The preferred candidate is likely to be an experienced Senior Consultant or equivalent, with experience of IT audit work, close to promotion to a managerial role, and is capable of working independently and taking ownership of the day-to-day delivery of all end-to-end IT audit work.

Responsibilities / Relationships

Introduction

Key responsibilities will be supporting the IT Senior Audit Managers and IT Audit Managers in the scoping, planning, and delivery of the annual programme of IT audit work. Depending on the level of experience of the candidate, some management of specific IT audit engagements may be required.

Delivery of Specific IT Audit Engagements

• Use your technical knowledge and understanding of the NAO’s financial audit methodology to:
  • Guide Financial Audit (FA) [AA7.1] teams in responding to IT-related risks to their audit.
  • Support the production of an appropriately detailed IT audit response to address the risks identified for relevant technology layers.
• Possess technical knowledge and experience of how to audit IT application and supporting general IT controls in one or more of the following areas at relevant technology layers: Oracle EBS, Oracle Fusion, SAP ECC, SAP S/4 Hana, or Unix systems. Knowledge of auditing Active Directory and cloud-based systems would be favorable but not essential.
• IT audit technical knowledge and experience of obtaining assurance over the effective operation of IT controls / functions, interfaces, reports (e.g. SQL), segregation of duties, automated calculations, new system implementations / migrations, etc.
• Proven ability in producing quality IT audit work for manager review.
• Competent in understanding and documenting complex business processes and identifying controls to address financial and business process risks (purchase to pay risks) through process maps.
• Experience of using, interpreting, and evaluating third-party reports (e.g., ISAE3402 reports) in accordance with ISA 402 for identified controls in support of financial audit teams.
• The ability to:
  • Understand IT processes/technical documentation/IT audit issues and interpret/translate these into understandable language for non-specialist internal colleagues.
  • Clearly articulate the relevance of risks arising from IT to the Audit Manager (IT Audit) when supporting the FA team.
• Summarize IT audit findings arising from IT audit work performed, impact on the business/financial statements, recommending additional audit work, and drafting practical recommendations for audited body management.
• Form / maintain an effective, professional working relationship with the Financial Audit team to ensure they are updated on progress and act as a conduit between the FA team and IT audit management/colleagues, keeping both abreast of developments.
• Form / maintain the relationship with the audited body to ensure the delivery of an agreed schedule of evidence you will have prepared to support your IT audit work; escalating as appropriate.
• A strong track record of maintaining and furthering your technical IT and IT audit knowledge to ensure that you remain capable of understanding and mitigating risks arising from existing and emerging technology.

Development of IT Audit within the NAO

• Identify opportunities to improve the quality, efficiency, or value of the work performed by the IT Audit Team.
• Support the development and training of IT audit trainees and other IT audit colleagues through sharing your knowledge and experience.
• Ensure you remain up to date with IT Audit Team and its sub-team activities, initiatives, priorities, and those relevant to NAO internal practice networks.
• Maintain the relationship between the IT Audit Team and internal FA teams, internal practice networks, and external clients/stakeholders.

Key Competencies, Skills, and Experience

Education/Work Experience

• Applicants should demonstrate a strong record of achievement through formal education, professional qualifications, or relevant experience. Evidence may include university degrees, certificates from recognized institutions, work-based learning, or other equivalent accomplishments.
• IT audit experience, with a significant portion of that experience arising from IT audit work supporting financial audit.
• Demonstrable experience of working on clients with large complex systems. Demonstrable experience in Oracle (including Fusion) and SAP (including S/4 HANA) systems would be of particular interest.
• An IT audit qualification (e.g., CISA) is preferred, but evidence of strong practical experience of delivering IT audits in support of the financial audit is more important than a qualification.
• A formal finance qualification would be an advantage.

Attributes

• Intellectual curiosity, especially about technology and business process-related matters.
• Trusted to work independently as well as cooperatively and collaboratively as part of a team to deliver a team effort and quality work.
• Drive and determination to overcome obstacles, resistance, or challenges in order to achieve goals.
• Commitment to personal development and keeping technical skills up to date.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate clearly and appropriately, both verbally and in writing, with a range of audiences, including junior audit staff and senior-level client staff.

Equal Opportunities and Diversity

• Disability and Reasonable Adjustments: Applicants with a disability who wish their application to be considered under the Disability Confident scheme should confirm this when submitting their application. Under this scheme, we guarantee an interview to an applicant with a disability who meets the minimum requirements for the role. You should also let our HR team know if you wish us to consider any Reasonable Adjustments at any stage of the process (HR Service Desk (HRServiceDesk@nao.org.uk)).

We are committed to fair and open recruitment. All applications will be assessed on merit against the requirements of the role. We do not discriminate on the basis of any protected characteristic as defined by the Equality Act 2010.