Culture and the Role of Internal Audit, a 20-page report published by the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors last week, has called for boards in both the public and private sectors to take “concrete steps” to audit their corporate culture and behaviour.
Writing in the report, Philippa Foster Back, director of the Institute of Business Ethics, said: “Public trust in business has ebbed and flowed in recent years, but a significant minority of around 40 per cent believe companies are ‘not very’ or ‘not at all’ ethical in the way they behave.
“Responsibility and ownership for addressing this lies with those who sit in the boardroom.”
Ms Foster Back said internal audit functions were well placed to assess whether companies were succeeding in creating an ethical culture, suggesting they had the “independence and access” to give assurance to those in the boardroom.
She added: “This can provide confidence that there is a strong commitment to good conduct and that it is actually being translated into everyday behaviours but, more importantly, focusing on where it is not.
“To have this information allows the board an opportunity to mitigate the risk of integrity failure.”
