SmartSuite for the Audit Committee Chair
The Audit Committee Chair leads the board committee responsible for financial reporting integrity, internal control, and the independence of internal and external audit. They oversee the audit plan, review significant findings and hold management to account for remediation.
Reports to:
What you own
- Chair the audit committee and set its agenda
- Oversee the integrity of financial reporting and internal control over financial reporting
- Approve the internal audit charter and risk-based audit plan
- Oversee the appointment, independence and performance of the external auditor
- Review significant audit findings and management's remediation
- Oversee whistleblowing and ethics arrangements
- Report committee conclusions to the full board
Where the role sits
Each name opens that role's page.
Reports to
Direct reports
Works closely with
GRC processes
The shared GRC process map, highlighted for this role.
Owns
accountable for the process
Touches
contributes or approves
Depends on
consumes its output
How SmartSuite helps, suite by suite
Each card is the persona record from that suite's Users tab.
How they use the Internal Audit Management suite
Audit visibility
Reviews engagement results and risk ratings across departments.
Governance oversight
Evaluates remediation progress and emerging risk themes.
Data-driven assurance
Accesses concise insights that enhance board decision-making.
Suites that serve this role
Products this role uses most
How SmartSuite supports this role
Internal audit. Lets committee members review engagement results and risk ratings across departments directly, with summarised dashboards built for board use.
Issues and actions. Shows remediation progress and emerging risk themes so oversight of management actions is based on live data.
Compliance management. Gives visibility of SOX certification status and open deficiencies ahead of the quarter end.
Reporting. Provides concise, data-driven assurance summaries that support board decision-making.
Industry reference
Sarbanes-Oxley Section 301 defines the committee: independent members, direct responsibility for the external auditor and a channel for whistleblower complaints. Section 407 requires disclosure of a financial expert, and NYSE 303A.07 and Nasdaq 5605(c) set composition and charter requirements. PCAOB AS 1301 governs what the auditor must communicate to the committee.
Banks above the FDICIA thresholds (12 CFR 363) must have an independent audit committee that oversees management's internal control report. UK listed companies follow the FRC's Audit Committees and the External Audit: Minimum Standard (2023). Public bodies and non-profits adopt the same structure through GAO's Yellow Book and state or charity regulation.
In their words
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