Chief Internal Audit Officer

About the Role

Soar is seeking a Chief Internal Audit Officer to lead its independent internal audit function in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. This full-time role provides objective, risk-based assurance to the Board and Audit Committee on the effectiveness of governance, risk management, and internal controls. The Chief Internal Audit Officer evaluates key business processes, financial reporting, regulatory compliance, technology, and operational activities to ensure alignment with company objectives and applicable requirements.

The role requires maintaining independence from audited activities and operating in accordance with Soar’s approved Internal Audit Charter, relevant regulatory requirements, and professional standards, including the Global Internal Audit Standards issued by The Institute of Internal Auditors (IIA).

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain a risk-based internal audit strategy, annual audit plan, and multi-year audit universe aligned with Soar’s risk profile and business objectives.
• Establish and maintain the Internal Audit Charter, audit methodology, policies, procedures, and quality assurance processes.
• Conduct risk assessments across business units, products, processes, legal entities, and outsourced activities to determine audit priorities.
• Lead and oversee audits of financial, operational, credit, treasury, customer operations, technology, cybersecurity, compliance, and third-party risk management activities.
• Assess the adequacy of controls supporting compliance with Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) requirements, relevant regulations, and internal policies.
• Review financial reporting processes, accounting controls, payment flows, reconciliations, expense management, and safeguarding of company assets.
• Assess IT general controls, access management, change management, system development, cloud environments, data protection, and technology operations.
• Communicate audit findings clearly, including root causes, risk implications, and practical recommendations, and agree on action plans with management.
• Evaluate the adequacy of controls designed to prevent and detect fraud, misconduct, conflicts of interest, and unauthorized transactions.
• Present the risk-based audit plan, material findings, resource needs, and performance updates to the Audit Committee.
• Recruit, lead, coach, and develop a capable internal audit team.

Reporting and Independence

The Chief Internal Audit Officer functionally reports to the Board Audit Committee or another designated independent governance body, consistent with Soar’s approved governance structure. Administrative reporting is to the CEO or another designated executive, where appropriate and consistent with applicable regulatory requirements.

The role requires unrestricted access to relevant records, systems, personnel, and governance bodies, subject to applicable law and confidentiality requirements. Internal Audit must not own or operate the controls, processes, or activities it audits, and must remain independent of day-to-day management decisions.

Qualifications and Experience

• A minimum of 10 years of relevant experience in internal audit or a related field.
• Demonstrated ability to develop and maintain a risk-based internal audit strategy and annual audit plan.
• Strong understanding of governance, risk management, and internal control frameworks.
• Experience with regulatory compliance, particularly with Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) requirements.
• Proficiency in leading audits of financial, operational, technology, and cybersecurity activities.
• Ability to communicate complex audit findings clearly and objectively.
• Experience in leading and developing an internal audit team.

Key Performance Indicators

• Completion of the approved risk-based audit plan.
• Timeliness and quality of audit reports and communication of significant findings.
• Percentage of high-risk findings remediated by agreed target dates.
• Coverage of key regulatory, financial, operational, technology, and third-party risks.
• Quality assessment results and conformance with applicable internal audit standards.
• Stakeholder feedback on audit clarity, professionalism, and usefulness.

Work Environment

This is a full-time position based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The role involves building constructive working relationships with the CEO, executive management, Risk, Compliance, Finance, IT, Cybersecurity, and external auditors while preserving audit independence.