Evaluating the levels of internal audit effectiveness among commercial and manufacturing state corporations in Kenya

No organisation can refute the benefits of an effective internal audit. Organisations worldwide are making efforts to strengthen their internal auditing functions. These efforts aim to fully realise the benefits associated with effective internal audits. One such effort involves developing a scientifically validated measurement index to evaluate internal audit effectiveness. However, previous studies have demonstrated some shortcomings in this area. Previous researchers have executed existing measurement scales inadequately, failed to identify priority measures linked to internal audit stakeholders, and did not validate them. To address these gaps, we constructed an internal audit effectiveness scale. This study used fuzzy-AHP and principal component analysis (PCA) methods. Internal audit effectiveness is used as the primary measurement target. This study evaluates four dimensions: resources, organisational structures, processes, and organisational relationships. These four dimensions were used to build seven components and thirty indicators. The fuzzy-AHP and PCA methods provided important insights. For instance, among the four dimensions, internal audit processes are the least prioritised.