A Foundation Committed to Research

The Research Foundation maintains a strong belief in research and in publishing reports that aid the practitioner as well as the profession. The Foundation’s portfolio of researchers and writers studying the profession is world-class. Many of the published reports are used to support IIA conference and seminar programs.      

The Foundation continually identifies and examines emerging business issues. Members of the Board of Trustees and the Board of Research Advisors (BORA) solicit suggestions from thought-leaders in internal auditing, academia, and related business professions. These suggestions are reviewed and approved by the Trustees as future Research Priorities.

The priorities are published and proposals are solicited from leading researchers, educators, and practitioners around the world, and grants are awarded based on the quality of proposals received and the expected contribution the project will have to the profession. 

To learn more, visit www.theiia.org or contact research@theiia.org.

Electronic Commerce
This research will seek to determine what effect e-commerce is having on historical IT and business development control models; how leading edge organizations are meeting this challenge; and how audit approaches are being adapted accordingly.

The Role of Internal Auditing Services in Corporate Governance and Management
This research will examine how internal auditors are helping management and the board satisfy their corporate governance responsibilities.

Auditing Continuous/Online Controls
This project will identify online/continuous techniques used by leading-edge companies to control advanced automated systems; audit practices for testing the effectiveness of these techniques; and using continuous control monitoring as a substitute for traditional audit assignments.

The following research is under way.

Enterprise Risk Management: Pulling it all Together
While the concept of enterprise-wide risk management is still emerging and the techniques and theoretical underpinnings are still in development, much progress has been made in select industries and countries. Key areas to be addressed include internal auditing’s role in the integration of risk management processes; assurance tools and approaches, and reporting techniques and methods.

A Balanced Scorecard Framework for Internal Audit Departments
The objective of this report is to describe how internal audi departments can use a "balanced scorecard" framework as a management tool. The study shows how internal audit departments can develop key performance measures and identify key performance drivers.

Digital Agent Technology
Digital agent technology is one technology that can be used to develop the Web-based information cockpits and address the real need for continuous online control systems to monitor key performance indicators. This study will describe commercial applications available, those under way, and other enabling technologies.

Electronic Commerce Systems: Control and Risk Analysis
This study will look at the conceptual business-to-business (B2B) e-commerce assurance framework, which includes organizations throughout the supply chain. This framework will become the basis for identifying sets of key performance indicators (KPIs) that capture the sufficiency of an organization’s B2B e-commerce integration with internal business processes.

eSAC
See related article.

Fraud and Its Deterrence
This research will examine the role of internal auditing and special investigative units with respect to anti-fraud and anti-abuse activities worldwide.

Mergers, Acquisitions, and Divestitures
This research will examine current practices employed by internal audit departments in support of mergers, acquisitions, and strategic alliances. The research will target the challenges to the control processes that emerge as different business cultures are blended into one entity.

Research Opportunities in Internal Auditing
See related article.

Risk Exposures in Employment and HRM Practices
Litigation and recent changes in HR practices have affected most of the elements of HRM, such as recruiting and hiring, training, job ratings, performance appraisal systems, compensation, benefits, and employee relations programs. Auditors and HR managers need a framework to evaluate their practices against the current norms of expected practices and potential exposure factors.

Risk Assessment by Internal Auditors Using Past Research on Bankruptcy
The use of bankruptcy-associated models for ongoing monitoring can help in assessing risks associated with prospective investments, suppliers, customers and attendant credit risks, etc. This research will summarize a number of domestic and international models.