According to a recent report by Gartner, chief audit executives (CAEs) have identified advancing data analytics, assuring proliferating digital risks, and talent management as their top focus areas for 2023. As organizations undergo digital transformation and face increasing cybersecurity threats, CAEs are seeking to enhance their audit departments and ensure they have the right talent and capacity to address these challenges effectively.
Leslee McKnight, a VP in the Gartner Risk & Audit Practice, emphasized the importance of CAEs covering a wider range of risks while balancing their business’ assurance needs with the needs of their teams. She stated, “CAEs need to cover a wider, more challenging set of risks at a time when they are least confident in covering them. To do so, they must find a way to balance meeting their business’ assurance needs without compromising the needs of their teams.”
A survey conducted by Gartner with 112 CAEs revealed their key priorities for 2023. The most cited priority was the adoption of more advanced analytics applications, such as continuous risk assessment, automation, and artificial intelligence. CAEs recognize the need to keep up with the rapidly evolving cybersecurity landscape as one of their primary challenges. They also aim to digitalize their audit departments and ensure they have the necessary talent and capacity to address cyber and IT-related risks effectively.
While the focus on providing assurance over technology and digitalization is not new for CAEs, the increasing pressure to address these challenges arises as organizations expand their risk appetites and investments in digital technologies. McKnight highlighted the importance of leveraging data and growing digital capabilities within audit departments to provide the timely coverage organizations need. However, CAEs face ongoing challenges in evolving audit practices to be more efficient and advanced.
CAEs face a unique opportunity to elevate the influence of audit within organizations in the current environment. However, the expanding demands also exacerbate the assurance challenges that CAEs often struggle to solve. McKnight emphasized the need for CAEs to strike a balance between playing a strategic role in the enterprise and executing a comprehensive audit strategy to improve efficiency, advance data use, and align team capabilities with emerging business needs.
Despite the priority of adopting more advanced analytics applications, few CAEs express confidence in their teams’ ability to do so. Similarly, many lack confidence in their teams’ capability to provide appropriate cybersecurity coverage, despite the focus on keeping up with the evolving landscape. The same confidence gap exists for covering IT risks and critical transformation projects, which CAEs also identified as top priorities for 2023.
To improve auditor engagement and retention, nearly half of CAEs prioritize developing and communicating compelling auditor career paths. Gartner’s survey data indicates that proactive career pathing is essential for engaging and retaining employees in demanding working environments. McKnight emphasized the importance of incentivizing and supporting audit teams to help them advance their capabilities and careers, stating, “Ensuring their departments are prepared, engaged, and equipped with the right skills and capabilities will be paramount to keeping pace with enterprise assurance demands in 2023.”
In conclusion, CAEs are focusing on advancing data analytics, assuring digital risks, and talent management as their top priorities for 2023. With the increasing need for audit teams to provide assurance over rapidly evolving technologies and digital transformation, CAEs are working towards digitalizing their departments and ensuring they have the necessary talent and capacity. However, they face challenges in adopting advanced analytics applications and providing adequate cybersecurity coverage. To meet enterprise assurance demands and retain their auditors, CAEs are prioritizing the development of compelling career paths and supporting their teams’ skills and capabilities.