The launch of a new journal is both a milestone and an invitation. A milestone, because it represents the crystallisation of an idea shaped by experience, observation, and dialogue. An invitation, because it asks its readers not only to consume content, but to engage, challenge, and contribute to a shared professional conversation.

Internal Audit Review has been created at a time when the internal audit profession is undergoing profound change. Expectations placed on internal auditors have expanded rapidly, while the risk landscape has grown more complex, interconnected, and less predictable. Traditional models of assurance, while still essential, are no longer sufficient on their own. Internal audit is increasingly expected to provide insight, foresight, and perspective — to help organisations navigate uncertainty rather than merely confirm compliance.

This publication exists to support that evolution.

Why Internal Audit Review, and Why Now

Across industries and sectors, internal audit functions are being asked to do more with less, to cover broader risk universes, and to operate at greater strategic altitude. Digital transformation, cyber risk, regulatory change, data integrity, environmental and social responsibility, and geopolitical volatility have all reshaped the assurance agenda. At the same time, audit committees and executive management expect internal audit to be relevant, timely, and forward-looking.

Yet many practitioners experience this shift in isolation — grappling with new expectations without always having access to practical insight, peer learning, or space for thoughtful reflection. Internal Audit Review was conceived in response to that gap.

This journal is intended to be a place where ideas can be explored with depth, where emerging challenges can be examined critically, and where professional judgement is valued as much as technical compliance. It is not designed to replicate standards or restate guidance already available elsewhere. Instead, it seeks to complement them by focusing on interpretation, application, and lived experience within the profession.

A Quarterly Space for Reflection and Insight

As a quarterly publication, Internal Audit Review is deliberately paced. In a world saturated with rapid commentary and fleeting opinion, there remains a need for considered analysis — writing that allows time to reflect, connect themes, and extract meaning.

Each edition will focus on issues shaping the present and future of internal audit, drawing on contributions from practitioners, leaders, and subject-matter experts. Articles will range from strategic perspectives and thematic analysis to practical insights grounded in real-world audit environments. Over time, the Review aims to build a body of work that reflects the maturity, diversity, and evolving nature of the profession.

This first edition sets the tone. It marks the beginning of an ongoing conversation — one that will develop, deepen, and broaden with each subsequent issue.

Beyond a Journal: An Evolving Initiative

While Internal Audit Review takes shape initially as a publication, it represents only one part of a broader initiative.

As we move through 2026 and beyond, the Internal Audit Review initiative will expand with a deliberate focus on education, advocacy, and connection.

• Education, by supporting continuous professional learning through articles, resources, and future learning initiatives that bridge theory and practice.

• Advocacy, by contributing to informed discussion about the value, independence, and positioning of internal audit within organisations and across society.

• Connection, by fostering a professional community where auditors can share perspectives, learn from one another, and engage across sectors and geographies.

The intention is not to speak at the profession, but to grow with it — shaped by the challenges practitioners face and the insights they bring.

An Independent and Practitioner-Focused Voice

A defining principle of Internal Audit Review is independence — not only in the assurance sense, but in thought. The Review is not aligned to any single methodology, sector, or commercial interest. Its credibility will rest on the quality of ideas it presents and the integrity of the discussions it hosts.

Contributors are encouraged to challenge assumptions, explore grey areas, and reflect honestly on what works, what does not, and what remains unresolved. Internal audit does not exist in a vacuum, and neither should the conversations that shape it.

By creating space for thoughtful, sometimes uncomfortable, but always constructive dialogue, Internal Audit Review aims to contribute meaningfully to the profession’s long-term development.

An Invitation to Engage

This first edition is both a beginning and a call to action.

Whether you are an experienced chief audit executive, a developing practitioner, a risk or governance professional, or someone with an interest in assurance and organisational resilience, you are invited to engage with Internal Audit Review. Read critically. Reflect openly. Contribute generously.

Future editions will be strengthened by diverse voices and perspectives — from different industries, regions, and career stages. The success of this initiative will not be measured solely by readership, but by the quality of conversation it enables and the professional confidence it helps to build.

Looking Ahead

Internal audit has always been a profession grounded in judgement, ethics, and public trust. As its role continues to evolve, so too must the ways in which we learn, share, and lead.

Internal Audit Review is committed to being part of that evolution — not as a definitive authority, but as a trusted forum for insight, discussion, and connection.

Thank you for being part of this first edition. I look forward to the dialogue ahead.

Thomas Bullman
Founder and Executive Director
Internal Audit Review