A Journey into Auditing Culture

The topic of auditing culture is relatively new and is a challenging one for internal auditors, as the risks and controls are more difficult to identify, assess, and audit. There are a number of emerging approaches to this type of audit, and this book provides both suggested approaches and a framework of areas to consider when examining the topic.

Culture itself is dynamic and changes over time, and we can see this as we explore how to audit it. There are many factors influencing—and therefore altering—the culture of an organization. This book offers:

• Research and technical elements
• Key success factors
• Killer questions internal auditors should be asking when they audit culture in their own organizations

About the Authors

Susan Jex is culture lead within the Business Risk Services team at Grant Thornton and has designed the methodology for culture audit across the firm. She has undertaken culture audits across a number of firms and sectors, including at a major global retailer, and has undertaken HR value-added audits across many organisations, in both cases liaising at board level linking strategy and the achievement of business goals with culture. 

She previously worked at HSBC as group head of diversity and group head of employee relations, amongst other roles. As head of customer service and culture, she developed an integrated and holistic approach to culture and client service, implementing business wide and driving through to delivery. The culture programme saw the bank move from bottom to top of the industry customer satisfaction index in just two years.  

She also helped to develop the brand and marketing strategy of HSBC globally, leading to the launch of “The World’s Local Bank.” She is BA (Hons), a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Certified Accountants, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.

Eddie J. Best is global co-leader within the Business Risk Services team at Grant Thornton. He specializes in providing risk-based internal audit to global listed organisations, with experience across sectors including retail, energy, extraction, and technology gained both with Grant Thornton and formerly at Arthur Andersen. He has extensive experience supporting our international listed clients with the development and implementation of global risk management and internal audit, supporting a number of major clients as they embark on significant people and culture change programmes in order to pursue their strategic and regulatory objectives. Eddie works closely with colleagues around the world to provide cohesive expert support to clients. He is BA (Hons), a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England & Wales, and an affiliate of The IIA.

IIA Bookstore eBook Buying Guide

The eBook which is accessed through our third-party platform, VitalSource, allows the user to experience greater readability. VitalSource eBooks are user friendly, feature full, and functional. 

With an eBook you will have: 

• Easy access and storage via VitalSource.
• User-friendly search, and improved interactivity.
• Edit options to manipulate text size, font, background, and layout. 
• Ability to annotate, bookmark, and create flashcards.