BARRA
BARRA
A COMPLETE GUIDE TO HIRING AN INTERNAL AUDITOR
How to Hire an Internal Auditor
Get matched with experienced internal auditors for permanent, interim, project-based, or fractional roles, and strengthen your internal audit function without the cost or delay of traditional recruitment.
What does an Internal Auditor do?
An Internal Auditor provides independent, objective assurance and advice to help an organisation improve the way it manages risk, governance, and internal controls. Whether you’re hiring your first Internal Auditor or adding talent to an existing internal audit function, here’s what the role typically covers:
Risk-Based Audit Planning
Develop audit plans focused on the areas of greatest business, operational, financial, compliance, or technology risk. Priorities are shaped by organisational objectives, key risk areas, previous audit findings, and meaningful input from senior stakeholders.
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Policy & Regulatory Compliance
Evaluate whether teams operate within policies, authorities, and regulatory expectations, and whether governance, risk management, and controls effectively support compliance obligations and accountability.
Audit Fieldwork
Review business processes to assess whether key controls are designed, documented, and operating effectively. Typical work involves walkthroughs, interviews, document reviews, sample testing, data analysis, and evidence gathering across core business areas.
Audit Reporting
Translate complex findings into clear, actionable audit reports for the board, audit committee, and senior management. Connect each finding to the underlying risk, objective, root cause, impact, and practical management actions required.
Advisory & Fraud Investigation
Support fraud investigations or advisory reviews where independent input is needed. This may include reviewing evidence, identifying process vulnerabilities, and advising management on practical improvements to reduce the risk of fraud, misconduct, or repeated issues.
Issue Management
Track management actions to confirm whether audit findings have been addressed properly and on time. This involves reviewing evidence, challenging incomplete remediation, escalating overdue actions, and reporting progress to senior stakeholders.
When to hire an Internal Auditor?
Hire an Internal Auditor when your organisation needs stronger independent assurance over risk, controls, governance, or remediation progress. This is usually triggered by growth, complexity, regulatory scrutiny, investor expectations, or pressure from the board or audit committee. Here are the key signs and triggers that you may need an auditor:
Your audit committee is asking harder questions
Board or audit committee members are asking for deeper assurance, clearer reporting, or evidence that key controls are actually working, and your current team can't keep up.
Recent regulatory scrutiny or external audit findings
Regulatory feedback, external auditor findings, material weaknesses, or recurring process issues have surfaced gaps that need independent investigation and remediation.​​​
You have an audit plan but not enough people to deliver it
Your audit plan is approved, but the team is stretched, under-resourced, or lacks specialist expertise in areas such as AI, cyber, data privacy, third-party risk, ESG, or financial controls.
You're preparing for IPO, M&A, or SOX/J-SOX readiness
Investors, acquirers, lenders, listing requirements or SOX/J-SOX obligations are increasing scrutiny over your governance, regulatory compliance, risk management, and financial controls.
Growth and AI adoption have outpaced your controls
Headcount, revenue, geographic footprint, or AI adoption has scaled faster than your governance and control environment, leaving blind spots across finance, operations, and technology.​
Sensitive issues need independent review
Suspected control breaches, conflicts of interest, fraud or unusual transactions may require objective review, often alongside Legal, Compliance, HR, or specialist forensic teams.
Ways to Hire an Internal Auditor
Permanent Internal Auditor
A permanent Internal Auditor is a full-time employee who becomes part of your internal audit function or wider governance, risk, and controls team. This is usually the right option when the organisation has an ongoing audit plan, regular reporting requirements, and enough audit activity to justify a dedicated role.
DURATION
Ongoing
COMMITMENT
Full-time
BEST FOR
Ongoing audit needs
Get the Top 1% Internal Auditor Candidates
Tell us what you need. We'll conduct an extensive search of the market looking for the perfect-fit talent, assess them and deliver the top fit candidates. All within 14 days.
Let us find the best Internal Auditor for your company
From clarifying your brief to delivering a vetted shortlist, we help you hire Internal Auditors with the technical depth, sector experience, and availability your organisation actually needs. Whether you're looking for your first Internal Auditor or a strong addition to your existing internal audit team, here's what you can expect:
Access to Specialist Expertise
Deep focus on internal audit, risk, governance, and AI assurance. Whether you need permanent, interim, or project-based support, we'll find the person you need.
Rapid, Pre-Vetted Shortlists
A curated shortlist of 3–5 pre-vetted auditors within 72 hours. Every candidate is personally assessed for technical depth, sector fit, and culture. No mass CVs.
Tailored to Your Hiring Needs
We support every engagement model: permanent hires, interim cover, defined-scope projects, and fractional experts. The model fits your needs, not ours.
Transparent, Fair Pricing
A flat one-time fee for your hire. Unlike most recruitment companies, we don't tie our placements to ongoing commissions or salary-linked markups.
Find an Internal Auditor in 4 simple steps
01
TODAY
Tell us what you need
We start with a focused briefing call to understand your organisation, risk profile, audit priorities, and the type of support you need. We also clarify the level of experience, sector knowledge, technical capability, and working style required, so the search is built around your actual brief from day one.
02
48-72 HOURS
We find and assess suitable internal auditors
Once your brief is confirmed, we search our specialist internal audit network and identify auditors with the right mix of technical expertise, sector experience, and delivery track record. Each candidate is assessed against your unique requirements and company fit.
03
72 HOURS
You receive your top 3–5 matches
Within 72 hours of confirming the brief and agreement, we send you a curated shortlist of the strongest internal audit candidates for your role or project. You receive clear candidate profiles with relevant experience, core strengths, availability, preferred engagement model, and our notes on why they match your brief.
04
DURATION
You hire directly on your own terms
Once you choose who you want to speak with, you engage directly with the candidate on the terms that work for both sides. We support the process through introductions, interview coordination, and offer alignment, but there are no ongoing middleman fees or long-term commissions once the hire is made.
How We Work
We're not a traditional recruitment agency. We're a specialist consultancy that connects you with pre-vetted professionals through a transparent, efficient process.
Specialist Focus
We only recruit for internal audit, risk, controls, governance, and AI assurance, giving you deeper networks, better candidates, and faster placements.
Quality Over Volume
We never send mass CVs. Every candidate we present has been personally assessed for technical skills, sector fit, and cultural alignment.
Transparent Pricing
One flat fee, no ongoing commissions, or inflated percentage of salary. 100% of your hire's compensation goes directly to the candidate of choice.
How much does it cost to hire an Internal Auditor?
Unlike agencies that take a percentage or marketplaces that take an ongoing cut, we only charge a one-time placement fee, so every pound goes directly to your internal auditor.
Direct relationship with hire
Hand-picked, vetted candidates
100% of wages go to your hire
No ongoing commision, ever
One-time fee, then nothing
£2,500 - £8,000
One-time placement fee
Barra Recruitment Service
90-day replacement guarantee
Recruitment Agency
% of salary, up front
£5,000 - £30,000+
Based on the negotiated salary
✗ High upfront cost
✗ Fee tied to salary inflation
✗ Volume-driven, not quality-driven
✗ No replacement guarantee
Talent Marketplaces
platform fee + ongoing margin
£10,000 - £50,000+
Per year, depending on project volume
✗ Ongoing platform costs
✗ Less flexibility over terms
✗ Weak fit for regulated environments
✗ Not built for niche audit hiring
Frequently Asked Questions
Everything you need to know about hiring an Internal Auditor with our support.
Ready to hire an Internal Auditor?
Book a call with our team. After your brief is confirmed and everything is agreed, we'll kick off our search and deliver candidates within 14 days.
Contact Us
For Companies
Book a call with us to get started.
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Have a question before booking the call? Email us at hi@withbarra.com.
For Talent
Join our curated talent network. Takes 3 minutes of your time.
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Have a question? Email us here.
For Partnerships
Advertise your business or open roles to risk, audit & compliance professionals.
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Get more details via email.
BARRA is a specialist consultancy for companies hiring internal audit, risk, controls, governance, and AI assurance talent. For companies, we help you hire vetted professionals across permanent, interim, project-based, and fractional roles. For candidates, we connect you with relevant opportunities.
10,000+ risk, audit, and controls professionals
Founded by Goran F. (Director of AI Governance, CIA) and Ana Fustin (Head of Recruitment)
123-456-7890
45-55 Commercial Street, E1 6BD London, UK
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Internal Controls on Demand
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