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Breaking Silos: Integrating Systems Thinking into Internal Audit Education

Anna Czegledi, Linda Scott Campbell, and Ken Dafoe

The BRC Academy Journal of Business

Volume 14

Number 1

Print ISSN: 2152-8721 Online ISSN: 2152-8721

Date: April 15, 2025

First Page 103

Last Page 150

DOI: https://dx.doi.org/10.15239/j.brcacadjb.2025.14.01.ja05

Abstract

This study's objective was to investigate the learning experience of undergraduate students by introducing Systems Thinking (ST) concepts to the Internal Audit course. Future internal auditors should understand complex business processes and identify key risks and controls. An internal auditor is responsible for assessing the effectiveness of internal controls and compliance with regulatory requirements. Auditors are required to analyze data, use professional judgment, and see "the big picture" in providing appropriate assessments at the right time. Our teaching strategy focused on reducing a "silo" mentality in decision-making. The findings demonstrated the positive impact of this approach. Ninety-eight percent of participants supported adopting a "big picture" approach to solving business problems with data, and 95 percent recognized the benefits of ST in assessing audit test results. This percentage coincided with text analytics evaluations of open-ended questions where student comments rated the experience with ST as highly positive. We also provided practical recommendations for integrating ST into teaching based on faculty experience who has 20+ years of practical experience in internal audit for large international organization.

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