Internal Audit Management
Plan, execute, and manage audits across your organization — with standardized workflows, evidence tracking, and full visibility into audit outcomes and remediation.
Product Overview
Modernize and Scale Your Audit Program
Internal Audit Management is the process of planning, executing, and reporting on audits to evaluate control effectiveness, compliance, and operational performance. SmartSuite’s Internal Audit Management software gives audit teams one system to run audit programs across the organization with consistency, accountability, and audit readiness.
SmartSuite standardizes audit planning, fieldwork, testing, and reporting across business units and frameworks. With a single system of record, audit teams manage audit plans, track findings, and keep complete documentation in a way that is repeatable, auditable, and defensible.
The product supports internal audit, SOX, operational audits, and regulatory audits, and aligns with frameworks such as COSO, ISO standards, and internal governance standards.
Dashboards show audit progress and outcomes as fieldwork proceeds: audit status, open findings, and remediation due dates. Audit leaders track the plan from that view, with less manual effort and stronger governance oversight.
Within SmartSuite’s GRC suite, Internal Audit Management extends beyond standalone audit activities.
Audit records are informed by:
- Compliance assessments and control testing results
- Enterprise and operational risk data
- Policy management and governance frameworks
- Incident and issue management activities
- Third-party risk and vendor assessments
Audits are therefore part of the governance and oversight program, not isolated exercises.
The product supports a wide range of audit use cases, including:
- Internal audit planning and execution
- SOX audit management and testing
- Operational and process audits
- Regulatory and compliance audits
Together, these give audit teams a program that is:
- Documented and defensible for auditors and regulators
- Efficient and scalable across audit cycles and frameworks
- Transparent and actionable for audit, risk, and compliance teams
What is Internal Audit Management?
Internal Audit Management is the process of planning, executing, and reporting on audits to evaluate control effectiveness and compliance. It enables organizations to standardize audit workflows, track findings, and ensure accountability while improving audit efficiency and governance oversight.
Core Capabilities
SmartSuite’s Internal Audit Management product provides the capabilities required to manage audits end-to-end — combining defined workflows, testing, and reporting in one platform. Each capability integrates with other SmartSuite products, ensuring alignment across risk, compliance, and operational workflows.
Audit Planning & Scheduling
Plan audit programs, define scope, assign resources, and schedule audits across business units and frameworks.
Audit Workpaper Management
Manage audit documentation, workpapers, and supporting materials with full traceability and activity history.
Fieldwork & Testing
Execute audit procedures and testing activities with standardized methodologies and consistent documentation.
Findings & Observations Tracking
Capture audit findings, observations, and recommendations with consistent classification and tracking.
Remediation & Action Tracking
Assign and monitor remediation activities to ensure timely resolution of audit findings.
Audit Dashboards & Reporting
Visualize audit progress, findings, and outcomes through dashboards and reports.
Workflow Automation
Automate audit workflows, approvals, notifications, and escalation processes.
Framework Alignment
Align audits with regulatory frameworks, internal controls, and compliance requirements.
Role-Based Access Control
Ensure secure access to audit data and documentation across audit teams and stakeholders.
The Audit Lifecycle
SmartSuite supports the full audit lifecycle — from planning through remediation — with linked workflows and current data.
Plan Audits
Define audit scope, objectives, and schedules across business units and frameworks.
Conduct Fieldwork
Perform audit procedures, collect evidence, and document findings.
Evaluate Findings
Assess control effectiveness and identify issues and recommendations.
Remediate Issues
Assign and track remediation actions to resolve audit findings.
Report & Review
Deliver audit reports and dashboards to stakeholders and leadership.
Connected Risk Ecosystem
SmartSuite products operate as one GRC platform, so audit data stays linked to risk, compliance, and operational workflows. The Internal Audit Management product integrates with related products to provide a complete view of governance and control effectiveness.
Manage assessment campaigns and testing schedules with a reusable question library, automated workflows, and one place for evidence collection.
Centralize creation, approval, and publication of policies with full lifecycle tracking and attestations, ensuring they remain current, accessible, and auditable.
Standardize vendor due diligence, centralize assessments, and monitor ongoing risk exposure to ensure supplier reliability and compliance.
Capture and resolve incidents with structured workflows, real-time visibility, and integrated response across risk, compliance, and operations.
Who This Product Is For
The Internal Audit Management product supports stakeholders across internal audit, compliance, risk, and operations — enabling consistent audit execution and continuous improvement.
Chief Audit Executive
Internal Auditor
Compliance Manager
Risk Manager
Control Owner
Executive / Board Member
Frequently Asked Questions
Answers to the questions readers ask most about this topic.
Internal audit management is the planning, execution, and reporting of audits that evaluate how well controls, risk management, and governance processes work. Fragmented tracking leaves findings unresolved and evidence hard to produce. SmartSuite runs planning, fieldwork, findings, and reporting as one workflow, with each audit linked to the controls, risks, and issues it touches, so audit leaders see status and outcomes from one place.
Audit plans are built from risk ratings, regulatory requirements, and organizational priorities, with scope, schedule, and resource assignments recorded on each audit. Automations manage timelines and remind owners as milestones approach. A missed or slipping audit shows on the plan view before the quarter ends.
Fieldwork runs as tasks for control testing and evidence collection, each linked to the control and requirement it tests. Auditors document findings, attach evidence, and update progress on the audit record. Reviewers sign off each step in the workflow, and the trail shows who tested what and when.
Findings are captured during fieldwork with a category, priority, and responsible team, and each becomes a linked issue in Issues Management for remediation. Issue workflows carry the action through to closure with owners and due dates. Audit leaders see which findings are open, overdue, or verified.
Audit reports summarizing findings, risks, and recommendations are generated from the audit records and tailored to management or the audit committee. Dashboards show plan progress and open findings between reports. Stakeholders read current figures without a request to the audit team.
Audits are scoped against the risk register, and findings link to the controls and compliance requirements they relate to, so a failed control is visible to compliance and risk owners as well as to audit. Control testing results from Compliance Assessments & Testing inform the next audit’s scope. One set of records serves all three functions.
Yes. Multiple audit teams, regions, and regulatory regimes work in one program with role-based access and shared workflows. Each business unit’s audits are managed locally while the audit director sees the full plan. Consistency holds as the number of audits grows.
Every audit, finding, and remediation action sits on linked records, so governance is reviewed from a complete picture rather than a set of reports. Automation handles reminders and routing, leaving auditors time for judgment. Over time, finding trends show where controls need strengthening, and the audit function matures with that evidence.
Elevate Your Audit Program with Connected Insights
SmartSuite delivers a complete GRC suite that connects audits with risk, compliance, and operational workflows.