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Tony Stenger
Since I took office, I have had the opportunity to directly witness the maturity and professionalism of the IAS, which is recognised in the public sector worldwide as a benchmark for quality and best practice in the internal audit profession.
This year we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the IAS and, in this context, I am delighted to present this history book, which provides an extremely interesting insight into the work of the internal auditors in the second decade of the IAS.
In this context of political, social and economic challenges, the delivery of results and the protection of the EU budget is more important than ever. The Commission has the responsibility to implement and manage the important initiatives launched as part of the recovery package and the new multiannual financial framework.
The role of the IAS is equally more important than ever: to ensure that we stay on the right track. Work still needs to be done in regard to emerging risks, in particular on the assurance, internal control, compliance and performance aspects of the implementation of EU policies and funds.
This IAS history book reveals a professionalism that runs through an entire organisation that is clearly open, alert and actively addressing the significant changes in the Commission and risk environment. I am therefore grateful to Manfred Kraff, and all colleagues in the IAS for already outlining a clear, innovative and flexible approach to meet the challenges ahead, by:
I invite you to discover through this book the exciting journey of the Internal Audit Service and share the messages it brings, of achievement, progress and vision for an agile, forward-looking, modern internal audit organisation.
The mission of the Internal Audit Service is to enhance and protect organisational value by providing risk-based and objective assurance, advice and insight. The Internal Audit Service helps the Commission accomplish its objectives by bringing a systematic, disciplined approach in order to evaluate and improve the effectiveness of risk management, control and governance processes. Thereby it promotes a culture of efficient and effective management within the Commission and its departments.
In its second decade, the IAS has grown in size, reorganised itself and taken further steps to maintain its status as a benchmark for quality in the delivery of professional internal audit services in the public sector.
These developments have allowed the IAS to be flexible and adaptable, in an ever-changing audit environment, to the increasingly complex needs of our clients, whether in the Commission or in the EU agencies and other autonomous bodies.
Looking back at the challenge set by Brian Gray in 2011 (in the first IAS History Book (1)), I am proud that over these past 10 years the IAS has become, as Brian fully expected, an internal audit function that is highly respected by auditees, stakeholders and peers in the internal audit profession worldwide.
This second IAS history book is hopefully an interesting, reflective and reasonably easy read! It will allow all those who have worked, or are working, in the service, or those who have shared in our journey as key stakeholders or clients, to recognise our hard work and achievements.
In this period, perhaps the biggest change for the IAS occurred in 2015 when, following a decision of the College of Commissioners, internal audit in the European Commission was centralised in the IAS. The IAS is grateful for the efforts of Philippe Taverne and his team for their work on the successful centralisation and reorganisation of the service.
Of course, it cannot be all work and no play in the IAS. Through its Staff Engagement Committee, the IAS has recognised that the promotion of exchanges, discussions and the organisation of fun social events and parties are the real glue that maintains and strengthens the IAS team!
Executive Vice-President Frans Timmermans is a Dutch politician with a prominent European background. After his studies in European law and French literature, he became Policy Officer at the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1987. From 1990 to 1993, he was Second Secretary at the Dutch embassy in Moscow.
From 2014 to 2019, he was First Vice-President of the European Commission, in charge of better regulation, interinstitutional relations, the rule of law and the Charter of Fundamental Rights. During his mandate under the Juncker Commission, his portfolio covered the IAS. On 1 December 2019, he became European Commission Executive Vice-President for the European Green Deal.
When I became first vice-president, in charge of better regulation, interinstitutional relations, the rule of law and the Charter of Fundamental Rights, in 2014, the European Union had just come through one of the most testing periods in its history. The effects of the economic and financial crisis were still causing great hardship in many parts of Europe, particularly highlighted by the high levels of unemployment, notably among young people.
In the wake of the financial crisis, the Commission was under increased external scrutiny of its wider governance structures, and the focus on ever-improved performance vis--vis the political objectives was intense.
Integrating the IACs also required the IAS to be comprehensively reorganised. The outcome of this exercise brought efficiency gains and higher quality for the Commission from its internal audit function. This also ensured that the APC was able to oversee the comprehensive internal audit work relating to the Commission and the executive agencies and monitor its follow-up at a different scale.
The core asset of the IAS is definitely its skilled and competent staff and, therefore, the newly appointed Director-General, Manfred Kraff, naturally focused on fostering a creative environment and developing staff potential. The follow-up to the various staff survey results and the setting-up of the Staff Engagement Committee were key priorities.
On my initiative, the College modified the APC Charter, and the working practices, role and composition of the Committee were enhanced following the audits of the European Court of Auditors and the IAS related to governance at the Commission. In particular:
I am happy to see that there is clear recognition of the APC as a key stakeholder in the Commission, and of the IAS as a mature, modern and respected internal audit service by its auditees, its stakeholders and the internal audit profession worldwide.
The COVID-19 pandemic brought to light the importance of scientific data, even when these data may be incomplete or still under validation. The need for evidence-based decision-making and policies is obvious, now more than ever. I definitely think that in this context we need auditors to be forward looking, proactive and ethics and value-driven.
With a focus on innovation and digital auditing, looking to further improve strategic planning, with a view to ensuring that better-informed auditors can give more effective advice and assurance in increasingly complex policy areas, is a challenge that modern internal auditor services should respond to.
In my period as First Vice-President and Chair of the APC, I had the privilege of working with excellent senior managers, the Directors-General Philippe Taverne and Manfred Kraff, and the IAS team of directors: Jeff Mason, who stepped in remarkably for the interim period as Acting Director-General, as well as Cristiana Giacobbo and Reinder van der Zee. They have not only restructured and solidified the professionalism of a modern internal audit service, but have demonstrated the ability to be flexible and adaptable in the face of institutional, technological and professional challenges. Throughout the period, they have acted in a sure-footed and confident manner to ensure that their service remains at the forefront of internal audit in the public sector.
Since May 2019, Pascal Leardini is Deputy Secretary-General and Chief Operating Officer of the European Commission. Prior to this, he held senior management positions as Director in charge of Institutional and Administrative Policies (from 2016 to 2019), and of the Relations with the other Institutions (from 2014 to 2016), both at the Secretariat-General of the European Commission. Between 2004 and 2015, Pascal Leardini held various management positions as Head of unit for the European Constitution, for Strategic Planning and Programming, and for Corporate Management, Budget and Administration, at the Secretariat-General of the European Commission.
Throughout my career in the Commission, I have experienced first-hand how the IAS has evolved into the day-to-day business companion it is today and on which I can rely as Chief Operating Officer.
In parallel, we designed a counterbalance by conceiving a new and independent IAS providing independent internal audit assurance. This system has continued to evolve and improve. An important milestone came in 2010 when the IAS started issuing overall opinions. In addition to a range of independent audit reports, the IAS also reached a comprehensive conclusion, based on the work it had been doing over the preceding years.
Nowadays we take for granted that the IAS can rely on a strategic cycle of representative audits. This was in part made possible by another innovation of the administrative reform: the strategic planning and programming cycle. This framework provides a solid basis for risk management, structured documentation of processes and reporting on internal control. I was closely involved in this work and, after all these years, I still chair the annual peer review meetings during which we compare notes on the different challenges related to assurance building.
This is where the contribution of the IAS is so valuable. The management view is essential, but a second opinion from the auditor is also vitally important. We have a collective interest in detecting problems early so that we can fix them and constantly improve our compliance and performance. Not every system is perfect, so each audit results in a number of recommendations for improvement. This is not a weakness but a strength and a sign of a healthy and mature control environment.
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