Not just for pleasure seekers! But also, for satisfaction. Satisfaction precedes pleasure. Just as peace precedes euphoria. And just as sustainability precedes growth. One can’t have the latter before former. It just doesn’t work that way because it’s not built to be that way. One can’t experience pleasure if one isn’t satisfied. Joy can’t be experienced in a state of upheaval and distress. And if sustainability isn’t the aim, growth is impossible.
But be it the former or the latter, stimulus is must. Because stimulus is motivation. And when provided by internal audit, motivation could be provocative. And for the G-Spot stimulation, provocative is indeed what’s needed for satisfaction and for an enriching experience and of course for longevity (craving for more!).
Well, before you decide to give into your hunch of opening up an adult post and before I spice things further up! let’s add context. I’ve already written a lot about the internal auditing being a quintessential disruption no business entity can and should do without. The stimulation that internal auditing provides helps entities aim for sustainability and eventually growth. It’s sensual in every sense because it consistently stimulates entities to aim for more (excellence!).
Since an entity’s growth is dependent on how comfortable it is with its current state of affairs and positioning as regards its objectives, it is the resilience of its existing operations and systems that ensures that it is sustainable. Absence of, or deficient systems cannot ensure consistent and standard operations even if they allow a phenomenal run. It would always be a trial run!
Sustainability is about having roots in the ground. Roots that ensure the entities stand tall on foundations that go way deeper, survive turbulence and grow gradually over a period of time. These roots are the systems through which operations happen. Rootless (read system-less) operations are just mock exercises that are neither meant to, nor intended to have a life beyond the mocks!
The components that make up systems are processes (workflows), policies (governing guidelines / Dos & Don’ts), procedures (roles and responsibilities) and resources (people, technology, infrastructure, etc.). These components come together to form a whole, called a system.
And when it comes to the systems, the fundamental systems every entity builds upon are Governance, Risk Management and Controls, the apex amongst these being Governance.
Since it is the system that ensures all other systems are in place, adequate for their purposes and working as intended with independent help from assurance and consulting providers.
One may call the Governance system as the central nervous system of any entity, monitoring, regulating and coordinating activities through all other systems, focused on the entity’s pursuit of its objectives. It does so because it is the system operated by the governing body, i.e., the Board and by virtue of the Board, the owners of the entity.
Being that high up, Governance is the G-Spot! Before this revelation disappoints you (or helps you recover from the sensuality of it all!), let’s understand why governance systems matter the most than others!
The core of Governance is entirely made up of the entity’s ethos. And owing to that, it drives / steers the resources, especially the people, towards the fulfillment of the entity’s objectives. It is these ethos that translate into those fancy values and codes of conduct that are showcased to employees, customers, vendors, and other stakeholders (especially when the entity is trying hard to establish how much it cares and gives back to its operating environment!).
The vision and mission derived from the entity’s purpose are also determined and established through this governance system by the Board. Decoding of the entity’s purpose in the form of objectives for the management and employees is also then driven by this very system by the Board.
And the policing guidelines underneath the values aimed at accomplishing the entity’s objectives are also determined, reviewed and approved by the Boards. Policies are the components through which the incidence of governance is tangibly exercised. The boards comfort themselves that policies governing resources exist and get additional comfort on their compliances and improvement in their efficacy through independent interventions by the auditors.
Now that we’ve established the significance of the G-Spot in an entity’s context (and therefore it’s stimulation for satisfaction and the pleasure seekers alike!), it is time we identify what it takes to stimulate it and how can we ensure we’re always in the spot we desire to be!
As we’ve already covered that the core of the governance is ethos, it is the belief in principles and values of those charged with governance (the board) that is responsible for the governance to accomplish its objectives (steering the entity towards the accomplishment of its overall objectives!).
So, if sustainability is dependent on systems and governance system being the foremost amongst them all, the governance system is about walking the talk on ethics! Because ethics is about responsible behavior. It is about being accountable. It is about upholding trust of all stakeholders. It is about truthfulness and fairness of information. It is about avoidance of the mere impression of conflict of interest. It is about accuracy and completeness of work. It is about all possible disclosures that would be needed, even if detrimental to the interests of the discloser. So on and so forth!
All these are justifications of why governance is needed. Sustainability is governance, governance is ethics!
There’s a reason why ethics is in vogue with the latest craze the world over around sustainability, ESG and AI. The more in demand it is the less in supply it is!
Ethics is the stimulus the G-Spot needs! And as long as fiercely independent professional internal auditors are there for the comfort of the Boards and the confidence of the investors, the stimulants are also present.
So, be it the unpermitted, unlawful recordings of every conversation held, or the undisclosed ‘A’ to ‘Z’ use of AI as against own capabilities, or the unchecked use of privileged client data to train AI models, or the unhindered procurement of resources, or the use of unfair means in recruitment, a count is being kept somewhere!
So, there will be the stimulant, and the G-spot will be stimulated! And you’ll be clueless as ever when we do our thing with stimulus! It will be satisfying and pleasurable!
The stimulus belongs to us, and the G-spot is our undisputed territory!