With increasing demands placed on internal auditors to keep up with the pace of change, finding a source of information you can trust with your limited time is critical. AuditBoard’s Webinar Series hosts numerous high-quality webinars each year to provide internal auditors with the insight they need to add value to their organizations. We partner with thought leaders from internal audit departments, external audit firms, and consultants to bring a variety of voices and perspectives to the conversation. In the last year, AuditBoard’s Webinar Series focused on identifying and responding to emerging risks impacting organizations everywhere.
In 2022, AuditBoard hosted 40 audit, risk, and compliance webinars that attracted over 40,000 attendees. The outstanding speakers for AuditBoard’s webinars covered emerging risk topics impacting organizations like auditing Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) programs, cybersecurity, inflation, and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). They also guided approaches to auditing, such as using agile audit techniques and proactive fraud detection. As a bonus, we were able to grant over 33,000 Continuing Professional Education (CPE) credits to support a variety of audit certifications. In this article, we share three primary trends from the webinars we hosted in 2022, and we share how you can access our most popular webinars of the year, which are now available to watch on demand.
2022 Audit Webinar Trends
Three main trends stand out when we look back at the most popular audit webinars from 2022. The first trend is the need for auditors to identify emerging risks and add these to the audit plan. The emerging risk topics included regulatory risks related to Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) requirements, technology risks tied to social engineering’s role in cybersecurity, and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) risks in corporate culture. We also heard ideas from thought leaders on proactive approaches to weathering periods of inflation and ways to increase fraud awareness while businesses are dealing with disruption.
The second trend in the webinar series is increased interest in modernizing the way we audit by adopting new techniques. Two webinars centered on agile auditing, which has become an increasingly attractive approach for internal auditors. In these presentations, the speakers described practical ways of applying agile audit principles and how audit teams can plan their transition to an agile way of working. Another webinar focused on comparing different operating models for SOX, emphasizing optimizing SOX work through purpose-built tools and open communication with your external auditors. These webinars provide practical instruction on improved audit methods that teams can apply immediately.
The third trend in 2022’s webinars centered around adopting technology. One session covered the challenges and opportunities for working remotely and how embracing enabling technologies for a virtual or hybrid audit team factors into their success. We also heard from industry leaders on incorporating emerging technologies like AI and RPA into the audit function. The presentations help internal auditors bridge the gap between their current working environment and the profession’s future.
In these sessions, the presenters honed in on the practical application of tools and techniques internal auditors can use in their audit engagements to address emerging risks. While this type of presentation can sometimes be overwhelming, the presenters made complex topics approachable. Learning new skills from these industry leaders will be extremely valuable as you kick off your audits in the new year.
AuditBoard’s Most Popular Audit Webinars of 2022
To get you started as you explore the many topics available as on-demand webinars, here are the most popular sessions from 2022, in no particular order.
- Tackling the ESG Landscape and Implementing Effective Internal Controls — Issues related to the environmental, social, and governance (ESG) landscape are gaining attention. Protiviti’s Steve Wang discusses current regulatory trends and the role internal audit plays ensuring ESG data is accurate and verifiable.
- Attendee Feedback: “Steve was an exceptional presenter. This was a really effective explanation of ESG and some good examples to assist Internal Audit in its role concerning this growing and important topic. Thank you for the common sense approach to handling ESG issues.”
- SOX Readiness and Operating Models — Refresh your understanding of the pros and cons of different SOX operating models, as well as how to integrate tools with each. Deloitte’s Donna Cashman & Bryan Goldstein and AuditBoard’s Scott Madenburg provide tips for working with your external auditors to optimize each model.
- Attendee Feedback: “Presenters were very knowledgeable and helpful in presenting the SOX topic, and establishing and maintaining internal controls. 3 great speakers.”
- Growing Cybersecurity Concerns: Internal Audit’s Critical Role — Targeted social engineering cyberattacks have grown in frequency, with bad actors taking their time to get to know their victims. The IIA’s David Petriski shares how to assess and assist in your organization’s cyber readiness.
- Attendee Feedback: “Very good presentation with information relevant to current IT audits and technology threat spaces.”
- Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion in Corporate Culture: Internal Audit’s Role — Gavin Hayes of the Chartered IIA dives into the results of corporate culture research conducted by the Chartered IIA and AuditBoard, and explores the innovative ways that internal audit functions are providing assurance in this area.
- Attendee Feedback: “I enjoyed it very much. I can use this almost immediately to incorporate culture in our upcoming HR and Talent Management audit. Very helpful!”
- Inflation Is Back! What Should Internal Auditors Do Now? — The U.S. inflation rate is the highest it’s been in 40 years! Richard Chambers explores inflation-related risks and actions that internal auditors should take to help their organizations remain resilient as costs increase and pressure on the bottom line mounts.
- Attendee Feedback: “Outstanding presentation by Richard Chambers! Very concise, clear, and relevant information about the effect of inflation on risk.”
- The Remote Auditor: Challenges, Opportunities, and New Ways of Working — Yulia Gurman of PCA explores the findings of an Internal Audit Foundation and AuditBoard report on remote work, including the impact of new work models, the use of technology, and promoting a healthy organizational culture while remote.
- Attendee Feedback: “One of the best AuditBoard webinars I’ve attended. Presenter was engaging, knowledgeable, and helpful. I look forward to reading the report that was provided as a further resource.”
- Agile Auditing: Principles That All Audit Teams Can Apply — Not sure where to start with agile auditing? Danny Goldberg of GoldSRD breaks down the key principles of agile, types of agile approaches, and the parts of the scrum framework so you can apply them to minimize costs, save time, and strengthen relationships with stakeholders.
- Attendee Feedback: “T**his has been the best, easiest, most understandable presentation on Agile I’ve attended in a while. THANK YOU!”
- Tackling Fraud in Today’s Dynamic Risk Environment — Fraudsters are taking advantage of a disrupted business environment to carry out their schemes with increasingly sophisticated tools. Liz Sandwith and Gavin Hayes of the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors and Kira Eilfield from the UK AuditBoard team discuss how internal auditors can play a more proactive role in fraud detection.
- Attendee Feedback: “Loved the webinar! The best fraud webinar I have attended in a long time. Liz and Kira were excellent. It’s apparent they have a thorough knowledge of the subject, and I thoroughly enjoyed the conversational style of the presentation”
- Transitioning to Agile Audit — Not sure how to transition to agile auditing? Toby DeRoche of Verizon will share his expertise in planning this shift, adopting agile techniques that work for your team, and evaluating for success.
- Attendee Feedback: “I have been attending audit webinars for years and this one was amazing! Great knowledge-based training. I have a much better understanding of what Agile auditing actually is. Thanks for a very worthwhile presentation!”
- AI, RPA, and Emerging Technologies in Internal Audit — Chris Colwell of UiPath, Bryant Richards of Nichols College, and Joe Kim of AuditBoard discuss the need for advancements in legacy systems and demonstrate (with use cases) how internal audit teams are well-positioned to help drive technology innovation at their organizations.
- Attendee Feedback:“What really stuck out is the amount of new risks getting introduced into a company by all the new technologies used by the business units. As the volume of risks increases exponentially, RPA and cognitive automation can help address them. Very informative and relevant! Thank you!”
Stay Up to Date With Thought Leadership in the Year Ahead
AuditBoard’s on-demand webinars contain a wealth of information that will enhance your skill set and prepare your audit department for the year ahead. As we start the new year, the emerging risks and audit approaches covered in these webinars will continue to play an important role in our audit plans. Now is the perfect time to revisit the expert guidance provided in these on-demand webinars above and register to earn free CPE credits in AuditBoard’s 2023 Webinar Series.
