Pre-Conference Master Class – Tuesday, May 16, 2023

}

07:30 - 09:00

Registration

}

09:00 - 16:00

Master Class

Assessing Fraud Evidence – Advanced Skills for Auditors

Click here for presentation

Trainer: Ian Ross

Associate Professor of International Law at Bircham International University

Overview

This enhanced program is designed to support the internal auditor in these challenging business times.  We will focus on investigating and reporting emerging risks of fraud and how auditors need to gain clinical skills in distinguishing evidence of fraud from information.

We advance beyond ‘red flags’ and probe into evidence and the approach of the perpetrator,

This innovative workshop will provide skills and method to bolster the auditor’s skill-set.

Objectives

By the end of the programme, participants will be able to:

  • Demonstrate adaptability of internal auditing practices in terms of fraud
  • Briskly evaluate an audit to ‘flush out’ fraud
  • Understand and reason why the term ‘white-collar crime’ is out of date 
  • Understand the metrics of fraudulent misstatements, and handling a range of evidential fraud types and issues
  • Apply excellent forensic evidential prioritizing skills
  • Keep up with different business models and fraud evidence aligned with it
  • Understand fraud techniques with crypto currency
  • Apply quality case management
  • Reconcile internal controls with investigations and audit policy

    Programme Outline: Sessions

    • FRAUD: key concepts, an essential review,
    • Analysing the investigative challenges in Internal Audit
    • The ‘journey’ from Information to Evidence
    • Essential profiling of the corporate fraudster
    • Audit trail evidence v inference-based evidence
    • The Discovery of fraud. How to react and when
    • Case Studies and Interaction,

      Training Style

      The course takes a thorough and practical delivery approach.  We will use presentations, skills, interactive group activities, multi-directional discussions and case studies which differ in involvement and complexity.

      End of Pre-Conference Workshop

      Day 1 – Wednesday, May 17, 2023

      }

      07:30 - 09:00

      Lobby/Exhibition Area

      Registration & Welcome Breakfast

      Welcome to the 21st ARAC. Kindly register and mark your attendance.

      }

      09:00 - 09:10

      Main Hall

      Welcome Speech

      Abdulqader Obaid Ali, Chairman of the UAE IAA Board

      Abdulqader Obaid Ali, Chairman of the Board of UAE IAA will formally welcome the dignitaries, speakers, delegates and guests to the event.

      }

      09:10 - 09:50

      Main Hall

      “One IIA – Building Trust Together”

      Benito Ybarra, Chair of the Global Board, 2022-2023

      Click here for presentation

      }

      09:50 - 10:30

      Main Hall

      “Sustainability – Role of Auditors”

      Abdulqader Obaid Ali, Chairman, UAE IAA

      Click here for presentation

      }

      10:30 - 11:10

      Lobby/Exhibition Area

      Networking Break

      Concurrent Tracks

      The importance of ESG for businesses and governments across the globe is undoubtedly on the rise. Increased focus driven by regulators and investors is demanding organizations to assess their well-being not only against financial metrics but also to reflect their Environmental, Social and Governance commitments. On top of that, businesses are under pressure to make public their dedication to Sustainability and ESG related strategies while ensuring the metrics they hold themselves against are suitably accurate. However, with little categorical guidance on what could still be considered an immature space of reporting, top business executives are struggling to accept the concept all together. In this session, we will review the basics of ESG Reporting, further highlighting recent regional regulations alongside the associated key challenges facing organisations. More importantly, we will shed light on the role Chief Audit Executives have on this in order to support management with giving advice and driving assurance on ESG matters.

      }

      11:10 - 11:50

      Track Rooms

      Hall 1

      Digital ESG – path to Continuous Assurance

      by Shantosh Sridhar, Beinex

      Click here for presentation

       

      Session details

      • Role of Internal Audit and Risk in ESG Assurance
      • Components of Continuous Assurance
      • Leveraging technology to enable Continuous Assurance
      • How to build an ESG control environment
      • Integrating ESG into your GRC ecosystem

      Hall 2

      Robotics for GRC: Meet your new Tech Risk Manager

      by ANB

      Click here for presentation

      ROBOTICS FOR GRC : Meet your new Tech Risk Manager

      During the last few years, Information technology has converged with engineering innovations to create a whole new digital world. Technologies replaced all but several conventional business models. And risk management and audit was definitely not to be left far behind. GRC technologies have begun to converge with human minds and give birth to Artificial Intelligence models that we would be expected to work with!

      The one basic use case globally is that levels of assurance at the board or with regulators are no longer any less than 100% any more. We cannot survive on sampling methodologies and manual processes that bring with them inherent deficiencies of errors, speed and limited coverage.

      Welcome Robotics for GRC. In it’s very nascent stages itself, it has been innovated to acquire and train itself on such human expertise to create a mirror image of a person to provide assistance and speed in whatever we do in our everyday life. Mirroring our technology testing scenarios is some examples we will see in this session.

      Technology innovations are being built on agile robotics platform to create small working models of each validation function so that we can focus on creation of risk scenarios, root cause validation and gain enormously from the benchmarking and dashboards that these unified platforms can provide

      Hall 3

      How to deliver real value from your investment in Audit Management Software – a practical guide

      by Paul Gascoigne, K10 Vision

      Click here for presentation

      With audit teams all around the world spending what can sometimes only be described as eye watering sums of money on Audit Management Software, Paul Gascoigne explores how audit teams get get true value from their investment and avoid the pitfalls of failed implementations.

      Paul’s talk specifically addresses:

      • Establishing realistic expectations of yourself and your software
      • Leveraging “your” value
      • Avoid being blinded by sales tactics
      • Getting the pace of rollout right for maximum impact
      • How does Pareto apply to your investment
      • Lessons from the coal face
      • ESG – audit management technology’s role, reality or myth?
      }

      11:50 - 12:30

      Track Rooms

      Hall 1

      From Boring to Brilliant – How to Make your Audit Communication Engaging and Impactful

      by Volkan Pekince

      Click here for presentation

      Internal Audit Functions’ success is measured not only with their ability to identify issues, but, even more importantly, with their ability to convince and guide the management for the solutions. This could not be done without effective and impactful communication.

      Hall 2

      دور مجلس الإدارة التوجيهي والاشرافي على نظم الحوكمة وإدارة المخاطر والرقابة الداخلي

      by Alaa Abu Nab’aa

      Click here for presentation

      عنوان الورقة:
      دور مجلس الإدارة التوجيهي والاشرافي على نظم الحوكمة وإدارة المخاطر والرقابة الداخلية
      The Directive and Supervisory Role of the Board on Governance, Risk Management and Internal Control Systems

      المحاور:
      • عالم الفوكا (VUCA Word)
      • توقعات أصحاب المصالح من المجلس (Stakeholders Expectations from the Board)
      • الأدوار الرئيسية للمجلس (Board’s Key Roles)
      • مسؤوليات المجلس تجاه اللجان المنبثقة منه (Board’s responsibilities toward Board’s Committees)
      • مسؤوليات المجلس تجاه الإدارة التنفيذية (Board’s responsibilities toward Executive Management)
      • الجدارات المتوقع وجودها لدى أعضاء المجلس (Board Members Expected Competencies)

      Hall 3

      IT Audit

      by Anique Hakking, Altyrex

      Click here for presentation

      TBA

      }

      12:30 - 13:30

      Prayer & Lunch Break

      Exhibition Area

      }

      13:30 - 14:10

      Main Hall

      How Can Internal Auditors Drive Change Towards Sustainable Supply Chain?

      By

      • Fadi Sidani
      • Asif Shafi

      Click here for presentation

      As businesses strive to become more socially and environmentally responsible, supply chain sustainability has emerged as a critical area of focus. In this session, we will explore the significance of supply chain sustainability, its impact on stakeholders, the strategies, and best practices – from sustainable sourcing to efficient transportation and packaging – our Procurement expert will share practical insights on how to drive sustainable supply chain agenda forward. Further, the session will also explore how Internal auditors can play a crucial role in this process by assessing the current supply chain, identifying risks and opportunities, and developing appropriate audit plans that support management in improving operational efficiency, enhancing brand reputation, and creating long-term value for stakeholders.

      }

      14:10 - 14:50

      Main Hall

      ESG as a key theme for Finance Function and the Rolwe of CAEs

      By

      • Yasir Ahmad
      • Alexander Sokolov

      Key Partner Session – EY Middle East (Dubai)

      Click here for presentation

      Sustainability and ESG considerations have now become mainstream and emerged as one of the important tenets of doing business. Organizations, be it private or Government are increasingly under pressure to commit to and disclose their performance on ESG-related strategies, goals, and metrics that are accurate and relevant. This session aims to connect the audience with real life examples of why sustainability  has become a shared common challenge. It will help demystify the role Finance function and internal audit can play to safeguard’s business position on ESG.

      What we intend to cover?

      1. Sustainability is now everyone’s agenda and a common shared challenge for future
      2. Demystifying ESG  – what is it and how stakeholders are pushing for ESG mandates?
      3. A glimpse of evolving ESG regulations and its impact on corporate accounting frameworks
      4. ESG ratings as new means to assess business performance
      5. The emergence of Greenwashing as a theme
      6. Role of Finance Function and internal audit to safeguard ESG
      7. The data and the governance focus from the Forensic lens
      }

      14:50 - 15:30

      Main Hall

      “Unravelling the ESG Alphabet Soup for Internal Auditors”

      By Jenitha John

      Click here for presentation

      “Unravelling the ESG Alphabet Soup for Internal Auditors” – ESG is a grand imperative for organizations and is receiving significant urgency recently. However, the alphabet soup of acronyms in sustainability initiatives often leads to uncertainty whilst overwhelming auditors who want to grasp the basics causing Internal Auditors to freeze. This session will:

      • Break down the acronyms into their respective functions and main categories
      • Define standards, frameworks, ratings, and indices
      • Cover the latest updates of the sustainability reporting ecosystem including rationalization of entities
      • Deconstruct Internal Audits’ advisory vs assurance approach to ESG
      • Expound on the skills needed in Internal Audit including the collaborative effort and value of the Three Lines Model wrt ESG.
      }

      15:30 - 16:00

      Main Hall

      “Birth of Sharia Audit
      (The story from the first Islamic bank to the first Sharia Professionals Association)”

      By Moosa Khoory

      Audience will be taken through a journey of Islamic finance from the first Islamic bank in the world (Dubai Islamic Bank) up to the current contemporary Islamic banking industry, and the evolvement of the Sharia Audit throughout this journey. Some light will be shed on the future foresights of the Sharia Audit profession as well. 

      End of Day 1

      We hope you had a wonderful first day at the conference and look forward to your presence tomorrow. Thank you and have a great evening.

      Day 2 – Thursday, May 18, 2023

      }

      08:00 - 09:00

      Lobby / Exhibition Area

      Networking & Welcome Breakfast

      }

      09:00 - 09:10

      Main Hall

      Welcome Note; and

      Sponsors & External Quality Assessment Recognition

      }

      09:10 - 10:00

      Main Hall

      “Navigating the Complexity of Corporate Auditing: Perspectives on Audit Committees Challenges, Responsibilities and Best Practices”

      Panel Discussion (Audit Committee Discussion)
      • Dr. Khalid Al Faddagh (Moderator)
      • Raja Al Mazrouei
      • Vijay Malhotra
      • Nashwa Joy Saleh
      • Walid Al Shukri
      }

      10:00 - 10:40

      Main Hall

      Internal Audit Role in ESG Reporting

      By

      • Anjani K. Agrawal
      • Jayanthi R.V.

      Key Partner Session – Protiviti Middle East

      Click here for presentation

        Workshop/session will cover the following topics:

        • What is ESG?
        • ESG Background & Context
        • Global ESG Frameworks & Standards and ESG rating providers.
        • Materiality Assessments
        • ESG reporting
        }

        10:40 - 11:10

        Lobby / Exhibition Area

        Networking Break

        }

        11:10 - 11:50

        Main Hall

        COP28: Stepping up for our planet

        By

        • Siddharth Behal
        • Fadi Al Shihabi

        Key Partner Session – KPMG Lower Gulf

        Click here for presentation

        }

        11:50 - 12:30

        Main Hall

        Bridging the ESG Trust Gap, Internal Audit’s Role on the Path to ESG Assurance

        By

        Azzah Fawzi

        Key Partner Session – PwC Middle East

        Click here for presentation

        }

        12:30 - 13:30

        Lobby / Exhibition Area

        “Prayer & Lunch Break”

        Exhibition Area

        A competency framework is a measurement tool for the skills, knowledge, and attributes of a particular job or position, which helps employees to perform their roles effectively and recognize qualified candidates for job applications. Furthermore, a competency framework helps your employees grow in their jobs and expand their skill sets, by articulating the skills level in each job in the organization, you’ll develop a competency framework that gives you a clear way to measure employees’ performance.

        }

        13:30 - 14:10

        Main Hall

        In conversation with “ESG Assurance – Tomorrow is too late.”

        By

        • Shargiil Bashir
        • Adil Buhariwalla

        Click here for presentation

        The world-over and more so in UAE, there is intense focus on sustainability. ESG is to do with sustainability. ESG is important as it contributes to a company’s financial performance, reputation, compliance, employee and stakeholder engagement.

        As Internal Auditors, we constantly strive to upskill ourselves to provide assurance to organizations on their current and emerging risks. There are significant risks associated with the subject of ESG. If we do not understand ESG, how will we provide this assurance.

        This session will provide an opportunity to IAs to get insight into these risks.

        • What is ESG and what does it involve?
        • Why is ESG Important?
        • How can companies achieve Net Zero?
        • What is the role of regulations?
        • How to embed risk management and controls within ESG?
        • What is the role and responsibility of audit in the ESG space?
        • The general understanding is that ESG is applicable only to some industries and businesses. Is that so?
        • Are there special qualifications required to provide ESG related assurance?
        • Is this a passing fad or it is something that will only gain more momentum over the years?
        }

        14:10 - 14:50

        Main Hall

        Communication Strategies to Empower Your Team

        Tracie Marquardt

        Click here for presentation

        To be successful in today‘s dynamic, fast-paced business environment, your team must be communication savvy. That means knowing how to communicate, with whom, how often, and importantly, why. In fact, the quality of your team’s communication has a direct impact on the outcome of your audit and the added value you bring to your stakeholders.

        How well does your team understand the communication needs of your stakeholders? What can your team implement TODAY, to improve audit communication and results? It is time to unlock your team’s potential.

        Participants will be able to:

        • Understand factors impacting successful audit communication
        • Learn how to perform a deep analysis of their stakeholders
        • Incorporate cutting edge communication strategies and insights
        • Create a stakeholder playbook
        }

        14:50 - 15:30

        Main Hall

        Unstoppable

        Dave Crane

        Click here for presentation

        How to be Unstoppable

        • How to reframe any tragedy and win.
        • Getting over “imposter syndrome”
        • Real-life celebrity stories.
        • Incredible strategies and business tips.
        • Personal brand-building insights.
        • Wellness and happiness tools.
        • Powerful mindset results & tricks.
        • Key monetizable facts and statistics.
        • Motivation and tribe-building routines
        }

        15:30

        Main Hall

        Vote of Thanks

        End of Conference

        We hope that you had a very productive conference and enjoyed the sessions presented. We look forward to hearing from you and request you to please submit your feedback via the survey forms which are available on the UAE IAA Events app. Thank you once again for your presence.