Blog: The 5 Cs That Should Be Keeping Boards (and Auditors) Awake at Night

In his blog, IIA President and CEO Richard Chambers, CIA, QIAL, CGAP, CCSA, CRMA, shares his personal reflections and insights on the internal audit profession. Here’s an excerpt from his latest post:

I travelled to South Africa earlier this month to speak at an Institute of Directors (IOD) event in Johannesburg. In addition to interacting with seasoned corporate governance leaders from this important country, I was lucky enough to learn a bit more about the long history of diamond mining in South Africa.

The Eureka Diamond, the first diamond found in South Africa in 1867, created a massive disruption in the diamond trade. Its discovery along the Orange River — its pre-cut weight was an impressive 21.25 carats — revolutionized the industry. Within 10 years of the diamond’s discovery, South Africa became the center of the industry and global diamond production increased tenfold.

South Africa’s diamond mining history serves as a vivid example that disruption is, and always has been, part and parcel to business. Today, disruption is often linked with technology, but the reality is that disruption is anything that creates massive and rapid change. In my remarks at the IOD event, I noted that the speed of disruption onset, or what I call change velocity, is a significant risk for all organizations today.

Read the full InternalAuditor.org blog post from IIA President and CEO Richard Chambers.