Blog: When Executives Go Rogue — It’s Too Late to Point Fingers

Blog: When Executives Go Rogue — It’s Too Late to Point Fingers

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:

Once again, excesses in the boardroom are putting a globally recognized organization in the white-hot glare of unwanted publicity. Nissan Motors board Chairman Carlos Ghosn was arrested and fired last week after an internal investigation revealed he underreported his compensation to Japanese authorities by 5 billion yen — about $44 million — over a five-year period.

It didn’t take long for critics to start asking how such misdeeds could happen and speculating as to why the board or internal audit failed to uncover it sooner. Answers may be forthcoming as additional information becomes public, but the simple answer is that there is no simple answer. It is not clear whether Nissan’s internal or external auditors failed to do their jobs. What is becoming increasingly clear, however, is that the company’s governance structure may have failed its shareholders.

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

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