It is hard to believe that another year is coming to a close and we are preparing to ring in 2012! 

I always find this time of year to be a great period for reflection. I hope you will indulge me as I contemplate what 2011 has meant for The IIA. In many ways, 2011 was a year of new initiatives and new heights for The Institute, globally. We entered the year with a myriad of new ideas, but with resource limitations that threatened to constrain our abilities. Thanks to the extraordinary hard work of many, and a series of fortunate events, we are now looking at a year in which we will have posted record financial performance and record membership results worldwide. We now look back on numerous achievements brought from concept to reality, and I consider five events that defined 2011 as a banner year.

1.  CRMA

In 2011, The IIA began offering its first new certification program in more than 10 years. Events over the past decade such as financial scandals, new legislation, technological advancement, corporate global expansion, and economic fluctuations have prompted more involvement from internal auditing in risk management. The IIA’s new Certification in Risk Management Assurance (CRMA) enables audit practitioners to demonstrate their ability to provide advice and assurance to audit committees and executive management on whether key risk management and governance processes in their organizations are in place and effective. Since the launch of the CRMA in late August, more than 500 professionals from 36 countries have been conferred the designation. At least 1,000 additional people having already initiated the process of becoming certified.

2.  Global Website

We launched a new global IIA website — www.globaliia.org — which will serve as a gathering place for the acquisition and exchange of information for internal auditors from around the world. The new site showcases The IIA’s global products, including the International Professional Practices Framework in a variety of languages; features a global event calendar; and acts as a portal to institute websites worldwide where additional products, services, and benefits are available. It’s an opportunity to further serve the needs of our international community, and it’s truly a reflection of The IIA’s total footprint.

3.  International Conference in Malaysia

Along with our partner, IIA–Malaysia, we welcomed more than 2,200 attendees from 93 countries to the 2011 International Conference – the largest attendance ever outside of North America. This was also the first time The IIA’s International Conference was held in Asia, an indicator of how global our organization has become. The conference theme, “Standing Tall,” was inspired in part by the city’s world-famous Petronas Twin Towers, the tallest twin towers on the planet. Several Malaysian dignitaries helped open the conference, and more than 30 journalists from television, newspapers, and magazines generated unprecedented publicity on the event. It requires literally thousands of hours of preparation to design, develop, and bring to fruition an event of this magnitude, and I am so proud and thankful for the many volunteers and staff from Malaysia, IIA headquarters, and other parts of the world who worked so hard to make it such a success.​

4.  Audit Channel

In keeping with our motto of “Progress Through Sharing,” we launched a new video-sharing website — www.auditchannel.tv. The Audit Channel enables internal audit professionals to view, post, and comment on short videos that address the topics of greatest interest to the profession. Currently, the site features videos in English, Spanish, French, Japanese, and Chinese. In only eight short weeks, it has defied our most optimistic projections. With 460 members already registered and approximately 100 different videos available for viewing, some content has been viewed more than 2,400 times. As host of the platform, The IIA is posting content on its key activities and latest news about the profession. And we envision the Audit Channel to be community-driven, with users providing the majority of the content and guiding its evolution.

5.  70^th Anniversary

This month marked the end of a year-long celebration of The IIA’s 70^th anniversary. Since January, we have enjoyed reflecting on seven decades of achievement with a campaign that commemorated The IIA’s long history and generated greater awareness of the role The Institute has played in the growth of the profession. The numerous activities throughout the year invited our worldwide membership to join in and be a part of the celebration. This included a special anniversary website, a social media photo campaign, articles in various IIA publications about our organization’s history, a video montage, the dedication of special displays at IIA headquarters honoring our past presidents and chairmen, and gala celebrations at both the International Conference and Mid-year Meetings. We received an unprecedented number of positive comments about these events, and I was particularly proud to host such a memorable and monumental occasion.

As you can tell from the foregoing, I am very enthused about where we have been. I am equally enthused about where we are going, as well as about the caliber of professionals who comprise our organization around the world. As exciting as the progress has been in 2011, I believe we have only begun to realize our potential as a global professional body. Working in partnership with our members, chapters, and institutes, I am confident that 2012 will bring even more noteworthy accomplishments. Working together, there is no limit to our potential!​