Leadership · Insight · Knowledge

Welcome to the Institute of Internal Auditors New Zealand, the professional body for internal auditing

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What is internal audit?

Internal audit is a dynamic profession that provides independent assurance that an organisation's risk management, governance and internal control processes are operating effectively Essentially, Internal Auditors help organisations to succeed.

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Membership benefits

Join our professional community and access a range of local and international benefits to expand your thinking, knowledge and networks.

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Events & training

Connect with other internal audit, risk and assurance professionals and grow your knowledge and skills with a range of online and local events.

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Subscribe to monthly IIA NZ Newsletters here

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Structure & Committees

 

Structure & Committees

Our People

A membership organisation, IIA NZ has over 700 members throughout New Zealand.

National Board of Directors

We elect up to seven members to act as directors of a National Board. Directors are elected for a two year term, with one half of the positions on the Board being up for election each year, and the Board has the ability to co-opt three additional members. The Chair is appointed by the Board annually.


Will Dougherty

IIA NZ Board Member and IIA NZ Advocacy Committee Chair

Will is a senior Director who plays a pivotal role in driving the Internal Audit practice for PwC New Zealand. With over 17 years of extensive Internal Audit experience in both New Zealand and the United Kingdom, he has successfully delivered complex assurance programmes for a diverse range of public sector and commercial organisations.

Will is passionate about our profession’s need to step up to provide valuable insights, challenge the status quo, and offer pragmatic solutions. He firmly believes that an internal audit mindset brings immense value to any organisation and is dedicated to helping internal audit functions elevate their role to that of ‘trusted advisors’. His wide network with IA and risk leaders, executives, and audit committee members across various organisations and sectors, and his hands-on roles with iconic kiwi organisations, enables him to provide insights on how the profession can continue to grow and excel.

Will has been a member of IIA NZ since returning to New Zealand in 2017. Will lives in the Wellington area and, when not Internal Auditing, his life revolves around his two young sons, family activities, and finding excuses to avoid gardening.


Shaun DowersCIA

IIA NZ Board Chair

My name is Shaun Dowers. I’ve been serving on the board for over eight years initially through co-option and then serving an elected 2+2 year term. Subsequently, I have served as a Board-Treasurer appointed annually as a co-opted Board member.

I am a Chartered Accountant, Certified Internal Auditor, and have almost 20 years’ experience in external and Internal Auditing. I’ve been leading an Internal Audit team/ function now for over 9 years. I also volunteer on a local sports club committee, and a national sports Board.

I am very passionate about our Internal Audit profession, and I’ve been honoured and happy to serve our membership through ongoing Board terms. Our membership has grown steadily throughout my time on the Board, and I’m grateful for our membership loyalty.

As a Board member, I’ll continue to challenge and reflect on membership value and advocating our awesome profession. I bring knowledge, history and some continuity to help inform and guide our new office team and governance Board.


Stewart Glynn

IIA NZ Board Member

Stewart is an accomplished internal audit and risk management professional, with substantial experience in delivering strategic risk, assurance, and advisory services within large and complex organisations.

He is a Chartered Internal Auditor (CMIIA) and has held senior leadership positions in internal audit and risk management at prominent New Zealand government organisations for the past decade.

Stewart is proficient in building and developing high-performing risk and assurance teams, collaborating effectively with senior leadership teams to identify and manage key risks, and delivering assurance services that support organisational objectives and add value to stakeholders.

Outside of work he is a keen footballer and mountain biker. He volunteers as a committee member and treasurer for the Mākara Peak Supporters, the group that leads the development and maintenance of the Mākara Peak mountain bike park.

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Emma Hine

IIA NZ Board Member and IIA NZ Advocacy Committee Member

Emma originates from Northern England. Between holding Quality Assurance roles in food manufacturing and Internal Audit roles within the National Health Service in the UK, and experience in several public sector organisations leading Internal Assurance and Audit functions since emigrating to New Zealand, Emma has over 20 years of assurance experience. She would unashamedly describe herself as a career internal auditor. She also has an academic background in Accountancy, Finance and Commerce.

Emma is sharply focused on the effectiveness of control environments that drive performance for the attainment of organisational objectives. She has a no-nonsense approach to triangulating information and pragmatically applying it to enable achievement of strategic intent.

Emma is currently Head of Assurance (Chief Audit Executive) at Oranga Tamariki, where she is a third-tier leader responsible for the organisation’s internal audit service and workplace integrity/fraud investigatory function.

Emma is passionate about internal audit and assurance and dispelling the mystique around it. She is an authentic leader dedicated to working in the public service and serving for the ‘greater good’. She is also a strong advocate for grass roots of the profession; nurturing, mentoring, and developing talent.

Udayanthi Senanayake

IIA NZ Board Member and IIA NZ Membership Committee Chair

Udayanthi has over 16 years of experience in external and internal auditing across diverse global landscapes, including Asia, Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, and New Zealand. As a Certified Business Accountant, she specialises in Internal Audit, business process improvement, SOX compliance, and data governance, with a strong background in leadership and stakeholder engagement.

Udayanthi has played a pivotal role in enhancing the maturity of Internal Audit functions within various organizations in New Zealand. Currently, she serves as the Group Assurance Manager at Beca, where she is working on establishing a Group Internal Audit Team, demonstrating her commitment to advancing Internal Audit practices. She is dedicated to promoting the Internal Auditing profession in New Zealand, fostering training and education, advocating for professional standards and ethics, and encouraging communication and collaboration within the Internal Audit community.

Udayanthi lives in Auckland and, when not focused on auditing, she enjoys baking with her two little ones and coaching chess. These activities bring balance to her life and reflect her commitment to mentorship and creativity.


Marla Snyman

IIA NZ Board Member

I am currently an Internal Audit Manager in the Group Internal Audit team at IAG in Auckland, New Zealand. My professional journey began in 2002 at PwC, where I completed five years of external audit articles before transitioning into Internal Audit at Grant Thornton. In 2019, my husband, our three daughters, and I relocated from South Africa to New Zealand, where I joined EY Auckland as an Internal Audit Manager.

In 2021, I had the opportunity to join PwC’s Internal Audit team. The following year, I moved to IAG’s Group Internal Audit team to gain exposure to the insurance industry and apply my extensive Internal Audit experience from my tenure at Big 4 firms. Over the past 20 years, I have built a strong background in both Internal and External Audit, working across the public and private sectors. I am a member of The Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA) and approach every task with professionalism, innovation, and collaboration. I am dedicated, hardworking, and adaptable—comfortable leading but equally effective in a supporting role. My strong interpersonal skills make me a valuable team player.

I am deeply passionate about the Internal Audit profession and believe I have valuable industry knowledge to share with my peers.

Rodney Young

IIA NZ Board Member and IIA NZ Education Committee Member

Rodney is a Certified Internal Auditor and has been a member of the Institute of Internal Auditors since 2015. He brings with him more than 20 years’ experience in senior leadership roles in the New Zealand private and public sectors leading internal audit, risk, quality assurance and policy functions. Much of this experience has been situated in the tertiary education sector ranging from private industry training providers to large public vocational education organisations.

With a passion for learning, Rodney spent several years operating his own workplace education consultancy business and has invested much time and energy over the years completing a significant number of learning journeys, including a bachelor’s degree in marketing and international management, and masters’ degrees in both adult education and leadership communication.

With a focus on continuous development and challenging the norms around internal audit, Rodney advocates a pragmatic approach to internal audit practices that add measurable and meaningful value to organisations. The Institute of Internal Auditors would benefit greatly through Rodney’s significant experience in professional education leadership and internal audit in various organisation contexts to encourage fresh and innovative initiatives that make it easy for members to engage in relevant activities that encourage growth and development for them, their teams, their organisations, and their communities. Rodney is currently the GM of Risk and Assurance for the international technology company, Gallagher Group and would be honoured to use his unique skills, knowledge, and experience to contribute to the Board and the future of the profession.

Volunteers

Institute members who provide essential leadership and direction for IIA NZ in a voluntary capacity are critical to the successful implementation of our programmes and services.

These volunteers assist IIA NZ by offering advice, guidance and support, both individually and through their roles on the National Board, Committees, Special Interest Groups and Regional Committees.

Our partner organisations

IIA NZ collaborates with Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA), RiskNZ, and the Institute of Directors (IoD) to share information on best practice and run some of our events.

We are grateful for the support given to the Institute by those organisations that very generously allow us to use their venues for our events.

Our regions

We encourage everyone in the internal audit and risk management professions - members and non-members - to attend events run by IIA NZ regions.

Each region develops education and networking event programmes to meet ongoing professional development requirements, and provide members with the opportunity to network with a wider group of people.

Some networking events are free while others, particularly lunchtime meetings, may have a small charge.

Education Days are held each year.

You can find more information about specific events on our Events Calendar.

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