For almost two years, I have been encouraging internal auditors to become more assertive and adept in “telling their story.” Telling our story is simply another way of creating awareness among those of our stakeholders who may not appreciate the value we create, or our potential. As I noted in a January 2020 blog:
Successfully showing our value is more than what we say. Indeed, it is all about delivering on that promised value. I’ve written extensively on how internal audit adds value, including dedicating chapters in two of my books to the subject. In my first book, Lessons Learned on the Audit Trail, I included a “Life Lesson” that provides particular insight on this subject:
“Your key stakeholders have the last word on whether you are doing your job well. And they judge an internal audit function not by how well-run it is, but by the value it generates for them.”
As most of my readers know, in the past year, I have authored yet another book: Agents of Change: Internal Auditors in an Era of Disruption. In the book, I tackle head on the subject of communicating our value. In fact, I assert that if our value is not fully appreciated, and our potential is unknown – we risk being a well-kept secret in our organizations. As the title of chapter 7 of the book clearly communicates: “Agents of Change Aren’t Secret Agents.”