Can internal audit function impact artificial intelligence? Case of public listed companies of Oman
Ali Rehman, Fathyah Hashim · AIP conference proceedings · 2022
Artificial intelligence is well integrated into the fabric of all organizational operations and internal audit function can impact artificial intelligence in providing better services to organizations and their shareholders. In the current business environment, artificial intelligence can be utilized as a governance management system that can assist organizational management in making well informed and strategic decisions. The purpose of this study is to identify whether internal audit function can impact artificial intelligence or not within Omani public listed companies. For this study, internal audit function is an independent variable and artificial intelligence is the dependent variable. Descriptive cross-sectional survey is utilized with Omani public listed companies as the unit of analysis. Data is collected by internet-based tool and analysed via PLS-SEM and SPSS. Result suggests that the internal audit function has a significant and direct impact on artificial intelligence as evaluations and assessments conducted by artificial intelligence are dependent upon the feed data provided by control activities available within the organization such as the internal audit function. To the best of the knowledge of researchers, this study is distinctive from others because artificial intelligence's support in the context of organizational governance is never being studied before. Contrary to the previous studies, this study emphasizes the fact that artificial intelligence can operate as a support function and as a governance management system working for the organization. This study can assist regulators, professional bodies and organizations in amending their codes of corporate governance and organizational policies by introducing artificial intelligence as a governance management system working for organizational development which can also enhance shareholders’ satisfaction.