In technology issues, according to Christensen, "Not only must internal auditors enhance their knowledge and understanding of new technologies and how they support the business, but they also must leverage these technologies to perform their jobs more effectively. Technological advancements in virtually every organization are creating new challenges and opportunities for internal audit professionals."

The survey, conducted through the fall of 2011, also showed:

A need for improving "technology-enabled audit," since one in three organizations "does not utilize software applications to administrate its audit processes." And indeed, among those that do, 27% use basic spreadsheets or word processing mainly. "Of those that do not, just one in four plan to implement such a tool within the next 12 months."

Respondents rank "IT asset management" as a top area for improvement. "There's significant cost associated with IT assets," Christensen notes. "Even a relatively small percentage of 'loss' in terms of hardware or data could result in significant financial losses and, in the event of a security or data breach, potentially devastating effects in terms of regulatory noncompliance and reputation loss."