Senior Internal Auditor

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Scope and plan reviews. Assist with the preparation of annual review plans and budgets, agree review scope, objectives, approach, timelines and budgets with clients, and issue engagement plans.
• Manage delivery. Allocate teams, monitor progress, budgets and timelines across several reviews, and resolve issues early.
• Quality assurance. Perform QA checks on all audit and review files: working papers, evidence, conclusions and reports, before release to the client.
• Review and finalise reports, findings, risk ratings and recommendations, and present them to client management.
• Client meetings. Attend client operational meetings and escalation meetings, and manage escalated findings and client concerns.
• Business development. Identify opportunities with new and existing clients, and prepare proposals, scopes and fee estimates.
• People management. Supervise, coach and review the work of Senior Consultants and Consultants, and contribute to performance reviews.
• Follow-up. Oversee tracking of agreed management actions and follow-up reviews.

Candidates should have managed reviews in several of the areas below. Insurance-sector experience is a strong advantage.

Service line

Typical reviews

Internal Audit

Risk-based, outsourced and co-sourced internal audit; specialist reviews; agreed-upon procedures; follow-up reviews

Third-Party Assurance (TPA)

Risk-based, contractual and regulatory compliance reviews of binder holders, underwriting managers, administrators and other outsourced service providers

Compliance Monitoring

Compliance risk assessments, compliance monitoring reviews and dashboards

Market Conduct

Treating Customers Fairly (TCF) outcomes, Policyholder Protection Rules (PPR) compliance and market conduct assurance reviews

Risk Management

Risk assessments, control self-assessments, key risk indicators and integrated assurance

Process reviews

Process

Typical focus

Internal Financial Controls (IFCs)

Financial reporting controls, reconciliations, journals, period-end close

New Business / Underwriting

Application processing, underwriting authority, risk acceptance, policy issue

Claims

Claims registration, assessment, authorisation, payment and fraud controls

Reinsurance

Treaty and facultative placement, cessions, recoveries, reinsurer reconciliations

Premium Collection

Debit orders, collection, allocation, arrears and lapses

FICA / AML

Client due diligence, screening, transaction monitoring, regulatory reporting

Investments

Mandates, asset allocation, valuations, custody and investment reconciliations

Bank Account Management

Account opening and closure, signatories, payment release, bank reconciliations

Trust Accounts

Segregation of client funds, trust reconciliations, regulatory compliance

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

Experience

• At least 7 years of internal audit, risk or compliance experience, including at least 2 years managing reviews and teams.
• Training contract or experience at a Big 4 audit firm (KPMG, Deloitte, PwC or EY) or at an insurance company preferred.
• Reviews completed at financial service providers such as banks, insurance companies or investment firms.
• Experience performing quality review or QA of audit files and reports.
• Third-party assurance and insurance review experience is a strong advantage.
• Experience in client relationship management, including escalation meetings.
• Exposure to business development, proposals and fee estimates.

• Honours degree in Internal Audit preferred; otherwise a relevant degree in Accounting, Auditing, Finance, Risk Management or similar.
• CIA (Certified Internal Auditor), CISA (Certified Information Systems Auditor) or CA(SA) designation, or actively studying towards these designations.

• Based in Gauteng and willing to travel.
• Valid driver’s licence and able to get to client sites and the Sandton and Randburg offices.

• Insurance company experience, either in-house or on insurance audit engagements.
• IT audit skills, including IT general controls, application controls and IT security reviews (supports cyber security offering).
• Data analytics skills, for example Excel (advanced), IDEA, ACL, SQL, Power BI or Python, to test full populations.
• Experience presenting to audit, risk or market conduct committees.

• Sound knowledge of risk management, internal control frameworks and IIA Standards.
• Working knowledge of South African financial services regulation, such as the Insurance Act and Prudential Standards, FICA, POPIA, PPR, TCF and King IV.
• Quality-focused: high standards for evidence, documentation and reporting.
• Client relationship management and negotiation.
• Leadership, coaching and team management.
• Commercial awareness: budgets, fees and proposals.
• Strong written and verbal communication with senior client stakeholders.
• Integrity and confidentiality with client information.