The CBOK study is funded through The William G. Bishop III, CIA, Memorial Fund, established by The IIA Research Foundation to honor the vision and passion of The IIA's past president.
Common Body of Knowledge of Internal Auditing
What is a body of knowledge?
A Body of Knowledge may be defined as: a living reference that represents the collective knowledge of a profession. The key elements described within are referred to as Areas of Knowledge, which reflect generally accepted practices within the profession. These include the associated activities, and the tasks and skills necessary to be effective in their execution, as well as the professional standards and guidance used by the practitioners of the profession; such as The IIA’s International Professional Practices Framework (IPPF), which includes mandatory and strongly recommended guidance.
The Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) has decided to refer to this collective knowledge of the internal audit profession as the Common Body of Knowledge of Internal Auditing.
CBOK Study - A history
Since the beginning of the promulgation of the standards for the professional practice of internal auditing, and especially since the beginning of the CIA certification in the early 1970’s, the leadership of The IIA has commissioned studies of internal auditing. The very first ‘CBOK’ project took place in 1972; followed by various research projects undertaken by different groups.
In 2005 The IIA Research Foundation (The IIARF) established the William G. Bishop III, CIA Memorial Fund to honor IIA’s former president William (“Bill”) Bishop. The Fund supported CBOK 2006 – the most comprehensive global study on the internal audit profession at that time. It was decided that to build on this project and to support the profession in staying relevant, vibrant and visionary, regular periodic research was necessary; thus creating the CBOK Study.
CBOK Study components provide a rich overview of information on how the profession develops and how it is being practiced and viewed worldwide. CBOK Study projects may reveal:
- Compliance to and adequacy of the IPPF
- Current status of the internal audit activity within organizations
- Activities and types of audits that are being performed
- Tools and techniques used by internal auditors
- Skills and knowledge possessed by internal auditors
The Study culminated in the following reports in 2010 and 2011. These are available for IIA members as a FREE download.
- Characteristics of an Internal Audit Activity examines the demographics and other attributes of the worldwide population of internal auditors and what this means for the internal audit profession.
- Core Competencies for Today’s Internal Auditor defines the attributes of an effective internal audit activity and what internal auditors really need to know to perform their jobs with due care while adding value to their respective organizations.
- Measuring Internal Auditing’s Value focuses on the value of internal auditing under dynamic business conditions by presenting the key elements, criteria, and drivers of the value delivered by an internal audit activity and what needs to be done to maintain the profession’s continuing relevance.
- What’s Next for Internal Auditing? provides forward-looking insight identifying perceived changes in the roles of the internal audit activity over the next five years, changing stakeholder expectations, and what internal auditing must do to adapt itself in a resilient fashion.
- Imperatives for Change: The IIA’s Global Internal Audit Survey in Action contains conclusions, observations, and recommendations for the internal audit activity to anticipate and match organizations’ fast-changing needs to strategically position the profession for the long term.
In addition, a special study was conducted in the US on stakeholder’s perceptions:
- A Call to Action: Stakeholders’ Expectations and Perceptions Study focuses on the value of internal auditing from the perspective of US stakeholders such as Chief Executive Officers and Audit Committee Members.
Individual printed copies of all reports and special bundling packages are available for purchase through The IIARF Bookstore.
Local IIA institutes and/or associated organizations may provide information based on the survey results more specifically geared to their regions.
Click here to download a copy of the entire survey including the answer options.
The IIARF CBOK Study is solely funded by the William G. Bishop III, CIA, Memorial Fund.