ABSTRACT
A charter is a document that outlines the goals, expectations, resources, and mandate of an organization or endeavor. Internal audit departments and internal audit committees of the board of directors/trustees/regents should have a charter in place that is reviewed and re-certified annually. The charter is an essential document to establish the mandate internal audit has within the organization, and the protections afforded this function to perform its duties undeterred. The charter documents the relationships between the project and the organizational strategy. The Project Management Institute (PMI) and best practices recommend that projects, especially medium and large ones, have a project charter developed, ratified by senior management, and implemented before the project begins. A charter provides the authorization, and outlines the goals, expectations, resources and mandate of an organization or endeavor. Audit charters should outline the different activities that internal auditors perform, or could perform, making it clear that modern internal auditing goes beyond compliance and financial reviews.
