Internal Audit is at a crossroads. Traditional, sample-based audit methodologies that once served organisations well are increasingly becoming inadequate in today’s fast-paced, data-driven environment. The explosion of financial, operational, and unstructured data, coupled with heightened expectations from Boards, Regulators and Audit Committees, means that Internal Audit must evolve to remain relevant. Auditors are now expected to provide more than compliance checks — they must deliver timely insights, detect risks proactively, and support the organisation’s strategic objectives. Data analytics is the enabler that transforms this expectation into reality.

In South Africa, the pressure is particularly acute. Regulatory frameworks such as the King IV Code on Corporate Governance, the Companies Act, the Public Finance Management Act (PFMA) and the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA) demand higher levels of assurance, accountability and transparency. Without the use of analytics, Internal Audit risks missing critical red flags such as fraud, irregular expenditure, and non-compliance with legislation. Moreover, continued reliance on outdated, manual and time-consuming techniques undermines audit credibility, slows down reporting, and leaves organisations exposed to risks that could have been detected earlier.

This workshop is therefore not just a learning event — it is a call to action. By embracing data analytics, Internal Auditors can unlock efficiency gains, reduce costs, test entire populations instead of small samples, and deliver insights that add tangible value to the business. The alternative is stark: audit functions that fail to adopt analytics will fall behind, struggle to meet legislative and stakeholder demands, and risk being seen as obsolete. This 2-day programme provides the tools, techniques and confidence auditors need to make the transition, future-proofing their function and securing their credibility in the 21st century.