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The internal audit of research and development
Author(s) -
Chambers A. D.
Publication year - 1978
Publication title -
randd management
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.253
H-Index - 102
eISSN - 1467-9310
pISSN - 0033-6807
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-9310.1978.tb01284.x
Subject(s) - respondent , internal audit , scope (computer science) , audit , business , accounting , work (physics) , control (management) , financial audit , management , engineering , economics , political science , computer science , mechanical engineering , law , programming language
Most activities might benefit from an independent review; but very little attention has been given to the review of research and development (R & D). The evolving scope of internal audit together with trends in R & D provide a more favourable climate for the internal audit of this industry of discovery (Walley, 1974, p. 191). This paper presents the results of a survey which was questionnaire based and completed by internal auditors, most of whom worked for industrial multinationals which are household names. They represented companies employing 0–61 m staff with a turnover of |SL12b p.a.; 75|X% of the respondent organizations were industrial concerns employing 0.56m with a turnover of |SL10.7b p.a., most of the remaining respondents being financial organizations. Forty‐two per cent were under overseas control. By focusing on the practice and intentions of leading organizations with a record of progressive management, the results of the survey point a way which is likely to be followed more generally. As the internal audit departments were also large (29 auditors in each; 35 for the industrial departments) they were better placed to extend the scope of their work.