Chartered IIA Audit & Risk Awards 2026 – the shortlist
Congratulations to all those shortlisted for the Chartered IIA’s Audit & Risk Awards 2026. At a time when geopolitical risks are escalating, and climate change, AI, cybercrime, and other risks are posing ever greater challenges at an increasing pace, it is reassuring for us all to know that excellent work is being done by so many internal audit teams.
They may often work behind the scenes, but internal audit teams need to be recognised and rewarded for what they achieve. Not only does this benefit the teams themselves, but celebrating their success also boosts the reputation and profile of the wider profession.
For this reason, we should all be sharing the stories and lessons learned from the Chartered IIA Awards. Everyone benefits from companies that are well governed, ethical, and honest. Internal audit therefore, matters just as much to those outside the profession as within it, and they need to hear this.
The Chartered IIA Awards are the only awards exclusively for those within or closely allied to the internal audit profession. And they are the only awards judged by experienced internal audit leaders, many of whom are senior members of the Chartered IIA.
The winners will be announced at our annual event on 11 June – so book your table now. Winning is the cherry on the cake, but in some ways, the shortlist is even more powerful, since it highlights the range of organisations in which internal audit is doing exemplary work.
Few teams can win, but being shortlisted is a significant achievement and should also be celebrated – which is why shortlisted teams and individuals are given and encouraged to display their shortlist banner.
Communicating success is vital because it engenders trust and opens conversations. Each time someone explains what internal does and what excellence looks like, they open a gateway to improving understanding and building new relationships. The people who look through this gateway now are future recruits, collaborators, and allies.
At some point, they will probably be auditees, and building trust and expectations now is likely to make audit work easier and more productive later.
So don’t be shy. Those who are shortlisted should be proud of themselves and their colleagues and should declare their success to managers, audit committees, boards, and auditees. Everyone else should celebrate their success, learn from their stories, and plan their own awards entry for next year.
The shortlist
- Inspirational Leader sponsored by Protiviti
Karen Connell CMIIA, Chief Internal Auditor, Paysafe
Debra Webb IACert CMIIA, Head of Internal Audit, Wales & West Utilities
- Internal Audit Rising Star
Caelan Ashley Phillips, Analyst, Citibank N.A UK
Joseph Fennocchi IACert IAP, Audit Apprentice, Lloyds Banking Group Nida Gelal-Mujdaba, Senior Internal Auditor, Baillie Gifford Sean Cameron, Assistant Vice President, Citibank N.A UK
- Innovation in Internal Audit sponsored by BDO
BIA Analytics (GenAI Solutions) team
Citi Digital Solution and Innovation Team
Lloyds Banking Group Audit AIDE (AI, Data & Engineering) Team
Medway & Gravesham Shared Service Internal Audit Team
Scott Wykeham-Martin, Audit Manager – Data Insights, Nationwide Building Society
NatWest Group Internal Audit
Royal London – Internal Audit "Incubator" Team
Skyscanner Internal Audit Team
- Professional Impact sponsored by Audit & Risk Recruitment
AstraZeneca Group Internal Audit
HMRC Internal Audit team
Intisaa Associates
Laura Smith, Audit Senior Manager, Nationwide Building Society
- Diversity, Equality and Inclusion Champion (DEI Champion)
Leanne Mascarenhas, Head of Cybersecurity and AI Audit, Barclays Paul Pennant, Audit Director, Consumer, Lloyds Banking Group NatWest Group Internal Audit
- Outstanding Team Financial Services Sector
Admiral Group Internal Controls Team
Allianz UK Internal Audit
Baillie Gifford Internal Audit Team
Capital One (UK) - Internal Audit
Lloyds Banking Group Consumer Audit Team
Pay.UK Internal Audit Team
Yorkshire Building Society Internal Audit
- Outstanding Team Private Sector
Sage Assurance – The Sage Group plc
Shell Internal Audit and Investigations
Wales & West Utilities – Internal Audit
- Outstanding Team Public Sector
HMRC Internal Audit team
Welsh Government Internal Audit Service
- Outstanding Small Internal Audit Team
Dammam Airports Internal Audit Division, Saudi Arabia
Jupiter Internal Audit team
NCC Group Internal Audit Team
Skyscanner Internal Audit Team
Tide Internal Audit
The shortlist judges
The judges were instructed to shortlist according to strict criteria. Submissions were judged purely on what was included on nomination forms. Applicants were permitted to submit supporting documents, but these were not scored by the judges and were used to provide evidence of statements in the nomination.
Endorsements were essential. Each category had individual requirements and failure to provide the requested endorsements resulted in automatic disqualification.
Each section of the nomination form was scored against the criteria. Scoring for each nomination ranged from 0 (disqualification) to 5 (Outstanding). Shortlisted nominations had to gain a total score of at least 12 or an average of at least 3 in each section.
The shortlisting judges were:
- Jennifer Anderson, Deputy Director of Internal Audit and Assurance, BBC
- Jasvinder Deo, Head of Internal Audit and Risk, Marks & Spencer
- Vincent Francois, Group Chief Audit Officer (SMF5), Bank of London
- Ben Kaye, Council Member, Chartered IIA
- Mary Ann Khalil, Founder & Managing Director, Knowbility Consultancy
- Mark Penlington, Director of Risk and Resilience and Internal Audit, Irwin Mitchell
- Ashwathama Rajendran, Strategic Internal Audit and Data analytics leader
- Anna Simmonds, Non-Executive Director, Chair of Remuneration Committee and Audit Committee Member
- Jennifer Warrillow, Head of Internal Audit, Dartford Borough Council
- Dan Wilde, Head of Internal Audit, Somerset Bridge Group
Biographies of the judges, plus a complete list of the judges who will be awarding the final winners are available on our website.