manual or technology methods to ensure it is always updated according to the tasks, the employees responsible or the time allocated to each task without fail or delay.
Writing Reports and Proposals:
Writing Reports and Proposals is the ability to record business reports and plans for the company or project following the policies and procedures of the company.
An Internal Audit Director should, therefore, emphasize the need and accuracy of these reports and plans to ensure they are delivered promptly, and the details within are accurate adhering to the company's policies and regulations without compromise.
Hard Skills Required to be an Internal Audit Director
Hard skills are job-specific skill sets, or expertise, that are teachable and whose presence can be tested through exams. While core skills are more difficult to quantify and less tangible, hard skills are quantifiable and more defined.
Hard skills are usually listed on an applicant's resume to help recruiters know the applicant's qualifications for the applied position. A recruiter, therefore, needs to review the applicant's resume and education to find out if he/she has the knowledge necessary to get the job done.
An internal audit director should have a good command of the following hard skills to succeed in her job.