New Challenges for Internal Audit: Corporate Social Responsibility Aspects

The purpose of this chapter is to provide a succinct overview of the main coordinates that should define the role of internal auditors in the field of corporate social responsibility. It outlines the main key points concerning the internal audit’s contribution highlighted by academic literature, by reviewing recent literature, discussing the opinions issued by various academics and finally offering some suggestions for improving subsequent research in the area. It proposes a synthesis of the main arguments that justify the need for internal audit to play a significant role in corporate social responsibility, while there are emphasized main actions that should be included within an internal audit program, so that internal audit can provide its contribution to corporate social responsibility. Given the importance of the issue, this chapter provides an overview of academic research that examined the role of internal audit in corporate social responsibility and provide practical suggestions on how internal audit practitioners should develop their audit programs in order to provide as best as possible their significant contribution in terms of corporate social responsibility.