The Effect of Internal Audit on Business Performance in Industrial Enterprises and a Survey Study
Yılmaz Uzun, Sinan AslanFocusing on providing added value to the organization by examining and improving business operations, the primary goal of internal audit is to help achieve business objectives. Business performance is generally expressed as the level of success shown in reaching the goals. . In this direction, the main purpose of the study is to determine the relationship between internal audit and business performance in industrial enterprises. In this context, it was examined whether the senior management’s support, the internal audit’s independence, the internal auditors’ professional competencies and the internal control system have an effect on the financial performance (return on assets, return on equity and net profit margin). In the study, the data obtained through applicaiton of a questionnaire on the manufacturing industrial enterprises in Borsa Istanbul were analyzed with Kruskal-Wallis H Test, a non-parametric method via SPSS (Version 26). As a result of the analysis; it has been determined that the return of asssets had a significant relationship with senior management support, professional competence and internal control system; and a non-significant relationship with the independence of internal audit. It has also been determined that the return on equity had a significant relationship with senior management support, professional competence and internal control system; and a non- significant relationship with the independence of internal audit. Also, a non-significant relationship was detected between net profit margin and senior management support, professional competence, internal control system and the independence of internal audit.
Sanayi İşletmelerinde İç Denetimin İşletme Performansına Olan Etkisi ve Bir Anket Çalışması
Yılmaz Uzun, Sinan Aslanİşletme faaliyetlerini incelemek ve geliştirmek suretiyle kuruma katma değer sağlamaya odaklanan iç denetimin birincil hedefi işletme amaçlarına ulaşılmasına yardımcı olmaktır. İşletme performansı ise genel olarak amaçlara ulaşmada gösterilen başarı düzeyi olarak ifade edilmektedir. Bu doğrultuda, çalışmanın temel amacı sanayi işletmelerinde iç denetim ile işletme performansı arasındaki ilişkiyi tespit etmektir. Bu çerçevede; üst yönetim desteğinin, iç denetimin bağımsızlığının, iç denetçilerin mesleki yeterliliklerinin ve iç kontrol sisteminin finansal performans (aktif karlılığı, öz kaynak karlılığı ve net kar marjı) üzerinde bir etkisinin olup olmadığı incelenmiştir. Çalışmada, Borsa İstanbul’da yer alan imalat sanayi işletmelerine bir anket uygulanarak elde edilen veriler SPSS (Versiyon 26) aracılığı ile parametrik olmayan yöntemlerden Kruskal-Wallis H Testi ile analiz edilmiştir. Analiz sonucunda, aktif karlılığı ile üst yönetim desteği, mesleki yeterlilik ve iç kontrol sistemi arasında anlamlı; iç denetimin bağımsızlığı ile anlamlı olmayan bir ilişki tespit edilmiştir. Öz kaynak karlılığı ile üst yönetim desteği, mesleki yeterlilik ve iç kontrol sistemi arasında anlamlı; iç denetimin bağımsızlığı ile anlamlı olmayan bir ilişki tespit edilmiştir. Net kar marjı oranı ile üst yönetim desteği, mesleki yeterlilik, iç kontrol sistemi ve iç denetimin bağımsızlığı arasında anlamlı olmayan bir ilişki tespit edilmiştir.
The environment in which businesses operate is dynamic and ever-evolving (Bititci, Turner, & Begemann, 2000, s. 695- 696). Businesses that are unable to adapt to change and innovation will inevitably face a variety of risks and threats (Yadav, Sushil, & Sagar, 2014, s. 88). A failure to establish a healthy control mechanism and not being able to provide necessary improvements in business processes in enterprises which alteration is ignored cause facing many problems varying from taking wrong decisions to several economic losses. Internal audit reviews business processes independently and objectively offer solutions to make required updates and improvements (TÜSİAD, 2008, s. 7), provides a positive contribution to the development of performance and achievement of determined business goals (Irwansyah, Malik, Kusumawardani, Kusumah, & Dewa Brata, 2020, s. 463).
In small-scale enterprises, employees, activities, and transactions can be easily monitored and controlled. However, with the growth of enterprises and the increase in transactions, it becomes difficult to control all activities by managers. In order to be managed effectively, it has emerged that the enterprise should establish and operate an effective internal control system. Since the examination and evaluation of the internal control system are among the main duties of an internal audit, an internal audit function is needed in enterprises (TÜSİAD, 2008, s. 6).
According to Abbott, Daugherty, Parker, and Peters (2016), an effective internal audit function increases the effectiveness of corporate governance practices, provides the audit committee and other stakeholders with crucial information about the risks and internal controls of the enterprise, and examines organizational processes to make these procedures more efficient. Financial scandals in large-scale enterprises around the world also reveal the importance of the role of internal audits in preventing fraud and corruption (Krichene & Baklouti, 2021, s. 28).
As can be seen from the IIA’s definition of internal audit in 1999, the ultimate goal of internal auditing is to “help the organization achieve its goals” (The Institute of Internal Auditors, 2021). The internal audit identifies and analyzes the reasons that prevent the enterprise from achieving its goals, in other words, causing the enterprise to exhibit poor performance, offers solutions for the improvement of weak or problematic areas, and ensures that necessary interventions are made in these areas. Thus, it contributes to the improvement of business performance by increasing effectiveness and productivity in business activities (Irwansyah ve ark., 2020, s. 465).
On the other hand, performance measurement is of great importance in terms of efficient and effective management of enterprises (Kennerley & Neely, 2002, s. 1222). To improve it, business performance must be measured (Ahmed, Lim, & Zairi, 1999, s. 305). Therefore, business performance needs to be monitored and assessed regularly to maintain a competitive advantage (Sangwa & Sangwan, 2018, s. 42).
The industrial sector is important because of its contribution to the economy of countries. The manufacturing industry is the most important sub-sector of the industry. It is the sector with the largest share in the world in terms of both production value and employment volume (Koç & Şenel, 2018, s. 2). According to the Gross Domestic Product and total exports of our nation, the percentage of businesses in the manufacturing industry sector is quite high (TC Cumhurbaşkanlığı, 2020, s. 103). For this reason, these enterprises are of great importance in terms of the country’s economy and are expressed as the locomotive of the economy (Mercan & Kızılkaya, 2014, s. 141). Therefore, it is crucial to examine the relationship between internal audits and business performance in manufacturing industry enterprises.
The main purpose of the present study is to determine the relationship between internal audits and business performance in industrial enterprises. In this context, it was examined whether the senior management’s support, the internal audit’s independence, the internal auditors’ professional competencies, and the internal control system affect the financial performance (return on assets, return on equity, and net profit margin). In the study, the data obtained through the application of a questionnaire on the manufacturing industrial enterprises in Borsa Istanbul were analyzed with Kruskal-Wallis H Test, a non-parametric method via SPSS (Version 26). As a result of the analysis; it has been determined that there exists a significant relationship between senior management support, professional competence, or internal control system and the return on assets and the return on equity; and that there exists no significant relationship between the independence of the internal audit and the rates mentioned. Furthermore, it has been found that there is no significant correlation between net profit margin rate and senior management support, internal control framework, or internal audit independence.
